The cast of 1883 will not be coming back to North Texas for an encore shoot. Series creator Taylor Sheridan has confirmed that the 10-episode Yellowstone prequel is not getting a second season — or at least he's strongly hinting at it.
In an interview February 28, the day after the 1883 finale, Deadline asked Sheridan if he was finished with the saga. Short of saying a hard "yes," he replied, "I created this peek through time to show you this one specific journey. I’m not someone who likes to tie everything up in a bow and explain how everyone lived happily after, or didn’t. I’d rather you imagine it ... "
He added, "We wanted to make a 10-hour movie that ended, and that’s what we did."
Sheridan said he's moving on to the next "window," another prequel series called 1932. He told Deadline that this chapter in the Dutton family drama would be a "peek through a different window into a different era. Again, I don’t think of any of these as spinoffs, but rather as complete stories that have common roots," he said. "My goal with the next one would be that you could never have seen 1883 or Yellowstone, and still have a fully realized experience as a viewer."
1883 fans became hopeful for a new season when streaming service Paramount+ announced in mid-February it had ordered more of the show. But "more" means more of Sheridan, and that means 1932. (Among other projects he's developing.) Filming locations have not been announced.
Yellowstone and 1883 follow the lives of the Duttons, first with the modern-day Western drama of the John Dutton family, then with the late 19th-century story of James and Margaret Dutton’s move west across the U.S.
Sheridan, who graduated from Fort Worth's Paschal High School and now lives on a ranch in Weatherford, brought the star-studded cast to shoot in the Dallas-Fort Worth area last year. The show employed hundreds of local production crew and extras, used local businesses, and heavily featured locations like the Fort Worth Stockyards.
The show — whose official trailer featured a killer line about the city, delivered by star Billy Bob Thornton — was built up as one of the buzziest newcomers of the year.
1883 debuted in December and reportedly set a premiere record of 4.9 million households.
Powered by the success of 1883 and Yellowstone, Fort Worth recently shot onto a prestigious list of top filmmaking cities for first time; the city landed at No. 25 on Best Places to Live and Work as a Moviemaker, an annual list compiled by Los Angeles-based publication MovieMaker.
A couple of visits to the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo by two of the shows' biggest stars February 1 and 2 drew swarms of fans, near and far.
A display of 1883 costumes on props is on display at National Cowgirl Museum & Hall of Fame — where Sheridan's wife is a board member. The exhibition "1883: The Journey West" will be on view at the Fort Worth museum until March 20.
Sam Elliott as Shea Brennan in 1883.
