One of the most successful cable shows of the last few years, Yellowstone, is expanding its world at the perfect time. ViacomCBS and MTV Entertainment Group announced a prequel series, Y: 1883, on Friday, and the first teaser trailer will air during the Super Bowl on Sunday.
The series is part of a deal that will see Sheridan create exclusive multi-platform content with MTV Entertainment Studios and 101 Studios under a multi-year pact which includes five cycles per year of scripted and procedural series. Content will be exclusive to ViacomCBS, including but not limited to Paramount Network, Paramount+, CBS, and other VCBS brands and platforms.
According to Sheridan, “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.”
“Taylor Sheridan is a visionary creative whose work has reinvented genres and amassed fan bases around the globe; we are thrilled he calls ViacomCBS and MTV Entertainment his home,” said Chris McCarthy, President of MTV Entertainment. “We couldn’t be more excited to build upon our partnership with him, expand the Yellowstone universe and showcase Taylor’s boundless talent across all of our brands and platforms.”
The third season of Yellowstone was the most-watched season premiere on cable in two years, drawing record-breaking numbers of 6.5M total viewers in live +3. The show, co-created by John Linson and Oscar and Golden Globe nominee Taylor Sheridan, has developed a huge following thanks to its engrossing storylines, beautiful cinematography, and a tremendous cast, which includes 2-time Oscar winner Kevin Costner as John Dutton and standout Kelly Reilly as his daughter Beth.
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 said to be 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.
In the Season 2 episode, “Sins of the Father”, we saw John Dutton’s father, John Dutton Sr. (Dabney Coleman, You’ve Got Mail), through flashbacks, at the end of his life, but that’s the furthest into the past that the show has taken us to this point. Yellowstone at its core is about a family in Montana, fighting for the survival of their ranch, and way of life, so it will bring additional layers of significance and perspective to see how that began with Y: 1883.
This exciting announcement will do little to quell the anticipation of Season 4 of Yellowstone, which ended on a mountain of cliffhangers. It should, however, add to the success of the series, and allow for what is essentially a Western set in modern times to go back to its roots and see the Dutton ancestry in the wild west of old.
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