Taylor Sheridan’s “Yellowstone” franchise looks set to expand once again. As of this writing, Sheridan has several spin-offs in various stages of production, including “The Madison,” “6666,” “1943,” and a show about Beth Dutton and Rip Wheeler’s next adventure following “Yellowstone” season 5. However, Beth isn’t the only Dutton whose story could continue on the small screen, as Kayce (Luke Grimes) is reportedly being lined up for a solo outing.
According to Deadline, “SEAL Team” creator Spencer Hudnut will spearhead the planned Kayce spin-off series for CBS. He’s a fitting choice for the gig, too, as it’s believed that the show will tap into the character’s Navy SEAL history. Of course, Sheridan will still be involved, as the prolific showrunner and producer is known for being very hands-on with his projects. What’s more, he reportedly worked on this idea with Hudnut for over a year before giving it his (navy) seal of approval, so expect his fingerprints to be all over it.
It remains to be seen if the Kayce-centric drama will be a prequel series about his time in the military, or a present-day story that explores that part of his life via flashback sequences. However, a prequel is the best way to approach this series, as “Yellowstone” ends with Kayce planning on becoming a peaceful rancher with his son, giving him a satisfying send-off. That said, a show all about his military days, if handled correctly, could channel elements from Sheridan’s most nuanced war story to date, “Sicario,” and stand out as a unique entry in the “Yellowstone” saga.
Kayce’s Yellowstone spin-off should embrace Sicario’s moral ambiguity
“Yellowstone” season 2’s “Touching Your Enemy” episodes sees a tormented Kayce recall a horrifying story about his time in the Navy SEALS. In short, he had to kill a target’s wife and child, as he was using them as human shields while firing rounds at Kayce’s squad. The story is reminiscent of the scene in “Sicario” — a truly bleak movie about the FBI and CIA’s War on Drugs — where Alejandro Gillick (Benicio del Toro) shoots a cartel member’s wife and children while they’re having dinner. It’s a difficult scene to watch, but war stories shouldn’t be lighthearted viewing.
While Kayce’s motives for wiping out entire families aren’t vengefully motivated like Alejandro’s in “Sicario,” war still made him capable of doing horrific things — a sentiment that’s further reflected during the wild “Yellowstone” moment where he uses his military training to sneak into the back seat of a car and hold a child up at gunpoint. The message in Kayce and Alejandro’s stories is that there are no clear-cut good and bad guys in war, as conflict turns some people into savages.
After Kayce’s aforementioned revelation, his spin-off can’t be another cookie-cutter network military drama; war turned him into a monster, like it did to Alejandro, and that’s an interesting thread to explore. Kayce’s spin-off should follow in the footsteps of “Sicario” and provide a more nuanced and psychological take on the topic of war, examining the situation from a variety of perspectives with a sense of moral ambiguity. Otherwise, it risks becoming another formulaic CBS military procedural — and we’ve seen hundreds of those throughout the years.
