Luke Grimes’ Kayce Takes Matters into His Own Hands in Human Trafficking Case

Yellowstone’s spinoff Marshals featured a disturbing sex trafficking case, with Luke Grimes’ Kayce Dutton asserting his authority as a U.S. Marshal.

In the episode that aired on Sunday, March 29, Kayce teamed up with Miles (Tatanka Means) after a teenage girl from the Reservation went missing, as noted by Tate (Brecken Merrill). Their investigation led them to uncover several women who had been catfished into sex trafficking, and Kayce and Miles were determined to seek justice for them by any means necessary.

This mission included giving Mo (Mo Brings Plenty), one of the accomplices, a chance to handle things in Broken Rock. They appeared close to locating the missing girls — only to find they weren’t there when the Marshals arrived. The episode concluded with a “To Be Continued” message, leaving the case unsolved for now.

Yellowstone, which ran from 2018 to 2024, first introduced us to Kayce as a former U.S. Navy SEAL who took over his family’s Yellowstone Ranch. Although he sold the property by the series finale, there were still more stories to tell.

“They started discussing the idea when we were filming the last few episodes of the original series. Offers for a spinoff began to emerge, and I hadn’t received one yet. I thought, ‘I guess that’s it for me,’” Grimes shared with Entertainment Weekly in February. “Then I got a call saying it would air on CBS primetime and take on a more procedural format.”

Even with the opportunity to lead his own series, Grimes was uncertain about the direction of the story.

“In that first conversation with Luke, he mentioned, ‘Kayce’s happy. That’s not very interesting,’” Marshals creator Spencer Hudnut recounted to EW. “We realized something needed to shake him out of that.”

Hudnut and Grimes teased that Marshals would surprise fans, with Grimes hinting, “There’s a reason Kayce is the only one wearing the black hat. He’s carrying a lot within his soul. Clearly, he’s battling his demons, and his arc involves healing and finding his way. He managed to do that in the original Yellowstone.

Grimes also tackled the criticism that Kayce, as a Dutton, may not have warranted his own Yellowstone spinoff, Marshals.

“I’m my own harshest critic,” Grimes stated. “I thought, ‘If you asked people who they want to see get a spinoff, I’m not sure Kayce would be at the top of that list. There are other characters they might prefer.’”

Using this as motivation, he added, “So there was a fire under me. It has to be good. If it’s not good, I’d rather not do it. We worked hard to ensure that original Yellowstone fans would have something to connect with.”

He continued, “But for those who have never seen Yellowstone, we wanted this show to stand on its own as well. I believe we’ve achieved that as much as possible.”

Marshals airs on CBS Sundays at 8 p.m. ET.