Paramount+’s “Dutton Ranch” has a new showrunner for season 2: Benjamin Cavell is taking over from Chad Feehan.
Cavell is known for creating “SEAL Team” and MGM+’s “The Institute,” and for co-creating “The Stand.” He replaces Chad Feehan, who created the “Yellowstone” spinoff and ran its first season; neither Feehan nor the studio has said why he’s leaving. Cole Hauser, who plays Rip Wheeler, told Yahoo Entertainment he thinks the change is “a really nice next step” for the series, the cast and himself, calling Cavell “a very special guy.”
Paramount+ renewed “Dutton Ranch” for a second season after what The Hollywood Reporter called the platform’s biggest original series launch, with a reported 12.9 million viewers worldwide in its first week. The series, which also stars Kelly Reilly as Beth Dutton, premiered May 15, 2026, and moved the “Yellowstone” story from Montana to Texas. Its first season wrapped with a finale called “El Padrino” that aired July 3, 2026. Jai Courtney has reportedly joined the cast for season 2, according to Yahoo Entertainment, though his specific role hasn’t been confirmed.
Filming that first season was tough. Hauser has said the roughly nine-month Texas shoot put the cast through extreme heat and ice storms, and that everyone was ready for a break by the time they wrapped filming on episode 9, the nine-episode season’s finale — even though he called the season “very rewarding” given how well it did. Season 2 production is expected to start in early 2027; no premiere date has been announced yet.