In Yellowstone‘s series finale, “Life Is a Promise,” Kayce Dutton finally discards his role as Livestock Commissioner after selling the Yellowstone Ranch to Thomas Rainwater (Gil Birmingham) and the Broken Rock Tribe. Dutton throws his badge into a field, signaling that he is leaving a life of danger and violence behind him. Later, the father buys livestock with Tate, and we see the whole clan saddle up. The ending suggests a simple lifestyle for Kayce, giving the impression that Dutton will stick to his small ranching operation at East Camp.
Kayce Dutton’s story will continue in a Yellowstone spinoff on CBS, tentatively titled Y: Marshals. The natural continuation of Kayce’s ending, building on in Yellowstone season 5’s finale, would be running his ranching operation, or perhaps putting his life on the line for the Broken Rock Tribe as they battle the development of a pipeline on the reservation. However, according to the official description, Dutton will step back into the line of fire as a US Marshal, meaning his respite from a life-threatening lifestyle won’t last. Read the official logline below:
With the Yellowstone Ranch behind him, Dutton joins an elite unit of U.S. Marshals, combining his skills as a cowboy and Navy SEAL to bring range justice to Montana, where he and his teammates must balance family, duty and the high psychological cost that comes with serving as the last line of defense in the region’s war on violence.
According to the official logline for Y: Marshals, Dutton will serve as “the last line of defense in the region’s war on violence.” Kayce will return to an elite team, utilizing his Navy SEAL background, and balance his family life with the psychological cost of his work. Notwithstanding his Yellowstoneseason 5 ending, it sounds like Kayce’s new job is just as dangerous as Livestock Commissioner, a position he had freed himself from to ensure that he could live in harmony with the duty he felt to protect Tate and Monica.