 |
| Paramount Network |
Ever since “Yellowstone” began on Paramount Network, there have been questions about the brand, which means it is time for another history lesson. Is Kayce branded? Why the ranch brands people, which characters have taken the brand, and a lot more brand-related questions have flared up. That said, it is a topic undoubtedly worth diving into, so let’s get into it.
[Note: This post is written with consideration to new “Yellowstone” viewers, and those who might need a refresher.]
Why do they brand?
One very distinctive facet of the “Yellowstone” mythos is that those who are tied to the ranch “take the brand.” It is a voluntary process that characters take on as a sort of “baptism by fire,” the chance to gain a permanent second chance with John Dutton. The downside is that John also thinks he owns whoever wears it.
Jimmy is the first person that “Yellowstone” fans see get branded. Hence, Kayce’s brand is an aberration. Jimmy getting branded is how viewers know it is “a thing” or a so-called “rite of passage.” We later learn that Kayce is also branded, which only deepens the initial divide between Kayce and his family. It turns out that Duttons are not supposed to be branded.
Why is Kayce branded?
As a branded man, Kayce is “bound” to the ranch. John branded Kayce out of spite for Kayce leaving to be with Monica when she got pregnant with Tate. Viewers also learn Tate was conceived very (emphasis on very) early into the relationship, and the pair’s quick journey from paramours to parents helps explain the sometimes rocky footing their marriage finds itself traversing. They did not know each other well when they got married.
Who gets branded?
By the end of “Yellowstone” Season 3, everyone working in the bunkhouse has gotten branded. As fans have witnessed, the brand comes with privileges at a high price to get paid if John Dutton senses betrayal. For instance, Jimmy’s relationship with the ranch is both voluntary and not, as viewers glimpse in Season 4 with John’s insistence Jimmy go down to Texas to “become a man,” and Jimmy feeling indebted to John to return to the Yellowstone.
Who Is Jimmy? Why is Jimmy branded?
Jimmy is a rookie ranch-hand who later discovers a secret skill as a bronc rider in Season 3. A sweetheart at his core, Jimmy has to kick an addiction to meth when he first lands at the ranch in Season 1. His one-way ticket to “Yellowstone” is actually done as a favor by John Dutton for Jimmy’s grandpa. Jimmy is branded by Rip to seal the ominous deal of his redemption.
---
So, there you have it. The inside track on why Kayce got branded and the brands meaning to the show. If you want to see how the brand continues to play out, you will need to watch new episodes of “Yellowstone” Season 4 when they air Sundays at 8 p.m. ET on Paramount Network.
FAQs
Why Was Kayce Branded On Yellowstone? John branded his son Kayce (Luke Grimes) as punishment for when Kayce left the ranch to be with Monica (Kelsey Asbille), back when she got pregnant with Tate (Brecken Merrill). Kayce has since forgiven his father for what he did.
What does Kayce mean by I saw the end of us? ›
The Girl In White Represents The Wolf, Kayce's Spirit Animal
Facing trouble in either path, Kayce told Monica that he “saw the end of us.” This clearly meant that it's time for Kayce to choose between his two lives: being a Dutton and being a member of the Broken Rock Indian Reservation.
What is Kayce branded in Yellowstone? ›
Kayce is the only branded person who is not an employee of the ranch. John later explains to Monica that he branded Kayce for disobeying him when Kayce got Monica pregnant and Kayce refused John's demand to make Monica abort the child.
What did Kayce see at the end of episode 4? ›
What is this? In his final vision Kayce sees a Native American woman in white who represents a wolf, his spirit animal that he repeatedly sees. The woman leads Kayce to the edge of a cliff where he sees two paths. Kayce says he does not know what path to choose but she says she will help him.
What is the Dutton family secret? ›
Beth finally learns another deep family secret: John Dutton has been chucking corpses on the Montana border for years; in fact, the episode began with a young Rip (Kyle Red Silverstein), who at the urging of a young John Dutton (Josh Lucas), discards the body of a cowboy who got a little too lippy about his beloved ...
