Over the course of three seasons, Paramount's Yellowstone has become a big success for the network, but for those of you who like your westerns a little less contemporary, it was announced today that Yellowstone co-creator Taylor Sheridan will be developing a prequel series.
The prequel, titled Y:1883, will follow the Dutton family as "they embark on a journey west through the Great Plains toward the last bastion of untamed America. It is a stark retelling of Western expansion, and an intense study of one family fleeing poverty to seek a better future in America's promised land – Montana." The original Yellowstone series follows "the Dutton family, led by John Dutton (Kevin Costner), who controls the largest contiguous ranch in the United States. The ranch is under constant attack by those it borders—land developers, an Indian reservation, and United States of America's first National Park. It is an intense study of a violent world far from media scrutiny, where land grabs earn developers billions, and politicians are bought and sold by the world's largest oil and lumber corporations. Where unsolved murders are not news, they are a consequence of living in the new frontier. It is the best and worst of the United States as seen through the eyes of a family that represents both." A special sneak peek at the series will debut during the Super Bowl this Sunday. In a statement, Taylor Sheridan said:
I am excited to continue the story of Yellowstone and thank you to Chris, Keith and David for allowing me to keep on expanding the family for the fans.
Y: 1883 is the first series that Taylor Sheridan will develop under his new multi-year deal which will include "five cycles per year of scripted and procedural series" exclusive to ViacomCBS, including but not limited to Paramount Network, Paramount+, CBS, and other ViacomCBS brands and platforms. The main Yellowstone series wrapped up its third season last year and has already been renewed for a fourth.