- While Yellowstone season 5 is supposedly the flagship series‘ final instalment, there’s been evidence to suggest Yellowstone season 6 is on the way. Or at the very least, some form of it.
- An off-shoot centred on Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) and Rip Wheeler (Cole Hauser) is being developed to carry the post-Kevin Costner era, though it won’t be branded as a sixth season.
- In addition to this, the Yellowstone cinematic universe will live on through several franchise spin-offs: the ongoing prequel 1923, sequel series The Madison, as well as works-in-progress 6666 and 1944.
Now that Yellowstone season 5B has officially wrapped up, the question of whether fans can expect Yellowstone season 6 has a newfound sense of urgency.
For context, in light of the extremely public divorce between co-creator Taylor Sheridan and leading man Kevin Costner — which culminated in the latter’s John Dutton III being assassinated onscreen — the fifth season was styled as the main show’s closing chapter; having originally mapped out a seven-season plan.
But fans had theorised Yellowstone season 6 was still quietly in the works.
Speculation reached a fever pitch thanks to a teaser trailer for the last episode, wherein the announcer can be heard saying, “Only one episode left until the season finale of Yellowstone.” (Note the use of “season finale” as opposed to “series finale.”)
Here’s everything we actually know about Yellowstone season 6.
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Has Yellowstone season 6 been confirmed? Yes and no
While a batch of episodes officially marketed as Yellowstone season 6 has not been confirmed, the flagship series’ storyline will indeed continue.
In May 2023, after the dust of Kevin Costner’s exit had settled, Paramount announced the neo-western megahit was officially coming to an end with a sequel property set to take its place.
“Yellowstone has been the cornerstone on which we have launched an entire universe of global hits — from 1883 to Tulsa King,” said Chris McCarthy, President & CEO of Showtime and MTV Entertainment Studios.
“And I am confident our Yellowstone sequel will be another big hit, thanks to the brilliant creative mind of Taylor Sheridan and our incredible casts who bring these shows to life.”
David Glasser, CEO of 101 Studios, added: “The Dutton story continues, picking up where Yellowstone leaves off in another epic tale. We are thrilled to bring this new journey to audiences around the world.”
The first sequel series — previously to be fronted by Matthew McConaughey — is a spin-off starring Michelle Pfeiffer, dubbed The Madison. Though it’s unclear how much this will carry from the flagship (more on this later).
The sequel that fans really care about — and will naturally segue from the season 5 finale onwards — is the Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) and Rip Wheeler (Cole Hauser) series currently in development.
There were industry whispers about such a project this past August when Puck‘s Matthew Belloni indicated the fan-favourite screen couple were in talks to take over as the new series leads. On December 2024, Deadline confirmed Taylor Sheridan was indeed cooking a Beth and Rip “off-shoot.”
“It’ll likely feature other cast members from the mothership series alongside Reilly and Hauser, I hear,” explained Nellie Andreeva of the prolific entertainment publication.
“Led by Yellowstone characters played by the same actors in the same present-day time frame, the new offshoot shares the most DNA with the mothership of any shows in the Yellowstone universe to date, which explains why it will be the first spinoff to carry Yellowstone in the title, sources said.”
Funnily enough, there is a strategic advantage to the Beth and Rip show being packaged as something other than Yellowstone season 6 — even if it is functionally a sixth season.
Given the flagship series’ ongoing exclusive streaming deal with NBCUniversal’s Peacock — which predated the arrival of Paramount+; and is somewhat mirrored by Stan’s exclusive claim here in Australia — continuing Yellowstone under a different name would effectively allow Paramount to keep the new episodes within the company’s ecosystem; as opposed to sharing the goods as they have been.
Let’s just hope this bit of legal judo won’t lead Paramount to another multi-million-dollar lawsuit vis-à-vis South Park.
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There has always been a strong case for season 6 (and whatever its future equivalents may be) to be greenlit by Paramount. Even without Kevin Costner. And it has everything to do with the monstrous viewership numbers that Yellowstone continues to command across the board.
In keeping with the franchise’s enviable track record of seating bums on couches, the long-anticipated return via season 5B attracted 16.4 million viewers (the largest first-night audience in the show’s history)… before we factor in streaming analytics and markets outside of the US.
“[The premiere] audience comes in a little bit ahead of the season 5 premiere in November 2022, which set a then-record for Yellowstone with 15.9 million viewers, per VideoAmp,” explained Rick Porter of The Hollywood Reporter.
“Nielsen had that episode at 12.1 million same-day viewers on Paramount Network, including encores, and 14.9 million across all networks.”
Translation: it’d be foolish to kill your golden goose.
What could the sixth season of Yellowstone be about?
For all intents and purposes, “Yellowstone season 6″ will simply be the Beth and Rip show. Which opens some exciting story possibilities.
“You can go on forever about these two. There’s no walls when it comes to them, no limits,” said Cole Hauser himself, who has consistently expressed interest in further exploring Beth and Rip.
Though when prompted about specifics, the leading man remained quite tight-lipped.
“I think America has spoken. They still love the show,” Hauser explained to People.
