The 1923 season 2 finale has officially dropped on Paramount+, and with it came a devastating emotional rollercoaster—and a wave of speculation about what’s next for the Yellowstone prequel. Fans were treated to a two-hour cinematic episode that tied up loose ends while still leaving one lingering question: Is this truly the end for Spencer Dutton, or will 1923 return for a season 3?
The series, starring Helen Mirren as Cara Dutton and Harrison Ford as Jacob Dutton, has kept audiences gripped with its sweeping narrative and gut-wrenching stakes. Season 2 was confirmed to be shorter than season 1, offering just seven episodes, with the finale extending its runtime to nearly two hours to bring the saga to a close. But the finale wasn’t just an ending—it felt like a farewell.
Titled “The Mountain Teeth of Monsters,” last week’s episode set a tragic tone with seven deaths, including a Dutton family member and several major antagonists. Picking up from that chaos, the finale saw Spencer Dutton (played by Brandon Sklenar) racing to Montana to save his family’s land, while Alexandra (played by Julia Schlaepfer) fought for survival in the icy wilderness.
The couple’s long-awaited reunion was emotional and cinematic—Spencer leapt off a moving train to reach Alexandra after she started a fire to attract attention. But the joy was short-lived. Alexandra was diagnosed with severe frostbite and refused a life-altering amputation, choosing instead to spend her last moments with Spencer. Though their baby, John II, survived, Alexandra died in Spencer’s arms.
Meanwhile, chaos erupted at the train station as Whitfield’s men clashed with the Duttons. In a shocking twist, Banner Creighton—once an enemy—sacrificed himself to save Jacob. Jacob was injured, but survived, and accompanied Alexandra to the hospital, leaving Spencer to defend the homestead. He arrived just in time to eliminate the final threat to the Yellowstone ranch. Consumed by grief, Spencer later confronted Whitfield, fatally shooting him before he and Jacob burned down the tycoon’s mansion to erase all evidence. Justice, in Spencer’s eyes, was served.
Other characters also saw powerful send-offs: Teonna Rainwater was freed of all charges and began her journey west, possibly returning to her roots. Elizabeth, reeling from Jack’s death, left Yellowstone, while Cara stepped in to raise Spencer’s son, mirroring the way she once helped raise him and his brother after their mother’s tragic death.
The episode ended with a poignant flash forward. Spencer, now an older man, visits Alexandra’s grave—his memory of her fading with time. In a dreamlike ballroom vision, he sees her once more, dressed as she was the day they met in Africa. They share a final dance, a symbol of eternal love beyond time.
While no third season has been officially confirmed, all signs point to the 1923 story concluding with season 2. Creator Taylor Sheridan stated back in 2022 that season 2 would be the “final chapter” of the Yellowstone prequel. The ending, particularly the narration by Elsa Dutton revealing Spencer’s fate and Alexandra’s death, offers the kind of closure typical of a series finale. But that hasn’t stopped fans from hoping.
Another Yellowstone prequel, 1944, is currently in development. Since we know Spencer lived until 1969, it’s possible he could appear again—especially with the next chapter set during World War II. Whether that version of Spencer would be played by Sklenar or another actor remains to be seen.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter in 2023, Brandon Sklenar made it clear he believed 1923 was a “bookend” story: “It’s still limited, but I think of it as one piece — there’s just a split in the middle, but it’s all one piece. It will conclude.” Still, the show’s popularity may sway decisions. According to Paramount Global, the season 2 finale drew over 17 million global views—a 41% jump from season 1. The series as a whole saw streaming growth of 56% compared to its predecessor.
As consumers of entertainment, it’s strange to think of how much power the public possesses over programming. No longer are conversations limited to the antiquated watercooler conversations in cubicle-riddled office spaces—online forums have taken hold where fans across the globe can share their love of a film or show, and even their theories regarding what might happen in the future.
