Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2’s tagline is, “generations of blood have led to this.” Indeed, Yellowstone and its two spinoff prequels, 1883 and 1923, have shown the Dutton family’s lives on the ranch dating back to when the family home was first built. 1883 shows how they came to Montana from Tennessee, 1923 shows them protecting the property through the difficulties of the Great Depression, and Yellowstone is the modern-day display of the slowly dying ranching way of life.
1923 Season 1 will have its network debut on Sunday, December 8 after the penultimate episode of Yellowstone Season 5. Ahead of its Paramount Network debut and the 1923 Season 2 premiere on Sunday, February 23, 2025 on Paramount+, now’s as good a time as any to take a look into the Dutton family tree. We’ve compiled the many generations of Duttons in the graphic below to help you keep track of their lineage while watching Yellowstone and its spinoffs.
You’ll see that some characters, like John Dutton III’s (Kevin Costner) mother, don’t have photos or aren’t named. That’s because the character names have never been revealed and/or they’ve never been an onscreen character. Oddly enough, Yellowstone has never revealed the name of John III’s mother, but we do know that she and her husband had a second baby who died just hours after his birth. That baby’s name was Peter, as John revealed in Yellowstone Season 5 Part 1.
You’ll also see below that Dawn Olivieri, who plays Sarah Atwood in Yellowstone, is among the 1883 characters. Yes, she played a Dutton sibling before she ever played a Dutton enemy! Olivieri can be seen as Claire in 1883, sister to James (Tim McGraw) and Jacob Dutton (Harrison Ford).
The Dutton Family Tree
Paramount Network; Paramount+; TV Insider
1923 shows the generation of Duttons that John Dutton II (father of John Dutton III) was born into. His birth (and the identity of his parents) will presumably be revealed in 1923 Season 2. John Dutton II is seen at the end of his life in Yellowstone, played by the late Dabney Coleman (who died in May 2024).
1883 tells the story of how the Dutton Yellowstone ranch was founded, with the person responsible for their landing place being the central character of the limited series. Elsa Dutton (Isabel May), the firstborn child of James (McGraw) and Margaret Dutton (Faith Hill), was the reason why the family made Montana their home. Elsa’s little brother was the first John Dutton, seen as a young child in 1883 (played by Audie Rick) and an adult in 1923 (played by James Badge Dale). The adult version got a name change in 1923 to John Dutton I, implying that there would be a child named after him. Since that child is named John Dutton II and not Jr., that means John I and wife Emma (Marley Shelton) aren’t the parents.
Season 1 established that John Dutton II’s parents could either be John and Emma’s son, Jack (Darren Mann), and his wife, Elizabeth (Michelle Randolph), or Elsa and John I’s younger brother, Spencer (Brandon Sklenar), and his wife, Alexandra (Julia Schlaepfer). Since 1923 seems to be following 1883‘s structure of centering the character who will have the greatest impact on the Dutton legacy, and Spencer and Alex’s storyline drives the narrative forward more than Jack and Elizabeth’s, we’re betting that Spencer and Alex are John Dutton III’s grandparents. That’s why we’ve placed John II under Spencer and Alex, but with a grey instead of black line to denote that his parentage is presumed but unconfirmed.
Study the Dutton family tree with the graphic above as the family’s history continues to unfold in the past and present.
Yellowstone, Sundays, 8/7c, Paramount Network
1923, Season 1 Network Debut, Sunday, 9/8c, Paramount Network
1923, Season 2 Premiere, Sunday, February 23, 2025, Paramount+