The Initial Marshals Pitch Sounded Like A 'Terrible' Idea, Said Star Luke Grimes

Luke Grimes has already admitted to being shocked by one "Marshals" storyline, and now he's admitted that the original idea for the "Yellowstone" spin-off sounded "terrible." In a Parade interview, the actor recalled his initial reaction to the idea of a Kayce Dutton procedural, saying it seemed like "a crazy idea." But after meeting the showrunner, he came around.

Kayce was seemingly given a happy ending on "Yellowstone," but "Marshals" has proved that trouble is never far away for a Dutton. The show sees Kayce join an elite team of U.S. Marshals while grappling with the loss of his wife, Monica Dutton (played by Kelsey Asbille on "Yellowstone"), and simultaneously being a good father to his son, Tate Dutton (Brecken Merrill). Thus far, that's resulted in a somewhat muddled show. "Marshals" feels it's not yet sure what it's really about, though there's still a long way to go before season 1 is over, and that means there's plenty of time for the series to get its act together.

Had Grimes listened to his original instinct, however, there never would have been anything to figure out. The actor told Parade that when he was first told about the idea of a Kayce Dutton procedural, he recoiled. "That sounded really terrible, to be honest," he said. "I thought that was a crazy idea." But after speaking to "Marshals" showrunner and the man credited with its creation, Spencer Hudnut, he changed his mind.

On paper, "Marshals" seems like a gamble. "Yellowstone" creator Taylor Sheridan was always the secret to the show's success, using his unique blend of soapy melodrama and naturalistic dialogue to create what became a TV juggernaut. But while Sheridan is an executive producer on the spin-off, he isn't writing the scripts (though "Marshals" episode 5 does hint at the return of Sheridan's "Yellowstone" character, Travis Wheatley). As such, Luke Grimes was surely already wary about saying yes to anything that wasn't being shepherded by the man responsible for "Yellowstone," and it's not really surprising to hear about the actor's initial resistance to "Marshals." 

But it seems all it took to convince him was a meeting with Spencer Hudnut. "[Hudnut] pitched the idea," recalled Grimes in his Parade interview, "and not only the idea, but he was like, 'We want this to have a procedural element, but it's sort of going to be this hybrid and kind of like no procedural you've seen before.'" That seemed to pique Grimes' interest, even if he remained wary. "I was like, 'Oh, we've all heard that before,'" he continued. "But he was telling the truth, and it's the show that we made."

Grimes pointed out that "Marshals" doesn't rigidly adhere to the procedural format, in which cases are introduced and solved with each new episode. "There's storylines that go over multiple episodes and we'll go over multiple seasons," he said. "It's not just a straight-up procedural in the sense that we're used to, but the way that we use that is sort of a great device for all these combat missions that we go on, so that you do get a bit of a payoff at the end of each episode."

"Marshals" has already been renewed for a second season, which suggests it's doing well enough. But the fan reaction online has hardly been positive. With everything that Luke Grimes has said so far, he almost seems to share some of that fan sentiment. Sure, he's ultimately promoting the show, but so much of what we hear from the guy starts with "at first I was shocked." He said it about Monica's untimely demise, and now he's saying it about the whole premise of the show itself.

As it stands, Grimes was probably right to be skeptical of "Marshals." The show is just kind of "Yellowstone" but not as good. It's still set in Montana, features multiple characters from the original show, and frequently references the same series, like when Kayce was haunted by a disturbing "Yellowstone" storyline in "Marshals" episode 4.

That said, you can see how the producers have tried to differentiate the series. Recently, we learned why Monica Dutton was killed off after "Yellowstone," and it seems that, at least in part, it comes down to Paramount wanting to separate the spin-off from the mothership series. Judging by the fact that the company hasn't been sued by NBCUniversal, which, due to an earlier deal, is entitled to stream "Yellowstone" and any continuation shows on its own streaming platform, Paramount was successful. But deep down, "Marshals" still sort of feels like "Yellowstone" but with a few new characters and worse dialogue. 

Of course, things could improve as the show goes on, but it is interesting to note that Grimes was just as unconvinced by the idea as many fans have been after seeing the first few episodes.