Luke Grimes Opens Up About Returning as Kayce Dutton in Y: Marshals
After five seasons of riding across the rugged Montana landscape in Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone, Luke Grimes thought his time as Kayce Dutton had come to an end. The 41-year-old actor admits that letting go of the character was far harder than he expected.
Saying Goodbye to Kayce
“It was seven years of playing a person that I’ll never see again, except for having his hat and jacket in my closet,” Grimes told People about the Yellowstone Season 5 finale. “Trying to put that show away was hard. Really hard. And I know this will sound weird, but it was emotional. It felt like losing a family in a way.”
Grimes recalls the final day of filming as a particularly poignant moment. “On the last day of shooting, I thought it was my last day as Kayce. It was over to me,” he said. The sense of closure, while necessary, left a surprisingly deep impact on the actor.
The Birth of Y: Marshals
Just months later, CBS announced the spin-off Y: Marshals, centered around Kayce Dutton, giving Grimes an unexpected second chance. However, he didn’t immediately jump at the opportunity.
“I thought it was the end of the road, which would’ve been fine,” he explained. “Kayce sort of gets what he has been looking for—his dream life.”
This peaceful conclusion posed a challenge for a spin-off. How could a new series remain engaging if the character had already found happiness and acceptance?
Grimes said the solution lay in crafting a story that felt real and compelling. “If it was just like, ‘well, he’s happy’ — we’re just going to watch him be happy? That’s not very cool. We definitely wanted to make sure to give it a real story and make it interesting and believable.”
The actor hinted that the pitch for the spin-off was strong enough to win him over. “The idea that was pitched to me is very, very good and very interesting. It really roped me in, and I think it will rope the audience in as well,” Grimes teased.