[This story contains major spoilers from the season two finale of 1923, “A Dream and a Memory.”]
The season two finale of 1923 was many things. The supersized two-hour episode, “A Dream and a Memory,” ran the gamut from being tragic and heart-wrenching to hopeful, sprinkling in some justice along the way. The memorable endings in the sprawling Yellowstone prequel’s sendoff from Taylor Sheridan elicited tears for the central love story between Spencer (Brandon Sklenar) and Alexandra Dutton (Julia Schlaepfer), cheers for the freedom of Teonna Rainwater (Aminah Nieves) and then questions about the open-ended sendoff for Elizabeth Dutton, who is played by Michelle Randolph.
If 1923 viewers haven’t realized by now, Randolph is recognizable from another Sheridan series, as she stars on Landman as the daughter to Billy Bob Thornton’s oil fixer. The second season of Landman went into production shortly before Randolph spoke with The Hollywood Reporter about her 1923 ending for Elizabeth, which came after the surprising death of her husband, Jack Dutton (Darren Mann), the father to the baby she’s carrying when she leaves the Dutton family ranch at the end of the finale.
Elizabeth’s final scene is with Cara Dutton, the matriarch of the Duttons played by Helen Mirren. As Cara cradles Spencer’s baby (who is now without a mother, after the aforementioned heart-wrenching ending for Alexandra), Cara essentially pushes Elizabeth away. Focusing on the Dutton baby who will presumably carry on the family (and franchise’s) legacy, Cara accepts that Elizabeth and her unborn child are leaving, headed back to her native Boston. Cara tells the grieving widow of her great nephew that she will move on from the treacherous life she leaves behind at the ranch, that Elizabeth will find a new love and Jack will become a distant memory.
This scene carries with it a lot of weight in the Yellowstone universe. Viewers know that someone named John will continue the Dutton lineage, eventually leading to Kevin Costner’s John III of the flagship series. (Spencer and Alex’s baby is named John after John Sr., Spencer’s brother, played by James Badge Dale, who was killed in 1923 season one.) After the finale, Sklenar told The Hollywood Reporter he got his answer to the lingering question about the identity of the grandfather to Costner’s John Dutton, and that his baby John continues the legacy.
But as Randolph ponders what’s next for Elizabeth and how her final scene opens the door to the next Yellowstone spinoffs — both the present-day series The Madison, currently in production, and the next prequel series, 1944 — she’s not so sure he’s right: “I think she’s more of a Dutton now that she’s ever been before,” she says of Elizabeth.
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Have you watched the full 1923 season two finale?
I did. It’s a heavy, heavy season. It’s hard to watch alone. There’s no relief! I’m just emotional. I cried, and I even knew it was going to happen. I read it all, but it’s so different when you see it on screen.
I want to go back to when you found out about Jack’s death. Did you know it was coming before you read that in the script?
No. I had no idea. To be honest, it happened so fast, not only in the script but also then the show. It’s like, “That’s it? He’s done?” I thought, “Okay, does he magically come back to life somehow? I know we don’t have ghosts in this show, but like, where is his ghost?” I was in denial about it.
What conversations did you then have with co-star Darren Mann discussing Jack’s death, since Jack and Elizabeth don’t get a goodbye scene?
We were both just sad about it, because obviously that’s the main thing for our characters — surviving. That’s Elizabeth’s whole reason for wanting to leave the ranch: she doesn’t want to die and she doesn’t want her love to die. And that inevitably happens, which I feel like there was a lot of foreshadowing for in hindsight, looking back at the scripts. But it was really sad on our last day of filming together. It was a scene from probably episode two, but it was like: “Oh my gosh, this is it. There’s no coming back. Your character is dead.”
Michelle Randolph as Elizabeth and Darren Mann as Jack Dutton earlier in 1923. “Thinking as Jack, I would hope that that she’d stay [in Montana] and learn to love the life that I loved, and to show my kid that way of life their dad loved,” Mann had told THR after Jack’s death. “I just really hope that she stays.”
