The Duttonverse Family Tree
Confused by the Dutton family lineage? Here's how the characters of Yellowstone and its spin-offs are all related to each other.
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It’s hard to fathom that what once started as a modernized Western about a powerful Montana ranching family has expanded into five different television series and a history as expansive as the MCU.
Created by Taylor Sheridan, origin series Yellowstone premiered in 2018, following the life of patriarch John Dutton (Kevin Costner) as he fought to protect the titular ranch while navigating threats from developers, politicians, neighboring Indigenous tribes, and even his own children. The series became a ratings juggernaut, spawning a variety of spin-off shows that stretch across more than a century of Dutton family history.
The family’s perilous journey West in the series 1883 and the Prohibition-era struggles the Duttons faced in 1923 gave audiences a look at the Duttons of the past. Yellowstone brought us to the modern age, and the series Marshals and Dutton Ranch show us the future. Each new installment reveals another branch of the Dutton lineage, the franchise building one of television’s richest fictional family trees. Here’s a complete guide to the Dutton family tree and how each generation, and character, connects.
[Warning: Some descriptions below contain spoilers]
James Dutton (Tim McGraw, 1883)
James Dutton (Tim McGraw) is the overarching patriarch of the Dutton family, establishing what would eventually become the original Yellowstone Ranch. One of two Dutton sons, James left New York in search of greater opportunities, eventually meeting and marrying Margaret prior to fighting for the Confederacy in the Civil War and spending three years as a POW. After the war, James reunited with Margaret in 1865, had two children — Elsa and John Dutton I — and the whole family headed west along the Oregon Trail, eventually settling in Paradise Valley in Montana, where James and Margaret would later have a third child, Spencer.
Margaret Dutton (Faith Hill, 1883)
The matriarch of the Dutton family, Margaret (Faith Hill) served as a nurse for the Confederate Army during the Civil War and later farmed alongside her husband in Tennessee. She set out with James and their two children on the Oregon trail, eventually settling in Montana and having a third child.
Claire nee Dutton (Dawn Olivieri, 1883)
The only sister of James and Jacob Dutton, little is known about Claire’s (Dawn Olivieri) marriage to Henry Dutton, who died shortly before the events of 1883. His death left Claire without financial security, prompting her and teenage daughter Mary Abel to join James Dutton’s journey west.
Elsa Dutton (Isabel May, 1883)
Elsa Dutton (Isabel May) is the eldest child of James and Margaret Dutton and the narrator of both 1883 and 1923. While traveling west with her parents, she falls in love with cowboy Ennis, only to lose him when he is killed by bandits. Later, she meets and falls deeply in love with Comanche warrior Sam (Martin Sensmeier).
Mary Abel Dutton (Emma Malouff, 1883)
The daughter of Claire and Henry Dutton and the niece of James and Jacob Dutton, Mary Abel (Emma Malouff) is the youngest and only surviving child of Claire’s seven children. She was raised to embody the values of a proper Southern lady. After her father’s death, she and her mother join James Dutton’s wagon train in search of a new life in the West.
Jacob Dutton (Harrison Ford, 1923)
Jacob (Harrison Ford) is James Dutton’s younger brother and the first U.S.-born member of the Dutton family after their parents emigrated from the United Kingdom. Jacob built a life in New York where he met and married Cara during the Civil War. In 1893, Jacob journeyed to Montana to assume leadership of the fledgling Yellowstone homestead. Over the next three decades, Jacob transforms James’ modest 160-acre claim into one of the largest and most powerful ranches in Montana and establishes the Montana Livestock Association.
Cara Dutton (Helen Mirren, 1923)
Originally from Ireland, Cara (Helen Mirren) married Jacob around the time of the events in 1883. When Jacob and James’ son John are ambushed by rival rancher Banner Creighton (Jerome Flynn), Cara assumes leadership of the ranch and sends word to her nephew Spencer, John’s brother, to return from Africa and take over the Dutton legacy.
