A Major Yellowstone Character Was Mostly Ignored In First Dutton Ranch Trailer (But Is There If You Look Closely)

As Luke Grimes continues to play out Kayce Dutton’s legacy on CBS’ Marshals, the Yellowstone universe is finally set to deliver another sequel series in the form of Dutton Ranch (via Paramount+ subscription). We now know that Beth and Rip’s move down south to Texas will kick off in May, and that it’ll seemingly feature just as many fistfights, fires and mystery corpses as the flagship series. The spinoff’s first trailer proved to be a doozy, set to the remixed tune of Eminem’s “Till I Collapse, though one major character was only showcased for a split-second.

The trailer understandably goes hard on reminding fans that this show is all about Cole Hauser’s Rip Wheeler and Kelly Reilly’s Beth Dutton, and the two newest heavy hitters — Oscar nominees Annette Bening and Ed Harris — are also given prominent billing. But what about the only other core Yellowstone character who made the jump to the new show? No, not Lloyd or any of the older ranchhands. We’re talking about Finn Little’s quasi-orphaned Carter. Give it a watch below and see if you can find him.

Having more or less been adopted by Beth and Rip since he fell into their lives back in Season 4, Carter wasn’t natural born into cowboy-dom, but was given a deep education in that life while living on the Yellowstone ranch. So when his keepers decided to put Montana in the rearview to reach greener pastures in Texas, he presumably didn’t have much else going on to commit himself to, with Kayce having split the land up with Rainwater and his tribe.

Unfortunately for anyone hoping to get some major updates on Carter’s current lifestyle, the trailer seems to almost purposefully keep him hidden. At least until the quickly paced montage near the end, where he can be seen ready to open a family-sized pack of whoopass on whoever is on the receiving end of his fists.

I get that this spinoff is going to be about grown-up people problems and necessarily needs to show off as much of Rip's steely glare as possible. But it still feels odd for one of the three connective tissues to Yellowstone proper being put on the back burner for the first trailer. Especially if the point with that character is to have him follow in Rip's fist-steps. Errr, foot-fists. Errr, footsteps.

Not that Finn Little seems to be taking a stand against the trailer editors for mostly leaving Carter out of the mix. He was enthused about sharing the trailer on social media, as well as the drama's first still photo of Carter and what appears to be his girlfriend Oreana, as portrayed by Gotham and The Goldbergs vet Natalie Alyn Lind.

It seems like just yesterday this dude was 90% known for his chipmunk cheeks and precociously curly hair, and now he's basically a man. The power of jeans, a button-up and a ball cap, I guess.

Beyond all those who were mentioned already, Dutton Ranch will also introduce new characters portrayed by Juan Pablo Raba, Jai Courtney, J.R. Villarreal, and Marc Menchaca. It was created by Chad Feehan, and is obviously based on the universe co-created by Taylor Sheridan and John Linson, who both serve as executive producers here. (Sheridan is wrapping his efforts with Paramount to shift over to NBCU, thus the lighter touch on this project.)

It's a great time for fans who haven't already signed up for Paramount+ to take advantage.

Paramount+: $2.99 per month for two months
You can save as much as $11 a month with this incredible Paramount+ deal. New and returning subscribers can get both the Essential and Premium plans for $2.99 per month for two months. Act fast, as this deal expires on March 31, 2026.

View Deal

The nine-episode first season of Dutton Ranch is set to hit Paramount+ on Friday, May 15, with a two-episode premiere. That'll be timed for the end of Luke Grimes' spinoff, though Marshals already earned a Season 2 renewal, so the pressure is on to see if Dutton Ranch can match that level of success.