Luke Grimes Teases ‘Yellowstone’ Spinoff Will ‘Discover a Complete New World’ for Kayce (Unique)

Luke Grimes wasn’t going to return to the Yellowstone world only for the sake of it.

The 41-year-old actor wished there to be a purpose for him to reprise his beloved character Kayce Dutton after the hit Taylor Sheridan collection got here to an finish final fall, and he wasn’t going to say sure to a mission simply because saying goodbye to Yellowstone was “actually onerous,” he tells PEOPLE.

In Could, CBS introduced that Grimes’ character can be getting a by-product collection, titled Y: Marshals, however he says that it wasn’t till the precise story got here his means — one which he knew would “rope the viewers in” — that he was on board.

Grimes was positive it was the “finish of the highway” for Kayce when Yellowstone ended and was not underneath the impression he’d get a by-product.

“On the final day of taking pictures, I believed it was my final day as Kayce. It was over to me,” he says of the conclusion to season 5, which aired in December.

“It was seven years of enjoying an individual that I am going to by no means see once more, apart from having his hat and jacket in my closet. It wasn’t till in all probability three or 4 months after that that every part began aligning for the [spinoff].”

Wrapping filming on Yellowstone was “lots larger of a life second than I believed it could be,” he admits. “To attempt to put that present away, it was onerous. It was actually onerous, and I do know that is going to sound bizarre, however it was kind of emotional. It was like dropping a household in a means.”

Nonetheless, Grimes thought it was “the tip of the highway, which might’ve been wonderful have been it the case,” particularly contemplating Kayce “kind of will get what he has been in search of, his dream life” on the finish of Yellowstone.

Y: Marshals will “discover a entire new world” for the youngest of the Dutton clan, in a means that “is sensible.”

When the concept of a by-product was raised, Grimes’ first thought was, “The place do you go from there?”

Within the finale, Kayce is “again to who he actually is and his soul” after promoting the Dutton land to Chief Thomas Rainwater (Gil Birmingham), however when there “lastly got here alongside a extremely good concept” for a continuation, he was in.

“We undoubtedly wished to verify to provide it an actual story and make it fascinating and make it plausible,” Grimes, who has partnered with Excessive West because the whiskey’s latest model ambassador for its Defend the West initiative, says.

“If it was similar to, ‘effectively, he is joyful’ — we’re simply going to look at him be joyful? That is not very cool. However I am going to say this, the concept that was pitched to me could be very, superb and really fascinating and it actually roped me in and I feel it can rope the viewers in as effectively.”

Returning to Kayce, however in a complete new context, goes to be a problem for Grimes.

Processing Yellowstone‘s ending was a “actually weird transition,” after near eight years engaged on it, however now “to return into it in a brand new set of circumstances goes to be form of transition” of its personal, too.

“It will likely be bizarre,” Grimes says. “There’s going to be some acquainted faces, however there’s going to be a variety of new faces too, so we’ll see how that each one feels.”

All that he is aware of is that “no one wished it to be over” when Yellowstone got here to an finish final 12 months. “I do not suppose the followers wished it to be over. Plenty of us actors form of did not need it to be over, and the studio and community actually did not need it to be over.”

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Grimes is additional aligning himself with the love and safety of the outside that the hit collection embodies by means of his partnership with Excessive West’s “Defend the West” initiative, which helps charities nationwide engaged on land preservation and environmental stewardship.

“Each adventurer has their spot, that one place within the wild they cherish most. For me, this partnership with Excessive West is about defending these locations earlier than they’re gone,” he mentioned in an announcement. “The Defend the West initiative is one thing I deeply imagine in, and I’m honored to lend my voice to the trigger.”