1923: What Happened to Elizabeth Dutton's Baby

Many fans are wondering what happened to Elizabeth's baby at the end of 1923 since she left Montana before giving birth.

After getting pregnant and then suffering a miscarriage in 1923 Season 1, Elizabeth Dutton became pregnant again in the show's second and final season.

A lot of viewers who were also familiar with Yellowstone believed that Elizabeth could have given birth to John Dutton II (Kevin Costner's John Dutton's father), but those theories were muddled when Alexandra Dutton also became pregnant in Season 2.

Elizabeth Dutton Actress on What Happened to Her Baby in 1923 Finale

After a gunfight ensued on the Dutton Ranch in the 1923 Season 2 and series finale, it was unclear if Elizabeth and her baby would make it out of the situation alive.

However, she luckily survived (and so did the baby), but at the end of the episode, she decided not to stay in Montana. After speaking with Helen Mirren's Cara, Elizabeth and the baby traveled east to Boston, where Elizabeth is from.

While it was confirmed that Alexandra and Spencer's son was named John and hinted that he would be the one to carry on the Dutton legacy in Montana, many still wondered what would come of Elizabeth's baby in the Yellowstone timeline.

In an interview with People, Elizabeth actress Michelle Randolph talked about Elizabeth and the baby's future, saying that she "[does not know]" what happens to the baby or where it goes, and that she didn't "feel like [she had] a full sense of closure" for her character.

Because of Elizabeth's open-ended departure in 1923, Randolph admitted that she had to "create [her] own storyline" for her character:

"Where that baby goes, I do not know. (I don't) feel like I have a full sense of closure. Elizabeth walks away pregnant. We assume she's going back to Boston. We don't know where she's going. I really had to kind of create my own storyline, and not get attached to it, at the same time."

In a separate interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Randolph talked more about the 1923 ending and alluded that the mystery of who John Dutton III's father is may not actually be resolved.

According to Randolph, "it's not verified" that Alexandra and Spencer's baby is truly John Dutton III's father, indicating that Elizabeth's husband, Jack, could still be the grandfather:

"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."

However, Alexandra and Spencer did name their baby John, so the show implied that Spencer was, in fact, the grandfather of John Dutton's character from Yellowstone.

Randolph also mentioned in the interview that no one knows if Elizabeth's child is a boy or a girl, but she was asked about what the future could hold for her character and the baby.

1923 and Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan is currently developing another spin-off series called 1944, and it is entirely possible that both Elizabeth and her child could show up in that series.

When asked about Elizabeth's future, Randolph stated that "it could go in so many different directions." The actress did admit that she has thought about Elizabeth coming back to Montana from Boston and even "[taking] over the ranch," though:

"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."

Like many fans have already pointed out, Randolph also believes that her character could "still be alive and could be in 1944 somehow:"

"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!"

Will Elizabeth Dutton's Baby Be in 1944?

When it comes to 1944, anything could happen, but two scenarios seem more likely. Since the show will take place in the year 1944, America will be involved in World War II.

Spencer Dutton was involved in World War I, so it is entirely possible and maybe even likely that Spencer's son, John Dutton II, fights in World War II.

That could set up an interesting power struggle if Elizabeth returned to the ranch and brought her own son (assuming she has a boy) with her. Both men would be around the same age, and if John II was off fighting in the war and then came back to find his cousin running the ranch, there could be a bit of an internal conflict present for 1944.

The other scenario that could be explored in 1944 is that Elizabeth could stay in Boston, allowing the series to flesh out and begin an entirely new branch of Duttons on the East Coast.

That could set up even more spin-off shows that aren't within the Western genre, but still surrounding the same family.

No matter what happens, it would be extremely surprising if Elizabeth's child wasn't in 1944 (read about every 1923 character that could show up in that series here).

1923 is streaming on Paramount+.