Hudnut Carves Own Path With 'Yellowstone' Spinoff
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- Spencer Hudnut created 'Marshals' for CBS, a spinoff following Kayce Dutton (Luke Grimes) as a U.S. Marshal after his wife's death, with the show premiering about a year after he first pitched it — a development cycle Hudnut called decidedly abnormal.
- Hudnut worked with a fraction of the budget and time of the original 'Yellowstone,' with some episodes shot in as few as six days for a 43-minute ensemble-action show, a pace he said was learned from his seven years on 'SEAL Team.'
- Luke Grimes had publicly said he didn't want to wear the cowboy hat again after 'Yellowstone,' but a FaceTime call with Hudnut changed his mind, and many of Grimes's ideas ended up incorporated into the series.
- Taylor Sheridan turned Hudnut's 60-second pitch into 'Marshals,' then urged him to stop mimicking his voice; Hudnut admitted his first few episodes were him doing a 'Taylor Sheridan cover band thing' before he settled into his own version.
- Hudnut allocated shoot time strategically — taking the necessary time for intimate Kayce-and-son sequences to preserve 'Yellowstone'-style imagery, while moving at broadcast-procedural speed through bullpen and bar scenes.
- Hudnut cited the rushed schedule as a quiet advantage, saying the speed kept him from being paralyzed by the 'Yellowstone' baton-pass, though he acknowledged the cast — some of whom had never held a gun or been on horseback — could have used more tactical and riding prep time.
- 'Marshals' is streaming on Paramount+, with Hudnut now beginning Season 2 work and planning to 'swing a little bigger' after the first-season crew got faster and more efficient on budget and time.
Why it matters: The spinoff's viability hinges on a delicate balance: CBS needs a procedural that serves network-only viewers while still pleasing the 'Yellowstone' faithful, and Hudnut's approach — strategic time-allocation, enlisting Grimes as a creative ally, and embracing speed over reverence — is the bet that makes that bridge possible on a six-day shoot schedule.
