‘Marshals’ Showrunner Explains Why Kayce Dutton Had to Be at ‘Rock Bottom’ for ‘Yellowstone’ Spinoff Return

Kayce Dutton’s return to TV came at a big personal cost. 

In the Yellowstone spinoff Marshals, John Dutton’s (Kevin Costner) youngest son embarks on a career in law enforcement after a devastating personal tragedy. His wife Monica (Kelsey Asbille) has died, leaving him a widower with a young son, Tate (Breckin Merrill) to raise.

Luke Grimes says ‘Marshals’ return at Kayce Dutton was ‘daunting’ 

During an appearance at PaleyFest NY on October 10, Luke Grimes, who plays Kayce, weighed in on how difficult it was for him to reprise his Yellowstone role in Marshals, which recently began its season 2 run on CBS. 

“The thought of doing the show without Monica or Kelsey… it was very daunting at first,” Grimes said. “I couldn’t wrap my head around what that would be like.”

However, Grimes acknowledged that while he might have wanted a positive ending for his Yellowstone character, that wouldn’t have made for a compelling show. “Watching people live a happy life is not super dramatic or entertaining,” he said. 

Marshals showrunner and executive producer Spencer Hudnut also commented on the decision to kill off Monica ahead of the series premiere. 

“We had to put Kayce at rock bottom to get to wear the badge again,” he said. 

Grimes added that Hudnut’s enthusiasm for exploring what was next for Kayce made him agree to return for the spinoff.  

“I just remember I really liked Spencer I could tell he was a really intelligent guy and he was passionate about the project,” he said. “That was a really big reason why I decided to do the show.” 

Kayce wrestles with his feelings about his late father in ‘Marshals’ Season 2 

Season 2 of Marshals will dive deeper into Kayce’s complicated feelings about his late father, which resurface now that Tate is close to becoming an adult. 

“A big part of Kayce’s arc in season 2 is this father-son relationship dynamic with his own father and dealing with that,” Grimes told TV Insider. “[He’s] dealing with the fact that Tate’s about to turn 18, and who he’s gonna become, and what he’s gonna wanna do, which we find out through the season. There’s a lot of butting heads with those two, kind of how you saw with Kayce and John.”

Kayce is “wrestling with the father-son dynamic,” the actor added. “And what kind of father he wants to be versus the father that he had.”

Marshals airs Sunday, October 18 at 8:30 p.m. ET/PT on CBS; it returns to its regular 8 p.m. timeslot on October 25. Episodes stream on Paramount+, live and on-demand for Paramount+ Premium plan subscribers, or on-demand for Paramount+ Essential subscribers the day after the episode airs.

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