Yellowstone Spinoffs Leave Montana for Utah and Texas

For years, the hit series Yellowstone brought cameras, chaos, and cowboy cosplay through Montana. Now? They’re gone. The Rip and Beth spinoff will shoot in Texas and Utah. The Kayce Dutton spinoff starring Luke Grimes? Utah as well. Both are still set in Montana, but clearly, we weren’t worth the trouble to actually film in any longer.

The Big Migration Backlash

If you ask any Montana resident, Yellowstone wasn’t just a TV series. It was the match that lit a fire, sending out-of-staters rushing to “live the Montana dream.” Home prices shot up. Roads got busier. And suddenly every SUV in the state had a Dutton Ranch sticker plastered across the back window. The resentment grew so strong that you can still spot trucks in the Bitterroot with that same Dutton Ranch logo, only crossed out in big red ink.

The Money Side of Things

Not everyone hated the show. Butte, Hamilton, and a few other towns cashed in on the production dollars. Hotels filled up. Crews ate in restaurants and bought supplies. For a while, it was an economic boom that didn’t involve mining or cattle. Now that’s gone, too. The lights, the cameras, and the checks are all heading south.

Congrats, Haters

So here we are. Congratulations, Montana! We did it! We grumbled enough, scowled enough, and rolled our eyes enough that the biggest TV hit of the decade packed up the cameras and left. No more cowboy extras crowding diners. No more trailers clogging Hamilton streets. Just quiet, wide-open Montana again.

Of course, the show still goes on. Millions will watch a “Montana story” filmed in Utah. The money? That stays behind. But hey, at least we can drive through the Bitterroot without running into a fake cattle drive for take two.