Courtesy of Christopher Saunders/Paramount+
You and I have spoken about this Dutton legacy question a few times. Now that we’ve seen this ambiguous ending with Elizabeth, who is pregnant with a Dutton baby, can you share your interpretation of your final scene?
My interpretation is that we still don’t know [who the grandfather is]. (Laughs) It’s not verified. It could be either… I thought by the end of the season we would know, and it’s funny because that’s obviously the question I always get. Everyone is like, “Well surely you know what happens by the end.” If someone says they do, they’re lying. I think Taylor [Sheridan] is keeping it secretive for a reason.
I had my hands on her belly in the scene. I had to remind people I’m pregnant.
Did you film exactly what was in the script?
There was no blocking or stage direction, so we came up with that on the day. I feel like there was a strong sense of power in Elizabeth when she leaves. She wasn’t as emotional as she typically is throughout the season, and I think that shows how much she’s changed. She’s leaving the ranch an entirely different person.
But it’s also really sad that her and Cara don’t have a beautiful goodbye. It’s like they’re both closing the door and moving on. Cara says, “Looking at you is a window to the past.” It’s also sad because those are the people who Elizabeth has trauma-bonded with. When she leaves, how is she going to explain all that she’s been through in the last year? I mean, no one will ever understand that.
Cara and Elizabeth have this interesting differing of opinions in their final conversation. You’re saying, “I’ll always remember Jack,” and Cara is saying, “No, you won’t,” and that you will move on and find another love. As Michelle, which argument do you agree with?
Of course she’s going to remember him! First of all, she is pregnant with his child. Second, she lost her father. She chose his family over her own. This has changed everything about who she is as a person. I think that it’s kind of belittling of Cara, honestly, to say that to her. But because of how their bond is, I don’t think that Cara is meaning it in in a dismissive way. I think Cara is trying to make Elizabeth feel better, because she’s clearly heartbroken. That’s the way I justified it.
What do you imagine Elizabeth’s future looks like after she leaves the ranch? Do you see it differently than Cara predicts?
I think she’s more of a Dutton now that she’s ever been before. I don’t think she’s going to go to the city and forget her life and get swept up in it. I hope she has moments of relief — but she’s a Dutton.
And that Dutton baby she’s carrying has a right to that ranch.
I also think that’s why, in my mind, it’s Cara’s way of trying to make Elizabeth feel better, because Cara does know that.
Randolph as Elizabeth, here with Helen Mirren, has her final scene with Mirren’s Cara in the finale. “I think she’s more of a Dutton now that she’s ever been before,” says Randolph of how Elizabeth has evolved.
Trae Patton/Paramount+
In the Yellowstone franchise, spinoff series 1944 is the next chapter Taylor Sheridan will be telling in the prequel world. Have you had any conversations about 1944?
I mean, I’m alive! I’m alive. If I could be in 1944, I would absolutely love that. I have no idea where the storyline picks up or who it follows. I don’t know anything about it.
And we don’t know if Elizabeth is carrying a boy or a girl.
Right, we don’t know.
This 1923 ending expands the sprawling Dutton family tree. If both Elizabeth’s and Alexandra’s babies survive, there will be more branches to fill in for a family that has spawned TV’s hit franchise, which has no signs of slowing down. Next up is The Madison, which is the present-day spinoff starring Michelle Pfeiffer, and we don’t know yet how it relates to the main Dutton story. [Note: Paramount+ has not confirmed if 1923 or Yellowstone are ending.]
I’ve been trying to figure it out. I don’t know a ton about The Madison, but I know they come from the East Coast. I so I’m like, is there some sort of web [connecting] Elizabeth? I have no idea.
Michelle Pfeiffer and you do look like you could be related…
And we have the same name! (Laughs)
I know that you’ve pored over the Dutton family trees that are online, and that many out there aren’t right, as people continue to speculate while only Taylor Sheridan knows the answers. What vision would you put out there for Elizabeth’s future?
