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“Yellowstone,” the gripping drama series, centers on the trials and tribulations of the Dutton family, led by the formidable patriarch, John Dutton.
While Kevin Costner expertly plays John Dutton on Yellowstone, we see a younger version of him in flashbacks who is just as charismatic.
The question that intrigues the audience is, who dons the cowboy hat to play young John Dutton in Yellowstone?
We’ll discover who he is, delve into his acting history, and explore his surprising connection to Yellowstone prior to his casting as a young John Dutton.
Who Plays Young John Dutton on Yellowstone?
A young John Dutton in Yellowstone is played by Josh Lucas. Born Joshua Lucas Easy Dent Maurer on June 20, 1971, in Little Rock, Arkansas, he is an American actor with a height of 5ft 11 ½ (181.6 cm).
Throughout Yellowstone, we get to see frequent glimpses of Lucas as young John. Just like now, John was rough and tough when he was younger, having faced some troubled times in the past.
The crew did a great job of casting Lucas as he shares a strong resemblance to Costner.
Josh Lucas TV Shows and Movies
- Snowy River: The McGregor Saga (1994-1995) as Luke McGregor
- American Psycho (2000) as Craig McDermott
- A Beautiful Mind (2001) as Martin Hansen
- Sweet Home Alabama (2002) as Jake Perry
- Hulk (2003) as Glenn Talbot
- Poseidon (2006) as Dylan Johns
- Glory Road (2006) as Don Haskins
- The Firm (2012) as Mitch McDeere
- The Mysteries of Laura (2014-2016) as Jake Broderick
- Ford v Ferrari (2019) as Leo Beebe
- The Forever Purge (2021) as Dylan Tucker
- Yellowstone (2018-present) as Young John Dutton
Is Josh Lucas Related to Kevin Costner?
Despite playing the younger version of Kevin Costner’s iconic character John Dutton in Yellowstone, Josh Lucas and Costner are not related.
The two are often not on set at the same time so Lucas can focus on playing his character and not Costner.
Lucas said about Yellowstone, “I really liked doing that show. There’s even been some talk of doing whole flashback episodes. That is my hope. I don’t know if or when that’ll happen, but I’m open to it, that’s for sure.”
He went on to say, “it’s one of the most beautiful shows that I’ve ever been a part of, in terms of the landscapes. Even getting to set can be extraordinarily challenging, where you’re like taking an ATV to a horse, and then taking a horse to set. It’s the best.”
Also read: See Inside Yellowstone Star Kevin Costner’s Luxurious Ranch
Is Josh Lucas Married?
Josh Lucas married Jessica Ciencin Henriquez in 2012, however, the couple divorced just two years later in 2014. They share a son together, Noah Rev Maurer, who was born in June 2012.
Where Does Josh Lucas Live?
In 2019, Lucas moved to Bali so his son could attend a special school. In 2021, he sold his eco-friendly home in Los Angeles home for $2.2 million.
“We came across this school called Green School Bali, and Green School has this amazing tagline. The tagline is ‘To create the next generation of environmental leaders,” said Lucas.
“I have this very special 7-year-old child, and I think all of us are trying to figure out how to have an impact in the world. For myself, the best thing I could do is give my son this extraordinary experience,” he added.
Is Josh Lucas the Voice of Home Depot?
Yes, Josh Lucas is the voice behind Home Depot’s commercials. He landed the gig in 2013 and has done commercials ever since.
He Originally Didn’t Get a Part in Yellowstone
A young John Dutton wasn’t Josh Lucas’ first choice of character to play on Yellowstone as the actor auditioned for another character before the series began.
Though he didn’t make the cut, he tried to keep in Taylor Sheridan’s mind by occasionally messaging him. Lucas says in an interview on the Yellowstone YouTube channel, “he didn’t cast me, but I kind of let it go, and at the same time I sent him notes and little messages about why he made a mistake”.
However, the next day, Lucas received an unexpected text from Taylor Sheridan. Lucas explained, “strangely I got this text the next day from Taylor Sheridan saying could I bet on set the next day to play a different character”.
Clearly, Josh Lucas’ perseverance paid off, and he landed the role of John Dutton.
See the fascinating interview below:
He Was Seriously Injured While Filming Poseidon
While filming Poseidon, Lucas was seriously injured twice, landing in the hospital on both occasions. His first injury occurred when Kurt Russell accidentally banged him in the head with a flashlight while filming an underwater scene, which resulted in Lucas getting 16 stitches.
The second happened on the second-to-last day of filming and was the more serious of the two accidents. Lucas fell between 15-20 feet, resulting in him tearing ligaments and muscles in his left thumb.
He underwent a five-hour surgery to reattach the muscles and spent a long while undergoing physical therapy and rehab.
He Almost Got Killed By a Horse While Filming Snowy River: The McGregor Saga
One of Lucas’s biggest first roles was his role as Luke McGregor in Snowy River: The McGregor Saga. Despite not knowing how to ride a horse, he accepted the role that required him to be a knowledgeable rider.
His lack of horseback riding skills almost got him killed by the horse he rode. It later turned out that the horse that almost ended his life was purchased by Russell Crowe.
“My first job was in Australia. When I was 19 years old, I got hired to play a great horseback rider, so I told everyone of course I could ride a horse, and then I arrived on set and of course I didn’t really know how to ride a horse, and that horse .. tried to kill me. Funnily enough, years later I did ‘A Beautiful Mind’ with Russell Crowe and he told me he has that horse,” said Lucas.
Despite the friendly environment of filming in Australia, Lucas became homesick for America. This resulted in his character being killed off in the second season of the show so he could return back home to the States.
He Moved 30 Times Before the Age of 13
As a child, Lucas’s family was constantly moving. By the age of 13, they had already moved 30 times.
His parents had him when they were young, and they spent the beginning of his life nomadically moving throughout the southern United States.
Finally, the family settled in Gig Harbor, Washington, when Lucas was a teenager where he attended high school.
“I would lie in bed the night before a new school and decide who I was going to be. It would usually be based on someone I admired from the school before,” Lucas said in regard to moving so often as a child.
He Won a State Championship in Dramatic Interpretation
Lucas attended Gig Harbor High School where he participated in plays. In addition, he competed in a drama/debate program through his school and won the State Championship in Dramatic Interpretation.
He then went on to compete at the 1989 National Championship.
He Decided to Pursue a Career in Acting Instead of Going to College
Lucas graduated from Gig Harbor High School in 1989 and decided to move to Hollywood after graduating to pursue a career in film. Instead of college, he began to focus on acting.
He began acting as a guest star on several TV sitcoms. Lucas then began landing larger acting roles, starring in two movies in 1993, Class of ’61 and Alive.
He Has Done Theater
After becoming frustrated with his career, Lucas located to New York City where he began to study acting under Suzanne Shepherd. During this time he also began to act in theater productions like Shakespeare in the Parking Lot.
In 1997, Lucas had a break and was cast as Judas in Terrence McNally’s off-Broadway production Corpus Christi. This led his career to kick off once again, as he gained roles in the popular films You Can Count on Me (2000), American Psycho (2000), A Beautiful Mind (2001), and Sweet Home Alabama (2002).
You can follow Josh Lucas here on Instagram.