Why do some guys get branded on Yellowstone? ›
In Yellowstone, characters get branded to signify they are a part of the ranch forever and to indicate their loyalty. The brand bounds wearers to the ranch and in a way, the ranch owns them now. What is this? Branding is often presented as an initiation or a 'rite of passage.
Why does Kayce keep seeing a wolf? ›
The Wolf Is Kayce's Spirit Animal & Protector In Yellowstone Season 4. In Yellowstone season 4, the reveal that Kayce is being protected by a wolf spirit shows that nature has not given up on the Duttons yet.
Does Monica know Kayce killed her brother? ›
Throughout the series, Monica is kept unaware of her brother's death early on, and after his widow commits suicide in what Monica considers a sacrifice for their children's welfare, she expresses to Kayce that she feels they ought to consider leaving the reservation to spare Tate the sadness of his cousins moving to ...
What did Lee say to Kayce before he died? ›
Lee becomes aggressive, shouting, “Let me in, you f****g child, look at me! This is your vision, this is your destiny!” while blood pours out of his mouth. Kayce began screaming until the vision was over, and he started a new one.
Why did Casey get branded? ›
Why is Kayce branded? As a branded man, Kayce is “bound” to the ranch. John branded Kayce out of spite for Kayce leaving to be with Monica when she got pregnant with Tate.
Yellowstone Season 5: Rip Gets Branded.
What did John Dutton do to Kayce? ›
Kayce and John have been estranged for sometime at the beginning of the series. It is later revealed that part of what drove them apart was that Kayce got Monica pregnant and they planned to keep the baby. That is when John forced Kayce to take the brand.
Why did Beth's mother hate her? ›
It's no secret that throughout her appearance in Yellowstone, Beth's mother, Evelyn Dutton was tough on her. It led to many fans thinking that she hated her. However, that doesn't seem to be the case at all. It turns out she was hard on her because she wanted to toughen her up.
Does Kayce lose his wife? ›
No, season five of Yellowstone shows Monica, Kayce Dutton's wife, as still being alive.
Do Kayce and Monica divorce? ›
Yellowstone season 5: Kayce and Monica Dutton split 'sealed' as Luke Grimes confirms ranch.
Does Kayce know Jamie is adopted? ›
In the third series, Jamie says to Kayce: "I need some advice, brother... If I can still call you that." Kayce then replies: "Until the day you die, you better never call me anything else." This shows Kayce does know about Jamie not being his biological sibling but is accepting of him anyway.
Did Beth and Walker sleep together? ›
After sporadically sleeping together throughout the first two seasons, the couple have finally settled down and made their relationship official.
Is Tate on Yellowstone Casey's real son? ›
Tate Dutton is the lovable son of Monica and Kayce Dutton and the grandson of John Dutton.
Does Kayce sleep with Avery? ›
Kayce and Avery are kissing in the vision and many fans thought that it was foreshadowing Kayce would be unfaithful to Monica. However, nothing has happened between Kayce and Avery so far in season 5 of Yellowstone.
Does Kevin Costner's real daughter play in Yellowstone? ›
Although they play father and daughter in the show, Reilly and Costner are not related in reality. Double Oscar winner Costner has seven children in total but Reilly is not one of them.
It's revealed then that Monica lost the baby, a boy, in the aftermath of the crash. "I had a brother... for an hour anyway," Tate tells John.
Why is Monica so mad at Kayce? ›
Throughout her recovery from brain surgery, Monica and Kayce had a rocky relationship. Monica doesn't approve of Kayce's relationship with his father John, and fears for her and their son Tate's safety.
Is Rip Wheeler a Dutton? ›
Rip managed to kill his stepdad by breaking his skull with a frying pan. Later, Rip was found asleep in a barn with blood all over it. Rather than report it, John gave Rip a second chance. He picked him up as a ranch hand, and Rip became a Dutton family member.
Why was Lee killed in Yellowstone? ›
He was heavily involved with the operations of the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch. During Yellowstone's first season premiere, Lee Dutton (played by Dave Annable) gets killed after trying to recover stolen cattle from the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch. He received a fatal gunshot wound after getting caught in the crossfire.
