Yellowstone, the flagship show of the Yellowstone Universe, ended in December 2024 after five seasons. As the story of the Dutton family played out, audiences met the patriarch, John Dutton (Kevin Costner), his children – Beth (Kelly Reilly), Kayce (Luke Grimes), and Jamie (Wes Bentley) – along with a host of other characters associated with the Yellowstone ranch.
By the time Yellowstone completed its run, only some of the main characters were left standing while others rode off into the sunset to pursue new adventures. The show paid tribute to prequel shows like 1883 and maybe even set up potential sequels, too.
Here’s a look at the fates of Yellowstone’s main characters.
| Character | Actor |
| John Dutton | Kevin Costner |
| Beth Dutton | Kelly Reilly |
| Rip Wheeler | Cole Hauser |
| Jamie Dutton | Wes Bentley |
| Kayce Dutton | Luke Grimes |
| Chief Thomas Rainwater | Gil Birmingham |
| Lloyd Pierce | Forrie J. Smith |
| Colby Mayfield | Denim Richards |
| Teeter | Jennifer Landon |
| Walker | Ryan Bingham |
| Ryan | Ian Bonhen |
John Dutton
During the last season of Yellowstone, John Dutton (Kevin Costner) served as governor of Montana until his assassination. The assassins were hired by Sarah Atwood (Dawn Olivieri) and manipulated the scene to make it look like John had taken his own life. Atwood, a businesswoman who’d cozied up to Jamie Dutton (Wes Bentley), was subsequently killed.
Beth Dutton
As for avenging her father’s death, Beth went after Jamie Dutton (Wes Bentley) — the brother she hated for a host of offenses — attacking him and ultimately stabbing him to death. By the end of the finale, Beth and her husband, Rip (Cole Hauser), have established themselves on a new ranch to pave their way while staying true to their dedication to the land and the ranching way of life.
Rip Wheeler
Rip Wheeler (Cole Hauser) dutifully says goodbye to John Dutton’s casket, telling him:
Thank you. I want you to know, I’ll take care of your daughter. You have my word. I’ll try and love her the same way that she loved you. I’ll see you around.
Rip’s final moments at Yellowstone Ranch, walking on the land and shutting down operations in anticipation of it changing new hands, attest to his love of the land and the Duttons. Before Rip, Beth, and Carter (Finn Little) head to their new land near Bozeman, Montana, Rip helps Beth kill Jamie and then takes Jamie’s body to the “Train Station” to make him disappear forever.
Jamie Dutton
Jamie Dutton (Wes Bentley), the Attorney General of Montana, vows to find out who killed his father — a murder he was party to in many ways. In his constant back and forth with Beth, Jamie finally faces her in one last struggle. Despite Jamie’s hands wrapped around Beth’s neck, Rip arrives. As Rip pulls Jamie off her, he allows Beth to pull out a knife and stab Jamie to death.
Jamie’s end, however, comes at the “Train Station” after Rip dispatches his body there. Jamie is gone, once and for all.
Kayce Dutton
Kayce Dutton (Luke Grimes) has been trying to break out of the confines of the Yellowstone Ranch throughout the show and, in the end, finally manages to do so. Kayce and Beth survey their former home one last time on the heels of negotiations by the former for Yellowstone’s sale. Kayce arranged for Chief Thomas Rainwater (Gill Birmingham) and the Broken Rock Reservation to buy Yellowstone for $1.25 an acre — the same amount the Dutton family paid for it years earlier.
Chief Thomas Rainwater
After going back and forth with the Dutton family for years, Chief Thomas Rainwater (Gil Birmingham) finally takes control of the Yellowstone Ranch. Even during their most antagonistic encounters, Rainwater and the Duttons had the same goal — to honor the land and keep it pristine.
Rainwater intends to do this with it as he and Kayce Dutton negotiate a deal that keeps it out of corporate hands, telling Kayce:
I made a promise to your father once… that I would one day have this land and I would return it to the state that man found it. I would remove any evidence that he had been here. I’m sure he took it as a threat. At the time, that’s how I meant it. But your people are buried in that land. And so are mine. It is sacred. And that’s how we will treat it.
Rainwater reclaims the land for his people and maintains the Dutton family’s legacy, accomplishing the latter by preventing the family graves on the land from being desecrated.
The Yellowstone Cowboys
As Yellowstone Ranch saw its final days, Lloyd Pierce (Forrie J. Smith), Teeter (Jennifer Landon), Walker (Ryan Bingham), and the other cowboys went their separate ways. Colby Mayfield’s (Denim Richards) death earlier in the season left the group in turmoil, especially Teeter, who went to work for Travis Wheatley (Taylor Sheridan) in Texas. Walker left to follow his girlfriend and Ryan decided he would find the woman he was still pining for, too.
Lloyd Pierce retired – largely due to his undying loyalty to John Dutton and Yellowstone – but his next chapter was left wide open.
