Yellowstone Prequel Announces Incredible Leading Cast

The Yellowstone prequel 1883 has lined up a phenomenal cast.

By Apeksha Bagchi | Published

This article is more than 2 years old

Yellowstone 1883

While other major productions are being either getting canceled or delayed, the development of 1883, the prequel series of Paramount Network’s hit show, Yellowstone, is marching on ahead. Like its predecessor, 1883 has brought together a stellar award-winning cast, which already establishes the kind of excellence this series will be aiming for. 

Deadline has reported that Paramount+ (on which the Yellowstone spin-off series will exclusively stream) and MTV Entertainment have roped in Academy Award nominee Sam Elliott as well as Grammy-winning artists Tim McGraw and Faith Hill to play the lead characters in 1883. The prequel series will see Elliott playing the character of Shea Brennan, “a tough-as-nails handsome cowboy” who has no time for foolish people and is living with a tragic past. On his shoulders rest the important task of guiding a group of ranchers from Texas to Montana. 

While Oscar-winning Kevin Costner plays the head of the Dutton family in Yellowstone, 1883 will introduce the original matriarch and patriarch of the renowned family, i.e., Margaret (Faith Hill) and James Dutton (Tim McGraw) who will come to own the largest ranch in the United States. The series will map the journey of the Dutton family through the Great Plains as they make it towards “the last bastion of untamed America” i.e., Montana to escape their poverty-filled past and seek a better future. 

sam elliott

The prequel series has been written by Taylor Sheridan who is also the creator of Yellowstone. Sam Elliott has shared that Sheridan has penned a brilliant story for 1883, which will witness the classic struggles of “man against man, man against nature and man against himself.” 

“It’s all there, in 1883, and I’m honored to be a part of it,” he added. McGraw is equally excited about playing his character, especially because the series has Yellowstone’s Sheridan who has already proved that he can spin epic stories infused with depth and his trademark creativity. For McGraw, it is a “dream job” to play the Dutton family matriarch. Faith Hill has seconded her co-star’s sentiments by confirming that getting the chance to bring a strong female character like Margaret Dutton to life is “the opportunity of a lifetime.”

Chris McCarthy, President/CEO of MTV Entertainment Group, is confident that with 1883, they will be able to use the massive success of Yellowstone to establish a global hit franchise that will in turn amp up the growth of the recently launched Paramount+. McCarthy’s faith in the franchise-making potential of Yellowstone is not misplaced as a recent report by Flix Patrol revealed that even though Season 4 is months away, the series is not only the most-streamed TV show of 2021 on Amazon Prime, Fandango, Google Play, and iTunes, but it also beats the other top shows on other streamers and digital platforms by a wide margin. 

tim mcgraw

1883 will be jointly produced by 101 Studios and Bosque Ranch Productions, while Taylor Sheridan, John Linson, Art Linson, David Glasser, Ron Burkle, and Bob Yari are on board as executive producers. Another spin-off series, titled 6666, is also in development and will focus on the Four Sixes Ranch in Texas in the present day. While no official date for Yellowstone Season 4 has been revealed, it is scheduled to debut sometime in late 2021.