Why was Lee Dutton killed? ›
Unbeknownst to Lee, his brother Kayce Dutton, was attempting to prevent him from retaking the cattle from Broken Rock Reservation. Lee suffered a fatal gunshot wound by Robert Long, who was about to shoot him again at point-blank range when Kayce intercepted.
Why was Lee killed off Yellowstone? ›
Lee was killed in the season one premiere when he tried to recover the stolen cattle and got caught in the crossfire, prompting Kayce to attack and kill his brother-in-law, Robert Long, who was Lee's killer.
Why did Teeter get branded? ›
She spits, curses, and fights with the best of them, and so far on the series, she's the only woman to undergo branding, which in the context of the show exemplifies loyalty to the Duttons. Many ranch hands come from troubled backgrounds, so the branding allows them to focus on their new path.
What happened to John Dutton's wife? ›
Evelyn Dutton
Perhaps the great love of John Dutton's life, his wife Evelyn (Gretchen Mol) died in a horseback riding accident when her children were young.
What does the Yellowstone brand on chest mean? ›
It's that they have the “Y” in Yellowstone branded on their chest, right over their heart, meaning that their loyalty lies with the Dutton family ranch for the rest of their days, from Kayce, Beth, Rip, Jimmy, Teeter, Colby Ryan, Lloyd, and Walker.
Does Beth Dutton wear a wig? ›
That is why a character's hair keeps on changing throughout a series. Now you know that Beth Dutton does, wear a wig. Along with all the benefits mentioned above, a synthetic wig is easier to carry and take care of. Therefore, almost all characters in TV dramas wear one at some point.
Rip saving Beth's life
She manages to get a text sent to Rip saying "office help" just before they start savagely beating her and her assistant, Jason.
Was rip a navy seal Yellowstone? ›
Richard "Rip" Taggart Played by Walton Goggins
A commanding leader and brilliant soldier, Rip has served valiantly for 17 years as a SEAL, 11 of those on SEAL Team Six. Fighting an endless war and facing unspeakable atrocities have taken their toll.
Did Kayce Dutton lose his son? ›
A. Kayce Dutton had a second unborn child, John, who died in a car accident, though his mother Monica survived.
Who was Evelyn Dutton's favorite child? ›
“When the horse fell on her she straight up told a 10 year old that it was her fault if she died, while basically saying that Kayce was the child she loved most.
Does Kayce tell Monica he killed her brother? ›
In that clash, Kayce ends up killing Monica's brother. He does not reveal himself to be the killer, which puts him under stress.
When did rip get branded? ›
Yellowstone Season 5: Rip Gets Branded.
Does Monica divorce Kayce? ›
Yellowstone season 5: Kayce and Monica Dutton split 'sealed' as Luke Grimes confirms ranch.
Why did Kayce's wife leave him? ›
Throughout her recovery from brain surgery, Monica and Kayce had a rocky relationship. Monica doesn't approve of Kayce's relationship with his father John, and fears for her and their son Tate's safety. However, Kayce and Monica decide to give their marriage another go, and they are able to work things out.
What crime did Kayce commit? ›
His oldest brother Lee died in a feud with the Reservation. Kayce was on the scene and saw his brother get shot by Robert Long, Kayce's brother-in-law. He murdered Robert to protect himself and his brother but found out he was too late as Lee's gunshot wound turned out to be fatal.
Is Rip a Navy SEAL? ›
A commanding leader and brilliant soldier, Rip has served valiantly for 17 years as a SEAL, 11 of those on SEAL Team Six.
After a fiasco where Lloyd almost killed Walker broke out, John made a decision to evict all females from the bunkhouse. Rip was later able to convince John otherwise after Teeter begged for her job back and revealed she was branded.
Why does Teeter talk so funny? ›
Teeter's accent is a team effort
In fact, Landon's only partially responsible for it. Credit — or blame — has to be shared with series co-creator Taylor Sheridan. "It's phonetically written," Landon revealed in a behind-the-scenes video from the Paramount Network introducing her character.
Is Kevin Costner's daughter in Yellowstone? ›