John Dutton Sr./I (James Badge Dale, 1923)
The eldest son of James and Margaret Dutton, John Dutton I is introduced as a young boy in 1883. At five years old, John journeys west with his parents and older sister Elsa. He grows into a respected rancher (played by James Badge Dale in 1923), working alongside his uncle Jacob to expand and protect the Yellowstone while raising a family of his own with his wife, Emma, with whom he has a son, Jack.
Spencer Dutton (Brandon Sklenar, 1923)
Born after the Dutton family settled in Montana, Spencer (Brandon Sklenar) is the youngest son of James and Margaret Dutton. As an adult, Spencer enlisted in the U.S. Army during World War I, serving with the American Expeditionary Force and earning the Congressional Medal of Honor. Unable to find peace after the war, he remains in Africa and becomes a renowned big-game hunter while battling alcoholism, until he meets Alexandra, a British aristocrat who abandons her fiancé to follow Spencer.
Alexandra Dutton (Julia Schlaepfer, 1923)
Alex (Julia Schlaepfer) is a British aristocrat and former member of the royal family. Alex first meets Spencer while on safari in Kenya with her fiancé Arthur, the son of the Earl of Sussex. She abandons her privileged life to accompany Spencer on a dangerous hunting expedition across Africa. The two fall in love and soon elope, eventually giving birth to their son, John Dutton II.
Emma Dutton (Marley Shelton, 1923)
Emma (Marley Shelton) is the wife of John Dutton I and the mother of Jack Dutton. She is severely affected by Banner Creighton’s attack on John and his uncle Jacob.
Jack Dutton (Darren Mann, 1923)
Jack (Darren Mann) is the son of John Dutton I and Emma Dutton. Jack was raised by his father, John, and great-uncle Jacob. Engaged to Elizabeth Strafford, the daughter of a neighboring rancher, their wedding is repeatedly postponed as Jack prioritizes his responsibilities to the Yellowstone.
Elizabeth Strafford nee Dutton (Michelle Randolph, 1923)
Elizabeth (Michelle Randolph) is the daughter of rancher Bob Strafford and the wife of Jack Dutton. Educated on the east coast, Elizabeth returns to Montana to marry Jack, her childhood sweetheart, but their plans are repeatedly delayed by the escalating range war between the Duttons and Banner Creighton’s sheepherders.
John Dutton III (Kevin Costner, Yellowstone)
John Dutton III (Kevin Costner) is the son of John Dutton II and the grandson of Spencer and Alexandra Dutton. On his father’s final ride through the Yellowstone, John promised he would never allow anyone to take even an inch of the family’s land. Alongside his wife, Evelyn, John raised four children — Lee, Jamie (who is adopted), Beth, and Kayce — until Evelyn’s death in a horseback riding accident.
John becomes one of Montana’s most influential figures, serving as the state’s Livestock Commissioner. When his eldest son and intended heir, Lee, is killed during a cattle dispute, John must rely on his estranged living children to secure the ranch’s future.
John Dutton II (1923 and Yellowstone)
The son of Spencer and Alexandra Dutton, father of John Dutton III, and the patriarch who bridges the gap between the events of 1923 and Yellowstone. (He’s only glimpsed as an infant in 1923 and an elderly man played by Dabney Coleman in Yellowstone flashbacks.) Named in honor of his uncle, who was murdered the year before his birth, John Dutton II was delivered three months early after his mother suffered severe frostbite. He would go on to be raised by his great-aunt Cara while his father, Spencer, assumed leadership of Yellowstone.
He and his wife welcomed two sons — John Dutton III and Peter — but Peter died less than two days after his birth. His wife is never named and it’s said she died sometime before he did. Following Spencer’s death in 1969, John inherited the Yellowstone Ranch, eventually retiring and passing leadership to his son, John III, before dying of cancer.
Peter Dutton (Yellowstone)
Peter Dutton is the youngest son of John Dutton II and his wife, and the younger brother of John Dutton III. Peter was born prematurely and lived for only eighteen hours.
