Brandon Sklenar, who many might know as the studly Spencer Dutton in the Yellowstone spinoff titled 1923, recently debuted a new look that has fans divided.
The last time we saw Sklenar’s Spencer Dutton was in the Season 2 finale of 1923. There might not be a character in the Yellowstone universe that had to withstand more trials and tribulations than Spencer Dutton, and now, the actor behind Spencer is going through his very own challenges after dying his hair blonde.
Okay… that might be a little dramatic. But his new look has been turning heads, and fans seem to be split on the transformation that the actor debuted at the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards. For years, his scruffy brown hair has been a bit of a signature look for him. After all, he’s kept that hair color and style in many of his roles following 1923. It’s pretty hard to argue that he wasn’t the heartthrob of the Yellowstone universe… now he looks like the lead singer of Lifehouse.
When he stepped out on the red carpet alongside his Rescue costar, Hassie Harrison (also of the Yellowstone universe), I’d imagine a lot of people were doing double takes. It’s just a simple change in hair color, right? Well, as you’ll see in the video below, it actually makes a big difference. Ditching the beard as well almost made him look like an entirely different person.
If that version of Brandon Sklenar walked down the sidewalk, there’d be a lot of 1923 fans out there that wouldn’t even recognize him.
Obviously, if the 36-year-old actor wants to change up his appearance, he’s free to do so. There’s a chance he’s even sporting the blonde hair and clean shave for a role that he’s either actively shooting or has coming up.
But it’s been very interesting to see how fans online have reacted to the blonde transformation.
As you can see below, some fans were for it:
Okay that blonde? Yes, but I don’t like the glasses
— César Rodríguez (@King_Drama_23) September 28, 2026
Love a man who ain’t afraid to change up his look. He looks amazing.
— wanderer528 (@Joey34871212) September 28, 2026
That hair but with his beard woulda been a serve https://t.co/Qpl4sYWYCa
— alex ✌🏽🇨🇴🏳️🌈 (@mxnrique__) September 27, 2026
The beard could have at least softened the dirty blonde look… I agree with that.
On the flip side, there were a whole lot of people that weren’t so sure about the look. It’s definitely a big change, and as you’ve probably heard 100 times, people don’t always like change. That led many people online to say things like this:
blond doesn’t suit him
— ram (@winxinator_v1) September 27, 2026
not all men rock blonde and it shows.
— Nonchalant_ twig(*_*)(TT) (@RenthleiRe2) September 28, 2026
Definitely not his best look
— Lee Gonzalez (@kevinleegunz) September 27, 2026
I doubt Brandon Sklenar foresaw his switch to blonde hair being that big of a deal. Little did he know… the shift would spark a great, fashion debate online. It’s definitely a different look for him, and all of this uproar could be for nothing. Next time we see him, Sklenar could very well be back to his brunette ways.
But for now, the internet has something to talk about.
