1883: With Ennis Dead, How Will Elsa Raise Supposed Baby?

Tyler Sheridan's Western universe is expanding with 1883, completing the story of the first Duttons to settle in Montana, in addition to the main Yellowstone series. Elsa Dutton, James's daughter, has been a key character in the spin-off series, and in recent episodes, she has been swept off her feet by the presence of Ennis.

However, following an intimate scene with Ennis in 1883 Episode 5, fans are left wondering if Elsa is pregnant.

1883: Could Elsa Really be Pregnant?

Elsa and the cowboy Ennis consummate their romance during a rare unfettered night in the wilderness in 1883 Season 1 Episode 5 The Fangs of Freedom. Elsa's mother Margaret sees the intense exchange because they did it not far from the entire camp, forcing her to have a chat with Elsa the next day about actions and consequences.

More significantly, because the frontier lacks condoms or any other dependable means of birth control, it's possible that Ennis impregnated Elsa. These 1883 scenes could be laying the stage for a tragically terrible reminder that 1883 is an offshoot of Yellowstone's dark story. It all comes down to the pilot episode of the show.

Does Elsa Lose the Baby?

The first scene of 1883's pilot episode sees Elsa gunning down a Native American who ambushed their caravan – but also taking an arrow in the belly, impaling her body.

While this scene in the pilot hints that Elsa would die at some point in the story, the arrow could only kill Elsa's baby if Elsa is pregnant. This means Elsa will have to live without her baby for the rest of 1883 Season 1 — on top of still grieving for Ennis, who was killed unexpectedly in a gunfight with bandits.

Elsa’s Baby is Spencer

Thanks to a scene in Yellowstone, some Reddit users have pushed the Elsa pregnancy theory even farther. The Dutton family in 1893, 10 years after the events of the prequel, is shown in a flashback. Spencer Dutton, John Dutton's younger brother, is now a teenager.

Some fans, however, believe Spencer is really Elsa Dutton's son. Elsa's future appears dismal in the opening scene of 1883. She is struck in the stomach by an arrow, a wound that could have killed her. Elsa also doesn't appear in any of the Yellowstone flashbacks in which Spencer appears.

Elsa may have become pregnant with Ennis' child, given birth, and then been killed not long after. Following that, James and Margaret may opt to raise Spencer as their son, possibly concealing the truth about his true parents because he was born out of wedlock.

New episodes of 1883 air Sundays on Paramount+.