Evelyn Dutton (Gretchen Mol, Yellowstone)
The late wife of John Dutton III and the mother of Lee, Jamie, Beth, and Kayce, Evelyn (Gretchen Mol) appears only in flashbacks throughout Yellowstone. Described as the love of John’s life, Evelyn died during a horseback ride with Beth and Kayce.
Lee Dutton (Dave Annable, Yellowstone)
Lee (Dave Annable) is the eldest child of John and Evelyn Dutton and the original heir of the Yellowstone Ranch. After cattle belonging to the Duttons are driven onto the Broken Rock Reservation, Lee joins the ranch hands and members of the Montana Livestock Association to recover them. Lee ends up shot in a confrontation over the herd and is mortally wounded. Lee’s younger brother, Kayce kills the shooter, but Lee dies from his injuries. His demise is the inciting incident in the Yellowstone pilot.
Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly, Yellowstone/Dutton Ranch)
Beth (Kelly Reilly) is the only daughter of John and Evelyn Dutton. Beth builds a career as the head of acquisitions at a financial firm called Schwartz & Meyer, earning a reputation as a ruthless corporate strategist willing to destroy anyone who threatens her family’s interests. The guilt of Evelyn’s death haunts Beth into adulthood, leading her down a path of lifelong dependence on alcohol and self-destructive behavior, but she remains fiercely devoted to her father. She has had a complicated romantic history with ranch hand Rip Wheeler, which evolves over the course of the Yellowstone and continues into the events of Dutton Ranch.
Rip Wheeler (Cole Hauser, Yellowstone/Dutton Ranch)
The longtime foreman and enforcer of the Yellowstone, Rip (Cole Hauser) arrives at the ranch as a traumatized teen after killing his abusive father. He is discovered hiding in one of the Yellowstone barns by John, who takes him in. Over the years, Rip becomes John’s trusted lieutenant, serving as ranch foreman and protector. His romance with Beth begins when they are teens, surviving decades of heartbreak, separation, and personal trauma. Together they become surrogate parents to Carter.
Carter (Finn Little, Yellowstone/Dutton Ranch)
Beth first meets Carter (Finn Little) outside a hospital where his father is dying; and, seeing something of herself in him, becomes involved in his life, ultimately leading to Beth and Rip taking on the role of Carter’s surrogate parents.
Jamie Dutton (Wes Bentley, Yellowstone)
Jamie Dutton (Wes Bentley) is the adoptive son of John and Evelyn Dutton. Unlike the rest of the Dutton children, Jamie has little interest in ranching and attends law school to become an accomplished attorney. He eventually runs for the position of Montana’s Attorney General and enters into a relationship with campaign aide named Christina, with whom he fathers a son.
James Dutton II
The son of Jamie and Christina. Not much is known about him aside from his name.
Kayce Dutton (Luke Grimes, Yellowstone/Marshals)
The youngest child of John and Evelyn Dutton, Kayce (Luke Grimes) is a decorated former U.S. Navy SEAL. He is estranged from his family due to his marriage to Monica Long, a teacher from the Broken Rock Reservation, and his refusal to raise their son, Tate, within the Yellowstone’s world. He eventually reconciles with John and returns to the Yellowstone, serving as Montana’s Livestock Commissioner until circumstances lead to him joining an elite Montana task force of U.S. Marshals.
Monica Long nee Dutton (Kelsey Asbille, Yellowstone)
Monica (Kelsey Asbille) is the wife of Kayce Dutton. Raised on the reservation, Monica builds a career as an educator before pursuing a doctorate and later joining the faculty at Montana State University. Her brother Robert is among those lost during the conflict that claims Lee Dutton’s life, and she eventually moves to the Yellowstone to join Kayce with their son Tate.
Tate Dutton (Brecken Merrill, Yellowstone/Marshals)
Tate (Brecken Merrill) is Kayce and Monica Dutton’s only child.
John Dutton IV
During the fifth season of Yellowstone, Monica goes into premature labor and then suffers further complications after getting into a car accident on the way to the hospital. Kayce and Monica’s second son only survived an hour after his birth.
