How long after Yellowstone is Y: Marshals set? The premiere hides an update on John Dutton
The Yellowstone universe rode onto network TV when Marshals — announced and marketed for months as Y: Marshals before CBS quietly simplified the title in January 2026 — premiered on Sunday, March 1, 2026, at 8 p.m. ET on CBS, streaming next day on Paramount+.
And the pilot does something sneaky: it timestamps itself, and slips in a status report on the late John Dutton while it's at it.
The short answer
The premiere picks up roughly 15 months after the events of the Yellowstone series finale. In that gap, Kayce (Luke Grimes) and Beth (Kelly Reilly) sold the majority of the Dutton Ranch to the Broken Rock Reservation, and Kayce traded ranch life for a badge with a specialized unit of U.S. Marshals in Montana.
The John Dutton update
It comes from new character Belle (Arielle Kebbel), who mentions in the pilot that John Dutton's death is still officially "unsolved" as far as the public knows. Fifteen months on, nobody has cracked the case — and Jamie (Wes Bentley) is simply listed as missing, which tracks, given that viewers watched Rip and Lloyd dispose of his body after Beth killed him in the finale.
In other words: the Duttons' two biggest secrets are still buried. For now.
Who's back — and who isn't
- Luke Grimes — Kayce Dutton, now a U.S. Marshal.
- Brecken Merrill — Tate, Kayce's son.
- Gil Birmingham and Mo Brings Plenty — Thomas Rainwater and Mo, bridging the two shows.
- New faces — Arielle Kebbel, Ash Santos, Tatanka Means, and Logan Marshall-Green, with SEAL Team's Spencer Hudnut as showrunner and Taylor Sheridan among the executive producers.
Kevin Costner, of course, is not involved — and Grimes has been candid about the distance since Costner's exit.
"I haven't talked to him since," Grimes told Men's Health in December 2024.
He was quick to add there were no hard feelings — he has Costner's number, he just doesn't feel it's his place to call first.