Even The 1923 Cast Is Confused By The Relations In The Yellowstone Universe
Ever since "Yellowstone" – the neo-Western drama series about the ranch-owning Dutton family, created by Taylor Sheridan and John Linson — premiered on Paramount Network in June of 2018, it has only garnered more and more popularity. Now in the midst of its fifth season, the second half of the series is set to premiere sometime in 2023 (the first half began airing in November 2022). But, there is plenty of other "Yellowstone" content to consume while the series is on hiatus because, seeing as the show is so popular, it has already spawned multiple spin-offs.
The first spin-off, a limited series prequel titled "1883" and starring Sam Elliot, Tim McGraw, and Faith Hill, premiered in December 2021. "1883" was then followed up by another prequel series, "1923," which stars Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren and is in the midst of its first season, having premiered in December 2022. Two more spinoff series, "6666" and "1883: The Bass Reeves Story," are currently in the works.
Both spinoffs that have already premiered, "1883" and "1923," are an expansion into the Dutton family history. "1883" showcases the lives of James (McGraw) and Margaret Dutton (Hill), the great-grandparents of "Yellowstone" main character John Dutton III (Kevin Costner), while "1923" focuses on Jacob Dutton (Ford), who is the brother of James, along with his wife Cara (Mirren). It's so much family history to take in and keep straight that one may need an entire family tree explanation.
And it's not just viewers who may need a family tree diagram — the cast of "1923" have admitted to needing one themselves.
The cast had a running joke about keeping track of characters' lineage
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, "1923" actor James Badge Dale, who plays John Dutton Sr. (the nephew of Harrison Ford's Jacob Dutton), opened up about the cast's struggle to keep the family lineage straight. For Dale, he knows that he's the nephew of Ford's character, as well as the fact that his character is married to Emma (Marley Shelton) and is the father of Jack (Darren Mann), but struggles beyond that.
Dale said, "I don't know the tree. This was the running joke. Harrison and I would be like, 'I think we're related, I don't know how.' We all need a flow chart." The actor then revealed that he has looked at fan-made flow charts, but isn't sure if those are entirely accurate. Plus, he pointed out how there's really only one person that the cast can trust to accurately tell them who is related to who.
Dale continued, "Here's the thing, this is Taylor [Sheridan]'s universe. We could be saying one thing or thinking one thing, and Taylor can decide something else and we'll be watching '1943' and realize it's a little different and he'll change it up."
"1923" episodes air on Paramount+ on Sundays.