It could go in so many different directions. Maybe she has the child and she wants to show him where he’s from, and about his dad, and they find their way back to Montana. Maybe she wants to take over the ranch! Maybe she learned from Cara enough. I also am trying to not get attached to anything, because of course the fantasy in my head is that I’m still alive and could be in 1944 somehow; they do incredible prosthetics. But I can’t get attached, because I might be irrelevant to it!
Michelle Randolph as Elizabeth in season the finale. “I had told Taylor after season one that I wanted Elizabeth to … do something strong. I wanted her to show her fire,” says Randolph.
Trae Patton/Paramount+
You finally got in on the cowboy action with your finale shotgun scene. You mentioned earlier about seeing a different Elizabeth leaving the ranch than when she came. How did having that hero moment change her, and what was it like getting to fire a shotgun for such a big day on set?
I had told Taylor after season one that I wanted Elizabeth to get on a horse. I wanted her to do something strong. I wanted her to show her fire. When I was reading, I was like, “Ok, I’m not on a horse yet, not on a horse… oh, I get to shoot a shotgun. Okay, this is her moment.” I think it shows how strong she is. This entire time, Elizabeth’s one thing is that she’s just trying to survive. This shows that she’s not going to go down without fighting. She’s not going to go hide in the basement. She is, again, a Dutton and I think she fully thought that could be the moment that her life ended. And I don’t think once you experience something like that, you are the same.
It was an epic fight scene, which also reunited Brandon Sklenar’s Spencer with the family. What was that reunion like on set?
There was such a fun, exciting energy. Spencer finally gets home! I was so happy to be on set the day where Spencer walks through the doors of the ranch. It was shot over the course of a few days. We were all on set for some of the scenes, like that ending scene with Spencer. They shot pieces of it, because first there was the upstairs [during the shootout]. It was insane. Also, we used blanks in the guns and there’s no kickback on the gun, but it’s very loud. So it’s fun that I actually got to shoot a gun and really feel like I was in the moment. Brandon and I had never had a scene before. It’s so bizarre, because we’re all on set and staying in the same place. I’m actually such good friends with Aminah [Nieves] and our characters never interact. That’s why it’s so fun to watch, because it’s like watching a different show.
How did you feel when you first read about Alexandra’s fate?
It’s devastating. Devastating. The whole train — all of it. But the ending scene, I’m so happy Taylor included Spencer and Alex in heaven together because you just need that satisfaction of them being happy together. In the whole season, like I said earlier, there’s no relief and I realized it’s because there’s no love story that’s starting. The whole season, you’re waiting for someone to be happy. I cried the most when watching Spencer and Alex run to each other at the train when they reunite. I cried when I read that scene, and I read the script so many times, but then it’s just different seeing it.
Randolph as Ainsley, left, with Ali Larter in Landman.
Lauren Lo Smith/Paramount+
You’re also now back in production on your other Taylor Sheridan series, Landman, for season two. What is it like switching gears back to Ainsley after playing Elizabeth?
I felt like we just started where we left off. I think I found the character last season and we all are so comfortable together. I’m on my second week of filming, and it’s fun to be back. They are are such different worlds. I can’t even compare them.
The Landman finale saw your onscreen father, played by Billy Bob Thornton, make this deal with the devil (played by Andy Garcia) about the future of the oil patch. Is season two headed into darker territory, and is Ainsley still going to bring the light?
She is always going to bring the light. It’s a lot of family. A lot of family.
There was a big reaction and audience attraction to Ainsley’s storyline. Are you bringing any of that feedback into season two?
I’m trying my very, very best to just completely tune it out. It worked, whatever I did, so I’m trying to get in the headspace I was in for the first season. Whatever the audience thinks, that’s not something I should pay attention to. It’s irrelevant to my process with Ainsley.
To end on a 1923 note, what do you think Elizabeth would write in her first letter to Cara?
(Emotional) I miss you.
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1923 is now streaming seasons one and two on Paramount+. Follow along with THR’s season two coverage and interviews, including with Brandon Sklenar and Julia Schlaepfer on Spencer and Alex’s season two ending.
