Yellowstone Is Ready to Bring Monica Dutton Back at the Perfect Time for Kayce in Marshals

Yellowstone has a clear runway to bring Kayce Dutton’s (Luke Grimes) wife, Monica Long (Kelsey Asbille), back in Marshals Season 2, with new comments about her potential involvement. Along with Dutton Ranch, Marshals is one of two spinoffs of Taylor Sheridan’s flagship neo-Western series, Yellowstone, which starred Kevin Costner as John Dutton and ended with Season 5 in 2024.

Throughout Yellowstone, Kayce and Monica overcome various obstacles, including their own marital struggles, which makes them seem inseparable. However, it eventually came to light that Monica wasn’t joining Kayce’s Yellowstone spinoff, and Marshals revealed in its series premiere that she had died of cancer. However, Monica’s comeback is still possible, and it’s actually the perfect time.

Marshals Is Open To Monica’s Yellowstone Comeback

Luke Grimes addressed Monica Dutton’s return to Yellowstone in Marshals in October, saying that he would love to incorporate the character into the new show. Monica died off-screen after Yellowstone and before Marshals. However, the franchise could use flashbacks to bring Asbille’s character back into the story, a format the flagship has used that would now benefit its spinoff.

That said, Grimes acknowledges the prospect is out of his hands, saying he hasn’t talked to his former co-star about it and doesn’t know if Asbille would be open to reprising Monica in Marshals. Noting the personal aspect of returning to the character, Grimes said Asbille was “sort of done with that chapter in her life.”

Asbille didn’t join her co-star in Marshals because of scheduling conflicts. That said, a limited flashback appearance could, in theory, bring Asbille back without requiring a full-season commitment to the series’ rigorous broadcast schedule. Still, Grimes’ comments suggest the actor has, in a sense, separated from the role after their stories reached a natural stopping point in Yellowstone Season 5.

Marshals showrunner Spencer Hudnut also commented on bringing Monica back, saying he would love to work with Asbille. Still, Hudnut noted he didn’t know the Yellowstone actor’s point of view and that Marshals would have to handle the timing carefully, saying, “I think you have to be very careful about the timing of doing that.”

Grimes also noted in the interview that he had his own reservations about reprising Kayce for a continuation. Still, he ultimately decided to come back to Yellowstone, saying, “I was so prepared to let Kayce go, and then once I had let it go, I missed it, so the idea that I could maybe do it again felt really nice.”

Why Monica Needs To Come Back In Marshals Season 2

Monica Dutton, played by actor Kelsey Asbille, in a grey sweater on a cabin porch in Yellowstone

As Marshals Season 2 unfolds, there’s room for Monica’s comeback, and it’s an opportune time to bring Kayce’s first love back into the story. Throughout the flagship, flashbacks brought back various members of the Dutton family. Flashbacks of deceased relatives add context and emotional weight to the flagship’s present-day developments, and Marshals could draw on that formula.

To that end, Marshals Season 1 would have felt too soon for Kayce to start a new romance, given his wife’s recent death. However, Grimes notes things feel different in Marshals Season 2, saying, “Now, as we’re shooting season two, I feel like enough time has passed where the audience, and I, are sort of more ready for that.”

Grimes, an executive producer for Marshals, says that he and Hudnut have tried to be sensitive to Kayce taking on a new love interest. That’s where flashbacks could come into play, showing the moments surrounding Monica’s death on-screen, which could help bridge the gap by closing out Kayce’s past relationship and creating space for him to move on.

Marshals Season 1 planted the seeds for Kayce’s next romantic chapter. Kayce shares moments with two characters that hint at something more romantic developing: Tom Weaver’s (Chris Mulkey) daughter, Dolly (Ellyn Jameson), and his teammate, Andrea Cruz (Ash Santos). However, Dolly dies in the premiere of Marshals Season 2, making Kayce’s romance with Andrea more likely.

Grimes has also commented on the possibility, acknowledging Kayce and Andrea’s “will they, won’t they” dynamic and comparing their relationship to another on-screen romance from The Office, calling it a “Jim and Pam sort of situation.” So if Marshals is setting up a love story there, flashbacks that let Kayce process Monica’s death could help everyone accept the new romance.