It’s also interesting to recognize that stars of these massive properties are not immune to forming their own theories, either. While word of mouth has increased exponentially online, sometimes there are years in between seasons, and even the stars aren’t sure what might happen. At the moment, Paramount has asked those of the entertainment journalism press who cover 1923 to kindly not refer to season 2 as “the final season” of this critically successful Yellowstone prequel.
Does that mean there could be future seasons? Could there be a made-for-TV film linking the end of this chapter in the Dutton TV legacy and the modern-day generation of Yellowstone? Could it be a completely new series? Some of those options are more likely than others, but truth is, stars of the show Brandon Sklenar, Julia Schlaepfer, Aminah Nieves, and Michelle Randolph are in the same horse-pulled buggy as any fan in not knowing what’s to come.
One of the most anticipated moments of the entire two-season run of 1923 was Spencer (Sklenar) finally returning to the Yellowstone Ranch and reuniting with the rest of the Duttons. Spencer was to play a major part in the war against Westfield (Timothy Dutton) and his bid to eliminate the Duttons so he could simply own their land and build his tourism utopia.
Creator Taylor Sheridan didn’t disappoint in terms of the highly anticipated final shootout between the forces of Westfield and the Dutton cowboy clan, but it wasn’t the only reason Spencer was eager to get home. In what would become the tearful and impassioned morsel of melodrama fans were eagerly waiting to consume, Spencer reunited with his star-crossed wife, Alexandra (Schlaepfer). When the tears and the smoke cleared, the epilogue Sheridan gives us through Elsa’s (Isabel May) smoky, Southern narration is that, while Alex sadly passed soon after making it to Montana, their child John, premature by three months, survived.
Elsa then continues to tell the audience that her little brother Spencer lived to a ripe old age, well into the late 1960s. This was another morsel that fans had been awaiting, as the timeline would indicate this means that “Grampa” Spencer would have been around not only for the birth of baby John III (who would eventually grow into Kevin Costner’s John, in his most modern iteration) but for the first decade of John’s life.
“There’s a Dutton ‘thing’ they all have,” Sklenar says of what a conversation between an elder Spencer and (likely) grandson John would look like. “There’s a certain weight, there’s a certain sense of responsibility, there’s a certain brand of masculinity that’s rooted in very strong principles and morals and a code of ethics, which is ultimately about the love of their family and everything they’ve worked for.”
“I think that’s also why this family is so universally loved,” Sklenar continues. “I could be all over the world and people tell me ‘I love Yellowstone.’ Or shooting a movie in Ireland, and they love it over there. It’s so different, culturally, but there’s a core value there that is just so universal, that anyone can connect with. And I think that is part of what Spencer is – passing down and what he got from his father, and it’s just this whole ethos that Taylor’s created.”
That ethos transcends the Dutton family within the Yellowstone universe to at least one other fan-favorite family, the Rainwaters. In the finale, a beleaguered Teonna (Nieves), now free of the murder charges, sets out on her own. That is, other than the child she carries inside her. Once again, that is a major link to the Yellowstone timeline, but there still remains a substantial gap. In modern times, Thomas Rainwater, (Gil Birmingham), Teonna’s grandson, tells stories about his adoption and growing up not knowing his First Nations heritage.
Could it be that Teona, who is justifiably bitter and afraid of the racism she’s experienced, goes out of her way to hide from the world and hide who they are? Nieves shares her theory, arguing that even though Teonna could have easily shut herself off emotionally, it isn’t likely that anything can kill her heart and spirit. “Heartbreak is one of the worst things any person can go through,” she says. “It feels like you, yourself are dying. But I also think T is still fire-hearted like they can never run out of love.”
Randolph’s Elizabeth went through a very similar set of circumstances to Rainwater’s. She too lost the love of her life when Jack (Darren Mann) was shot in cold blood by Whitaker’s goons. She too was left without a partner, and pregnant, and last we see she is off to go back home and leave the hellscape that is Montana.
All seven episodes of 1923 season 2 are available to stream on Paramount+ now.
