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Every TV series that Taylor Sheridan creates turns to gold. Yellowstone’s season 5 premiere was reportedly the most-watched cable premiere since 2017. The Landman season 2 premiere set records by drawing in over 9 million viewers in just forty-eight hours, and the Lioness season 3 trailer has already garnered over eight million views on YouTube in just five days.
But when production began on Dutton Ranch, the Yellowstone sequel spinoff starring Cole Hauser and Kelly Reilly, Sheridan took a more hands-off approach. The series creator served as an executive producer, leaving the heavy work to director Christina Alexandra Voros, the former Yellowstone stars, and a new writers’ room. Not only that, but showrunner Chad Feehan departed the series after reported disputes with creatives on set. According to Hauser, “there were challenges” trying to corral Dutton Ranch into a series worthy of carrying on from the mega-hit Western drama before it.
“Not having Taylor there... Everything had changed,” Hauser told filminsidenyc earlier this week. “The only normality that we had whatsoever was Carter, Christina, Kelly and myself.”
“We worked our a**** off this year—and I don't think a lot of the outside noise or the thought of, like, ‘What's the weight of the show?’ was really apparent to me at the time,” the actor behind Rip Wheeler continued. “We had to figure out on our feet how to really perform and tell a story. So I'm proud of what we accomplished, and I look forward to doing it again.”
Luckily for Hauser, their hard work paid off. After garnering 12.9 million views in its first week, Dutton Ranch became the most successful debut for an original series on Paramount+ since 1923—the streaming service’s prior Yellowstone spinoff. The series is also already renewed for season 2 with a new showrunner on board, SEAL Team’s Benjamin Cavell.
Despite Dutton Ranch’s success, there’s still one bridge left to cross for Sheridan’s series: the Emmys. The annual awards show that recognizes the best actors and creators in TV has repeatedly snubbed Sheridan over the years, even when the actors in his shows turn out critically acclaimed performances. Both Landman and The Madison were snubbed this year, with Dutton Ranch up for potential nominations next cycle.
“The biggest award you can ever get is for a man or woman or a child to come up and say, ‘I watched something, and it affected me,’” Hauser said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter earlier this month. “That’s happened so much throughout the years of doing Yellowstone, and now on Dutton Ranch. Those are the awards I care about. At the end of the day, everybody would love to hold a statue of some kind, but that’s not what drives me whatsoever.”
Production on Dutton Ranch season 2 reportedly begins in February 2027. The upcoming season will have a more involved role in mind for Ed Harris after the star revealed he was disappointed with his character’s direction so far. Season 2 will also continue to tease a potential crossover with Marshals, the Luke Grimes-led Yellowstone spinoff that premiered on CBS shortly before Dutton Ranch.
