Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone is coming to an end with the second part of the final season, currently in production. While a spinoff series is in the slate from the same creator, neither Sheridan nor Paramount has said anything definitive about the series. According to a recent report, three major Yellowstone stars would return to the spinoff series with a record salary.
It was reported that Cole Hauser, Kelly Reilly, and Luke Grimes would return in the spinoff. Earlier reports suggested that the spinoff is eyeing top actors like Matthew McConaughey and Michelle Pfeiffer, who are pricier than the three aforementioned Yellowstone stars.
However, it is unlikely that these stars would beat the record salaries of Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon in The Morning Show.
Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone Stars Reportedly Get Record Paydays For Spinoff
Yellowstone lead Kevin Costner exited the series in May 2023 and Paramount soon announced its end after its fifth season. However, the studio also announced a spinoff project for the beloved Western drama. It was rumored that Matthew McConaughey was going to take over the reigns while recent rumors also suggested that the creators were looking for a female lead in Michelle Pfeiffer.
While the state of the spinoff series is undecided yet, new report emerged that three lead stars from Yellowstone are returning for the spinoff series. According to Matthew Belloni’s newsletter Puck, Cole Hauser’s Rip, Kelly Reilly‘s Beth Dutton, and Luke Grimes’ Kayce Dutton will return to the new series.
Earlier, news broke out that these actors were at odds with Paramount over their salaries (via Puck). If the stars are returning to the series, it must mean that the studio agreed to their demand of $1.25 million per episode for each of them. It is also possible that the studio met the demand somewhere near that amount, which is still one of the highest salaries on television.
If these stars earn a million dollars for the role, McConaughey and Pfeiffer could easily command a much higher paycheck to lead the series. Any official reports on these humongous salaries will take time to surface as both the producers and the actors have immersed themselves in the production of the final season.
Cole Hauser told Country Living during an interview that he was mostly focused on completing the main series. However, he added that the spinoff series had some “exciting ideas” about where the story could go from the original series.
Yellowstone Cast’s Potential Salaries Are Nothing Compared To Jennifer Aniston’s TV Salary
Yellowstone stars earning over a million per episode is not surprising considering Jennifer Aniston and her ‘friends’ earned a million per episode in the mid-2000s. The Friends actress currently has another record to her name as she earns $2 million per episode for The Morning Show, along with co-star Reese Witherspoon (via Parade).
Aniston’s current salary had drawn criticism from various corners. However, Witherspoon shut down the criticism of their salaries during an interview with THR. She shared that the companies had no problem in paying extravagant salaries since they knew the actresses were worth it. Witherspoon shared with THR:
There seemed to be a resentment, as if we weren’t worth it or it was bothersome, and I thought, Why is that bothersome? I guarantee these companies are real smart, and if they agree to pay us, they’re doing it for a reason.
They probably had a lot of lawyers and a lot of business people decide on that number because they knew that they were going to make more than that back. Does it bother people when Kobe Bryant or LeBron James make their contract?
The Yellowstone cast’s potential million-dollar salaries could be a step in the right direction. The actors should be able to reap the benefits of the success of the show, just like the producers and the studio. Parade reported that Hauser, Reilly, and Grimes were all paid $200,000 per episode until now.
Yellowstone is now available for streaming on Peacock. The Morning Show is now available on AppleTV+.
