Fans are wondering whether Paramount Network’s ‘Yellowstone’ is based on a true story? Here’s everything you need to know.
‘Yellowstone’ premiered on the Paramount Network on 20th June 2018. The series follows John Dutton, the patriarch of a prestigious ranching family, whose land borders both a Native American reservation and the very National Park that gives the show its name. A thrilling mix of family drama and political intrigue results from the Duttons trying to protect their ranch from developers and other rivals. The fourth season of ‘Yellowstone’ recently ended as the most-watched drama on Paramount.
HIGHLIGHTS —
- Is ‘Yellowstone’ based on a true story?
- Luke Grimes talks about the real locations
- ‘Yellowstone’ creator inspired from America in history?
Is ‘Yellowstone’ based on a true story?
No, ‘Yellowstone’ is an entirely fictional series. Created by Taylor Sheridan and John Linson, the show gets filmed on a real Montana ranch. On the show, the Dutton lodge is a real-life 5,000-square-foot mansion. It is located at the Chief Joseph Ranch in Darby, Montana. ‘Yellowstone’ Season 4 was filmed entirely in Montana, in and around the city of Missoula.
Filming locations inside the main house include the lodge’s great room, back porch, front porch, helipad, and kitchen. They have also filmed at the bunkhouse, barns, armoury, cabins, corrals, and arena. That property is not just a ‘Yellowstone’ filming location.
The Chief Joseph Ranch is a working cattle ranch, and the lodge serves as a family home. When the show ‘Yellowstone’ is not filming, the ranch doubles as a vacation spot with cabins for rent.
Luke Grimes talks about the real locations
The Four Sixes Ranch in Texas is an actual location that fans of ‘Yellowstone’ get to see. The ranch, which spans 350,000 acres, has been in operation since the late 1800s. Taylor Sheridan bought it in 2021. It has gotten confirmed as the filming location for the ‘Yellowstone’ spinoff ‘6666’.
The Four Sixes Ranch got featured in season 4 of Yellowstone. Viewers got to witness it when John Dutton sent Jimmy Hurdstrom there to become a cowboy. It was where Jimmy got to meet ranching legend and renowned horse trainer Buster Welch.
Luke Grimes, the actor who plays Kayce Dutton, also spoke about how it was like filming on the breathtaking location. He shared with Vanity Fair that Taylor Sheridan is a huge fan of authenticity. He wanted the cast to fully understand what they were getting into when they agreed to be a part of ‘Yellowstone’. Grimes thought it was fantastic to be able to show this to people who might not understand that this is still a way of life for many people.
‘Yellowstone’ creator inspired from America in history?
Kevin Costner, a veteran actor and director, plays John Dutton in the show. Taylor Sheridan, the show’s creator, may have drawn inspiration for John Dutton’s character from a ranching legend named W.T. Waggoner. He was a Texas rancher, oilman, banker, and philanthropist. Waggoner owned the Waggoner Ranch, American’s biggest ranch, where he found oil in 1903.
The land was passed down for nearly two centuries to Waggoners and their descendants before being sold in 2015. However, elements of the character got inspired by Kevin Costner’s father, William. He was the eldest of 11 children. During the Great Depression, Costner got raised on a wheat farm in Oklahoma. Costner also uses his father’s Winchester rifle as a prop in ‘Yellowstone’.
“My dad was a fist fighting, single-minded tough guy coming out of the Dust Bowl in the Great Depression. He wanted a job that would never get taken away from him. The Winchester 30-30 gun I used in the show was his. When I put it up to my cheek, my dad’s right there. I know what it is like to be a person that is kind of a John Dutton—minus the murder”, Costner told Outsider.
Earlier in 2021, Paramount+ and Taylor Sheridan announced plans for multiple ‘Yellowstone’ spinoffs, the first of which debuted last month in the form of 1883, a prequel series about the Dutton family’s origins. A second spinoff, ‘6666’ (Four Sixes), will take place at the eponymous Texas ranch. However, it is unknown whether or not we will see Kevin Costner in ‘6666’.
Tell us what you think about the spinoff and if you want to see a glimpse of the famous ‘Yellowstone’ protagonist.
