Taylor Sheridan’s rich television universe, which began with the runaway success “Yellowstone” (still the most popular show on TV) and continued with last year’s folksy frontier tale “1883” continues with “1923.” We’re further along on the Dutton family timeline and the same problems that seem to beset each generation continues here: greed, violence and a quest (perhaps foolhardy) to maintain the ways of the past.
But who plays who and how do they fit into the larger “Yellowstone” tapestry? Read our compete cast and character guide to find out:
Harrison Ford as Jacob Dutton
Ford, in his first major television role, plays Jacob Dutton, who is the brother of James Dutton (Tim McGraw from “1883”). He is the patriarch of the Yellowstone Ranch, which we will come to know (and love) in “Yellowstone.”
Ford is perhaps best known from his work in the “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones” franchises but has also been seen in films like “Witness,” “Patriot Games,” “Blade Runner,” “The Fugitive,” “Air Force One” and “The Mosquito Coast.”
Helen Mirren as Cara Dutton
Mirren, who mixed adventures on the small screen with big screen outings long before it was cool, plays Cara Dutton, Jacob Dutton’s wife and the fierce matriarch of the Yellowstone Ranch. In the opening scene of the series, she is killing somebody with a shotgun. So that’s cool.
Mirren is a legendary actress (and a Dame!) and has appeared in “The Long Good Friday,” “Excalibur,” “2010,” “Gosford Park,” “The Queen,” “Hitchcock” and is a recent addition to the “Fast and Furious” franchise.
Darren Mann as Jack Dutton
Mann plays Jack Dutton, John Dutton Sr’s son and great-nephew to Jacob Dutton. Jack is a rancher at Yellowstone, deeply dedicated to his job and his family.
Mann has appeared in the film “The Minute You Wake Up Dead” and the American TV series “Animal Kingdom,” both earlier this year.
James Badge Dale as John Dutton, Sr.
Dale plays John Dutton, Sr., who is James Dutton’s son and the oldest nephew of Jacob Dutton. He was taken in by Jacob after his father and mother were both killed. (On “Yellowstone,” Kevin Costner is John Dutton III.)
Badge Dale is one of the greatest character actors working today and has put in memorable appearances in “Iron Man 3,” “The Lone Ranger,” “The Departed,” “The Grey,” “Hold the Dark” and “The Empty Man.”
Marley Shelton as Emma Dutton
Shelton plays Emma Dutton, the wife of John Dutton Sr. and the mother of Jack.
Shelton has shown up in “Never Been Kissed,” “Pleasantville,” “Sin City,” “Death Proof,” “Planet Terror,” “Scream 4” and the new “Scream” that came out earlier this year.
Brian Geraghty as Zane
Geraghty plays Zane, a cowboy on the Yellowstone Ranch and basically the old timey (perhaps less outwardly psychopathic) version of Rip.
You’ve seen Geraghty in “The Hurt Locker,” “The Standoff at Sparrow Creek” (with James Badge Dale!) and on TV shows like “Big Sky” and “Gaslit.”
Aminah Nieves as Teonna
Nieves plays one of the show’s more interesting characters – an indigenous girl at the School for American Indians in Montana. How she factors into the bigger story remains to be seen.
A relative unknown, Nieves appeared in horror anthology “V/H/S/99” earlier this year.
Jennifer Ehle as Sister Mary
Ehle plays Sister Mary, a nun at the School for American Indians. And she’s not one of those happy nuns either, she’s one of those “beat you with a ruler” nuns.
You’ll remember Ehle from “The King’s Speech,” “Contagion,” “Zero Dark Thirty,” the “Fifty Shades of Grey” sequels, “Detroit” and “Saint Maud.” She can currently be seen in “She Said.”
Brandon Sklenar as Spencer Dutton
Sklenar plays Spencer Dutton, Jacob Dutton’s youngest nephew and John Dutton Sr.’s brother. Spencer has witnessed the horrors of World War I and instead of returning to the ranch, he sets off to hunt wild game in Africa. These sequences (at least in the pilot) are some of the strangest but also the most striking and it’ll be interesting to see how he factors in.
Sklenar has been in movies like “Midway” and “Vice” and TV shows like “Westworld” and “Walker: Independence.”
Robert Patrick as Sheriff William McDowell
Patrick plays the local sheriff, who is friendly with the Duttons (Jacob is a livestock agent). Perhaps a little too friendly? Some of the town certainly thinks so.
Patrick is a legendary tough guy character actors perhaps still best known as the T-1000 in James Cameron’s “Terminator 2: Judgment Day.” He’s also appeared in movies like “Cop Land,” “The Faculty” and “Flags of Our Fathers” and on TV shows like “The X-Files” (he was Duchovney’s replacement, Agent Doggett) and “True Blood.”
Timothy Dalton as Donald Whitfield
Dalton plays Donald Whitfield, a man who doesn’t appear in the first episode but is described as powerful, wealthy and morally nebulous. Sounds like he’ll be the big bad this season!
Dalton played 007 in two James Bond movies (“The Living Daylights” and “License to Kill”), as well as movies like “Flash Gordon,” “The Rocketeer” and “Hot Fuzz.” He’s also the voice of Mr. Pricklepants in the ongoing “Toy Story” franchise.
