When is Dutton Ranch Set? The New Yellowstone Spinoff's Timeline, Explained
With the freshly released Dutton Ranch expanding the story Yellowstone set in motion, Taylor Sheridan’s cowboy kingdom is now even bigger.
The new series sees Beth Dutton, her husband Rip Wheeler, and their (unofficially) adopted son Carter making a fresh start of things in Texas, away from the stress of their past life in Montana. Alongside those familiar faces, there are new additions among the Dutton Ranch cast, including Hollywood heavyweights Ed Harris and Annette Bening.
With so many different Yellowstone spinoffs out there now, keeping track of the timeline is harder than wrangling cattle. So, let us clear it all up for you and break down exactly when Dutton Ranch takes place.
Dutton Ranch Picks Up Where Yellowstone Left Off
Thankfully, if the events of the Yellowstone finale are still fresh in your mind, you’ll find it really easy to dive into Dutton Ranch. The first scene of the new show follows on rather neatly from there – and it’s absolute chaos. After that, we move forward six months and find ourselves in Texas, where Beth, Rip, and Carter attempt a fresh start 2.0 at another ranch.
Essentially, Dutton Ranch takes place in the present day (though no specific dates are mentioned), and there are no significant time-jumps that take the show outside of that window.
Marshals Puts Kayce Dutton in the Same Time Period
While Beth and Rip are down in Texas laying the foundations for their future, Kayce Dutton has remained in Montana and has joined law enforcement in Marshals.
That spinoff also takes place in the present day, in which Luke Grimes reprises his role as the Yellowstone character, with his son, Tate (Brecken Merrill), alongside him. We also see Chief Thomas Rainwater (Gil Birmingham) and his right-hand man, Mo (Mo Brings Plenty), back after having supporting roles in the original show.
With both Dutton Ranch and Marshals being set in the present, there’s always a chance that we’ll see a crossover between the two shows at some point in the future. A Beth and Kayce reunion makes a lot of sense and would be very satisfying for fans of the shows.
Full Yellowstone Timeline, Explained
There have now been six Yellowstone shows to date, including the original series. Thankfully, a couple of the spin-offs make it really obvious where they fall in the viewing order due to their titles being the year they’re set in. As for the rest, it’s slightly less clear but not hard to work out.
The spinoff 1883 comes first in the Yellowstone timeline – and it’s also, technically, the best show Taylor Sheridan has produced, if you ask me. It’s thematically rich with a story about migration and concepts of belonging, survival, and accepting other cultures. It’s also beautifully shot, features brilliant acting, and is very emotional.
You would follow that up by watching 1923, the spinoff starring Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren. There are two seasons of this show, and while the first takes a little while to really get going, the follow-up is a lot stronger. This series is a great precursor to the main show, too, as it reveals just how hard the Dutton family has fought to keep its land.
The main Yellowstone show is next in the timeline, with events taking place between 2018 and 2024 (aside from a few flashbacks here and there). If you like soap operas and family drama, mixed with a bit of grit and violence and the odd horse-riding montage, you’ll absolutely love Yellowstone. You could very easily watch this series on its own and not need to watch the spinoffs, but where’s the fun in that?
Since the main show ended, Taylor Sheridan has released three new spinoffs, all of which take place in the present day. We’ve already discussed Marshals and Dutton Ranch, which run concurrently and are set directly after the main show. It’s safe to assume that around a year or so has passed since the Yellowstone finale, but no exact timeframe is given.
Finally, there’s The Madison, which also takes place in 2026. Starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Kurt Russell, this show is very loosely connected to Yellowstone, as their characters arrive in Montana looking for their own fresh start. There is no explicit link to the main timeline or other spinoffs, but it’s worth watching for the wider context of the world Sheridan has created.
Yellowstone shows in chronological order:
1883
1923
Yellowstone
Marshals
Dutton Ranch
The Madison
