Kayce Dutton’s Yellowstone Spin-Off Can Fix the Original Series’ Major Mistake With This Character’s Return

After the end of Yellowstone, there were a handful of characters whose fates were left up to the wind. While many of the main Duttons were almost instantly confirmed to be returning for more, others, like Gil Birmingham‘s Thomas Rainwater, were given happy endings and moved on from altogether. Whether you expected him to show up in the series or not, it’s been confirmed that Birmingham will be returning on CBS’s upcoming Y: Marshals as a part of the main cast. For longtime Yellowstone fans who felt like Rainwater was always underutilized on the show, this is nothing but good news.

Thomas Rainwater Never Got His Due on ‘Yellowstone’

Image via Paramount

While Taylor Sheridan often took great care to speak about Native American issues throughout the Yellowstone saga, the truth is that Thomas Rainwater rarely had anything to do. Sure, the Broken Rock tribal leader finally accomplished what he set out to in the neo-Western’s early years, but that was only in the show’s closing moments. Aside from occasional scenes with John Dutton (Kevin Costner), Monica (Kelsey Asbille), and even Kayce (Luke Grimes), Birmingham’s character often just stood around and waxed poetic about the state of his people and the land. Yes, he had some great lines, and we always love seeing Birmingham on the screen, but he rarely ever added to the plot in a meaningful or profound way, save for the series’ end. For many, it was a bit tragic that such a phenomenal actor like Birmingham, who had given remarkable performances in previous Sheridan tales, Hell or High Water and Wind River, always felt a bit flatter on Yellowstone. This is no fault of the actor, who always commanded the screen, but rather a failure of the writing.

Now, with the news that Thomas Rainwater will be coming to Y: Marshals as a series regular, the new CBS ensemble appears to be making moves to change all that. TV Line has reported that Birmingham (along with Mo Brings Plenty and Brecken Merrill) will be returning as Thomas Rainwater, and we’re overjoyed at the news. While the other two stars will return as Mo and Kayce’s son, Tate, respectively, Rainwater’s return comes as an exciting twist. After spending years fighting against the Duttons, only to eventually side with them in the battle for Paradise Valley, one has to wonder what Y: Marshals intends to do with the character that would set his story apart from what we saw previously in the land-grabbing plots of Yellowstone. Considering this series is reportedly a procedural rather than your standard “prestige TV,” the tone of the project will likely be quite different from what we’re used to seeing on Sheridan’s original drama.

‘Y:Marshals’ Could Give Rainwater More Interesting Material Than ‘Yellowstone’ Ever Did

Image via Paramount Network

Hopefully, Y: Marshals will lean a bit further into Rainwater’s role as a tribal leader on the Broken Rock Reservation. Now that the Rez has been extended to include the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, it may give Rainwater the opportunity to find new ways to expand and renovate the Rez beyond the oil pipeline plot of Yellowstone‘s fifth and final season. In a post-John Dutton world, Rainwater may be able to make something of the land by keeping the integrity of it but leveraging it for the sake of his people, maybe in the same vein as the real-life ranch behind Yellowstone‘s iconic visuals. Alternatively, perhaps his role on Y: Marshals has nothing to do with the land at all, but rather the deeper issues of reservation life and politics. Perhaps the series should take a cue or two from the hit A&E-turned-Netflix drama Longmire, which expertly dealt with Native American issues concerning the fostering system and the sterilization of Native women both honestly and with integrity.

Considering that Kayce Dutton is going to be heading up a unit of Montana-based U.S. Marshals (hence the name), perhaps this group will spend some time on the Rez helping Rainwater to both uplift and police those on the ancestral land. After all, Tatanka Means (who previously appeared on Reservation Dogs) has also been cast in the series as one of the new marshals, a man named Miles. With so much potential left in this story, Rainwater’s inclusion must mean that showrunner Spencer Hudnut (who previously headlined SEAL Team for the network) has some sort of idea of a natural and organic way to continue his story into this new narrative. While it doesn’t exactly come as a surprise that Rainwater, Mo, and Tate would be joining Kayce on his next adventure, considering how influential the former two have been to his life (and the fact that Tate’s his son), it is a comforting thing to know that Y: Marshals doesn’t plan on reinventing the wheel or ignoring the previous series.

Which Other ‘Yellowstone’ Cast Members Will Return for ‘Y: Marshals’?

With all this casting news, the real question on the minds of most fans is, who else from Yellowstone will show up on Y: Marshals? Aside from perhaps a quick reference or maybe a cameo, don’t expect Rip (Cole Hauser) or Beth (Kelly Reilly) to make an appearance, as they have their own spin-off in production down in Texas. However, the elephant in the room remains: is Kayce’s wife Monica coming back or not?

Some have speculated that Monica may have been killed off-screen, leading to Kayce’s decision to join the U.S. Marshals, possibly to hunt for the party responsible. (It would certainly be more riveting than the material Sheridan gave them on the original show.) Kelsey Asbille may still be negotiating her contract, thus taking a bit for CBS to officially make the announcement. In either case, Y: Marshals has the potential to correct many of Yellowstone‘s mistakes with Monica, too, if the sequel series can manage to bring her back for more. Here’s hoping that, as with Thomas Rainwater, every returning Yellowstone character gets a new life here worth the trouble.