“There’s obviously just tons of people that every Sunday get together with their families, and we give them the experience of taking ’em out of their own living rooms and putting ’em in Montana and entertaining them. And I think ultimately it’s just that simple.”
Kelly Reilly has similarly given very little away, bidding farewell to the flagship series in a recent Instagram post.
“Hi, I’m so deep into another role at the moment about another land worth fighting for in the UK. But across the pond, the finale is happening tonight… Whatever the future holds, this is the ending of the show we have been making for the past 7 years,” wrote Reilly.
She added: “Words cannot convey how I feel about the people I got to work and create with over the seasons. I have made true lifelong friends. The support from the crew and the trust and dedication of the cast. The words I got to say and the woman I got to inhabit. It changed me. It lit me up It challenged me in every way possible and I will forever be grateful for it.”
“For Taylor Sheridan who took a chance on me and continued to write her in ways I got to feel on fire as an actor. Thank you Taylor. Thank you the audience we made it for, for being on this journey with us. We really cared about making something special for you all… Enjoy tonight.”
Texas and the Four Sixes Ranch seems to be a viable frontrunner if a change of scenery is on the cards. Especially considering all the narrative set-up and backdoor piloting for the 6666 spin-off that’s been happening.
Whatever the case, the wider story (and the Yellowstone franchise as a whole) will also continue via these other spin-offs…
The Madison
Michelle Pfeiffer stars as wealthy matriarch Stacy Clyburn, who moves her family from NYC to Montana “in the wake of her husband and brother-in-law’s tragic deaths in a plane crash.” Suits alum Patrick J. Adams and Beau Garrett are also set to appear.
As mentioned earlier, this spiritual sequel was initially in talks to be led by Matthew McConaughey, and at one point, Kurt Russell was also in the conversation; though that’s obviously since fallen through.
Cameras officially began rolling back in August 2024 in Montana, New York, and Texas with the expectation of a premier sometime in 2025.
6666
A present-day story about the legendary Four Sixes Ranch in Texas — which Taylor Sheridan owns in real life, because of course he does — backdoor piloted by the season 4 story arc of Jimmy Hurdstrom (Jefferson White), and built upon by the interstate arc heavily featured throughout season 5.
If Beth and Rip don’t stay in Montana, they’ll probably end up here (or Texas adjacent).
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1923
The prequel starring Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren that follows the concluded 1883, centred upon a generation of the Dutton family during the titular year — a time of great hardships ranging from Prohibition, drought, and the early days of the Great Depression, which impacted Montana long before the Wall Street Crash of 1929.
In the first season:
- Spencer Dutton (Brandon Sklenar) was jettisoned from the ship taking him back to Dutton Ranch, where he’s desperately needed to fight off those who would take it from his family, after acting in self-defence against the former fiancée of his wife Alexandra (Julia Schlaepfer); the newlyweds now forcibly separated.
- Back on the home front, it was revealed that villainous tycoon Donald Whitfield (Timothy Dalton) had taken advantage of the law to assume control of Dutton Ranch by paying the outstanding property tax; should Cara (Mirren) and Jacob Dutton (Ford) fail to repay him within the year, the deed for the coveted land will default into Mr Whitfield’s possession.
- At the same time, Teonna Rainwater (Aminah Nieves) is on the run from both the sadistic Catholic church and US Marshal Kent (Jamie McShane) with a trail of bodies in her wake.
1923 season 2 hits Paramount+ on February 23rd, 2025.
1944
Another prequel detailing the Dutton family’s troubled origins, picking up where 1923 eventually leaves off. Fun fact: prior to Kevin Costner’s exit, there were also discussions about a prequel set in the ’80s centred upon young John Dutton III.
Do we know the Yellowstone season 6 cast?
Currently, there are far too many unknowns to determine who will be featured in Yellowstone season 6. Aside from Kelly Reilly and Cole Hauser, which essentially guarantees Beth’s survival from the long-building showdown between her and faux brother Jamie (Wes Bentley).
Canonically, the family trust leaves everything to Tate (Brecken Merrill) — son of Kayce (Luke Grimes) and Monica Dutton (Kelsey Asbille) — so unless something drastic occurs in the forthcoming season/series finale ‘Life Is A Promise,; this trio will likely make an appearance as well.
Lloyd Pierce (Forrie J. Smith) and Carter (Finn Little) are also in line to remain with Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, whereas the other hands will soon be forced to find new jobs in defiance of what their brandings are meant to entail. Lloyd, however, seems primed for an emotional send-off based on what we’ve seen in the finale previews.
Let’s see how many players get knocked off the chessboard, shall we?
When is the Yellowstone season 6 release date?
Given the hypothetical nature of Yellowstone season 6 at the time of this writing (also known as the Beth and Rip spin-off), there isn’t a release date.
Assuming it’s greenlit by Paramount in the coming six months, a fresh batch of episodes could feasibly premiere as early as mid-to-late 2026.
Is there a Yellowstone season 6 trailer?
Similar to the release date, there definitely isn’t a trailer for Yellowstone season 6, either.
Keep an eye out for updates here.
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