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Accessibility statementSkip to main content Democracy Dies in Darkness SubscribeSign in Advertisement Democracy Dies in Darkness StyleArts & EntertainmentsPowerThe MediaFashionOf Interest StyleArts & EntertainmentsPowerThe MediaFashionOf Interest ‘YELLOWSTONE’ ENDS, APPARENTLY, WITH A FIERY, BONKERS FINALE Kevin Costner didn’t appear, but the popular show about a Montana ranch answered several lingering questions. December 16, 2024 at 11:00 a.m. ESTToday at 11:00 a.m. EST 5 min 52 Cole Hauser as Rip Wheeler in a season five episode of Paramount Network's “Yellowstone.” (Paramount Network) By Herb Scribner “Yellowstone” — the popular TV show about a family-owned Montana ranch and their run-ins with political foes, local tribes and bidding wars — came to an apparent close Sunday night with a finale that laid the show to rest for now, if not forever. You are what you read. Reveal your 2024 reader type with Newsprint. The finale, which aired on the Paramount Network and Paramount Plus, concluded the saga of the Dutton family’s struggle to keep their Yellowstone ranch while also leaving doors open for co-creator Taylor Sheridan’s sprawling “Yellowstone” television universe. While it’s not quite clear if the episode was a season or series finale (there’s evidence to support both), the final episode of this chunk of episodes (“Season 5B”) featured a sibling murder, the realization of a centuries-old prophecy and a funeral for a patriarch, all leading to a relatively busy finale. Advertisement Story continues below advertisement Skip to end of carousel THE STYLE SECTION Style is where The Washington Post explains what’s happening on the front lines of culture — including the arts, media, social trends, politics and yes, fashion — with wit, personality and deep reporting. For more Style stories, click here. To subscribe to the Style Memo newsletter, click here. End of carousel “Yellowstone” debuted in 2018 and centered around John Dutton (Kevin Costner) and his family, who own one of the largest ranches in Montana. It became one of the most-watched shows on television, as well as a pop culture force that appealed to Western fans and even drove tourism to Montana. ▶️ Follow Television Follow The first half of season five, which featured eight episodes that aired from December 2022 to January 2023, focused on Costner’s Dutton as governor of Montana. The second half of the season launched in November 2024, but without Costner, seemingly due to a fallout with co-creator Taylor Sheridan (many details of which have been reported in trade publications). In the meantime, Costner went and made his own extended, if troubled, epic. In the fifth season’s second half opener, it was shown that Costner’s character had died, seemingly by gunshot wound. (It was later revealed that Jamie Dutton, his son and one of the show’s villainous figures, played by Wes Bentley, had a hand in John’s death.) So the show’s final stretch focused on John’s daughter Beth (Kelly Reilly) and her husband Rip (Cole Hauser). (This chunk of episodes also featured Sheridan himself acting as a horse trainer named Travis, whose girlfriend was played by Bella Hadid.) Advertisement Story continues below advertisement The finale, titled “Life Is a Promise,” put to rest multiple questions surrounding the show’s final season. For one, the ownership of the ranch was transferred from the Dutton family to leader of the Broken Rock Reservation, Thomas Rainwater (Gil Birmingham), who agreed to buy it for $1.25 an acre and restore the land to its natural state. Ranch saved! We also learned the ultimate fate of John Dutton. No, there’s no twist return here. Instead, the Dutton family and all the workers of Yellowstone lay John Dutton to rest in a backyard funeral, where he is buried beside his ancestors. It’s suggested that an eagle flying nearby might be John Dutton, but the Costner himself doesn’t appear. As for Jamie’s murdering schemes, Dutton’s daughter Beth confronts him in what becomes a bloody sibling fight. Beth even uses bear-attack mace on Jamie, who pours milk on his face to lessen the effects. Eventually, Jamie gains an advantage and threatens to pin their father’s murder on her and then sell the Yellowstone land, but she reveals the ranch has already been sold — giving her an opening to kill her brother by stabbing him. (Families — they’re tough.) Advertisement Story continues below advertisement As Beth unwinds with a cigarette, Rip tosses the body into a ravine in Wyoming. He pours gasoline all over Jamie’s car, lights a match and lets it burn. Goodbye, Jamie. After a Lainey Wilson cameo (her character is the “one that got away” for one of the ranch hands), the episode concludes with a bit of prophecy that ties Sheridan’s sprawling universe together. After Rainwater’s tribe takes over the Yellowstone ranch, we hear a voice-over from Elsa Dutton (the narrator of the spin-off show “1883,” played by Isabel May). She confirms that her father obtained the land seven generations ago and that he was told he would eventually give the land back. Well, here we are. The prophecy has now come true, as the Dutton family no longer holds the ranch. Story continues below advertisement The finale wasn’t exactly adored by all. Many fans on social media were a little disappointed with the show ending on a bit of a whimper, considering the heights it reached during its first three seasons. Sheridan also garnered some heat for putting himself in the show when he was never apart of the family drama. Hardcore fans missed Costner, while casuals wondered if this was really the end of “Yellowstone” or not. It’s unclear if Yellowstone will get another season. All signs point toward this being the end of this specific show, especially with Costner out and a Rip and Beth spin-off on the horizon. Not to mention reports of another show called “The Madison,” a spin-off reportedly starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Matthew Fox that will be about a family from New York transplanting to Montana. That said, the promotion for Sunday’s episode didn’t exactly scream “series finale,” nor did the ranch burn down or become a strip mall — so there’s plenty of room for Sheridan to return to the Yellowstone ranch. But if this was the end, at least “Yellowstone” fans can look back on a finale that brought the show full circle and finished off the story of the Dutton ranch — with fire, mayhem and plenty of family drama. Share 52 Comments More Style stories on television HAND CURATED * Kristen Radtke Radtke How ‘ER’ helped me confront death September 19, 2024 * Herb Scribner ‘Yellowstone’ ends, apparently, with a fiery, bonkers finale 2 hours ago * Lili Loofbourow The best TV shows of 2024 from ‘Shogun’ to ‘Ripley’ December 11, 2024 View 3 more storiesView 3 more stories NewsletterFridays Book Club Our weekly selection of book reviews and recommendations from Book World editor Ron Charles. Sign up Recommended for you Recommended by Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Company About The Post Newsroom Policies & Standards Diversity & Inclusion Careers Media & Community Relations WP Creative Group Accessibility Statement Sections Trending Politics Elections Opinions National World Style Sports Business Climate Well+Being D.C., Md., & Va. 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