Quantcast
Photo courtesy of Focus Features

The Dutton family drama has come to Texas again - this time, off screen.

According to a February 6 report by Deadline, Matthew McConaughey is in talks with Taylor Sheridan for a Yellowstone spinoff. Neither the Austin-based actor nor the Weatherford-based series creator has confirmed the report, but Deadline typically gets its Yellowstone scoops right.

Exactly WHY McConaughey may enter the Yellowstone world, however, has whipped media and fans into a frenzy. Deadline says it "understands" that Sheridan will end the show after this season due to scheduling conflicts with star Kevin Costner. Costner just won a Golden Globe for his portrayal of family patriarch John Dutton but also is directing and starring in the Western series Horizon.

"For the second batch of episodes of the current, fifth season of Yellowstone, the actor ... only wanted to spend a week shooting," the magazine says. "This has been a source of frustration for Sheridan and it is understood to be causing morale problems for the other stars of the show."

Deadline's sources tell them that Paramount Network has declined Costner’s most recent proposal and "instead has made the decision to move on to the other show."

Enter McConaughey, the cowboy-hatted hero, riding in on his horse to save the day. Sheridan will write McConaughey in as the star of the new franchise; they're in negotiations now, reports say.

In response to Deadline's reporting, Paramount Network issued a "hold your horses" statement: "We have no news to report," they say. "Kevin Costner is a big part of Yellowstone and we hope that’s the case for a long time to come. Thanks to the brilliant mind of Taylor Sheridan, we are always working on franchise expansions of this incredible world he has built. Matthew McConaughey is a phenomenal talent with whom we’d love to partner."

It's not known where the McConaughey-led series would be set, or where it would be filmed.

North Texans, of course, will vote for North Texas.

DFW is already the home of Taylor Sheridan’s upcoming Paramount+ limited series about Bass Reeves, the once-enslaved man who became a famed federal marshal; the series is reportedly filming in Waxahachie later this month. Sheridan's Yellowstone prequel 1883 also was shot in Fort Worth.

Texas, as a whole, is home to five of the top 25 best cities for filmmakers, according to MovieMaker Magazine.

Ad Placement 300x100
Ad Placement 300x600

CultureMap Emails are Awesome

Dance inside the world of Disney at new immersive experience coming to Dallas

Let's Talk about Bruno

A family-friendly immersive experience coming to Dallas will let Disney fans feel like they're part of their favorite films. "Disney Animation: Immersive Experience" will make its Dallas debut at Lighthouse ArtSpace Dallas (507 S. Harwood St.) on April 20.

It's from the same team that brought "Immersive Van Gogh" to cities around the world, including a highly successful run in Dallas.

According to a release, the new experience promises to bring to life Disney classics like The Lion King and Aladdin, as well as newer favorites such as Encanto, Frozen, and more.

"Like so many of us, I have a life-long love of Disney films,” says Lighthouse Immersive founder Corey Ross in the release. “I’ve grown up with them since childhood and so has my family. The work lends itself brilliantly to the immersive experience and I am confident this program will give our guests the opportunity to be engulfed in the world of Disney, making them feel like they’re standing next to their favorite characters and seeing the world through their eyes.”

Ross describes how it begins:

“Just imagine journeying through Zootopia with Judy Hopps, diving to the ocean floor with Ariel, flying on a magic carpet with Aladdin, and stepping into Casita with Mirabel and the family Madrigal. This is where the 'Disney Animation: Immersive Experience' will take you.”

According to the release, additional interactive features include responsive floor projection design that "moves" with the audience and custom bracelets that light up in sync with the projections and based on the audiences’ movements. A particularly show-stopping moment, organizers say, is when the Gazillion Bubbles special effects team fills the 500,000 cubic feet of galleries with bubbles.

Oscar-winning producer J. Miles Dale (2018 Best Picture: The Shape of Water) is leading the creative team on the production, a collaboration between Lighthouse Immersive and Walt Disney Animation Studios.

“Trailblazing in a new medium is always exciting, and this is truly going to be the most challenging and rewarding project of my career," Dale says in the release. "Being entrusted with Disney’s rich archive of animation is a great honor, but also a tremendous responsibility. With such a wealth of material and a treasure trove of memorable characters, it will be a thrill to bring the work of all the great Disney animators and performers to life in a 360-degree immersive environment.”

Dallas' opening date is April 20, and and tickets (starting at $29.99) go on sale March 23 at https://lighthouseimmersive.com/disney/.

Spring break staycation ideas zip into this week's 5 most-read Dallas stories

This week's hot headlines

Editor's note: A lot happened this week, so here's your chance to get caught up. Read on for the week's most popular headlines. Looking for the best things to do this weekend? Find that list here.

1. 10 new ideas for a FOMO-free spring break staycation in Dallas-Fort Worth. It’s spring break time across North Texas. For families who did NOT jet off to ski the slopes or head to the beach, there’s still plenty of fun to be had in Dallas-Fort Worth. We once called this "staying home." Now it's a "staycation!" Here are 10 new ideas for fun things to do, even into the weekend.

2. Dallas police arrest man caught on camera dumping German shepherd. On March 11, the Dallas Police Department Animal Cruelty Unit arrested Ramiro Zuniga, 41, and charged him with Cruelty to Non-Livestock Animals – Abandon, an A Misdemeanor charge. An investigation determined that on March 8, Zuniga intentionally abandoned a dog in the 9000 block of Teagarden Road.

3. Big day for music fans with news of a dozen concerts coming to Dallas. For summer concert lovers in Dallas, Monday, March 13 brought a bounty of good news with a big round of tours coming through Texas in 2023. In a single day, details were revealed for tours featuring Drake, TLC, Christopher Cross, Steve Miller Band with Cheap Trick, and Coheed & Cambria.

4. Truck Yard reopens on Dallas' Greenville Ave with famed frogs on the roof. An outdoor hangout on Dallas' Greenville Avenue has reopened with a new nostalgic feature: Truck Yard, which helped usher in the backyard trend that is now de rigeur in the food & beverage world, reopened at 5624 Sears St., AKA across from Trader Joe's, with $2 million in renovations that include an installation of the famed Tango Frogs sculptures.

5. Shop in East Dallas dedicated entirely to pickles closes its doors. A one-of-a-kind shop in East Dallas dedicated to pickles has closed: Pickletopia, a shop at 4812 Bryan St. that sold pickles of all kinds, closed its doors at the end of 2022, and according to its owner, is unlikely to return.

Where to drink in Dallas right now: 5 bars with cool cocktail specials

Where to Drink

It's always good to support your local watering hole but sometimes the heart wants something else, and even better when it's something cheap. For our March edition of where to drink, we spotlight five drinking opportunities around Dallas that include a seasonally-focused happy hour, a one-day drink special, a new happy hour for the summer, and a new happy hour at an Arts District hotel bar.

Here's Where to Drink in March:

Jinya Ramen Bar
The Dallas location of this sophisticated national Japanese chain joins in on their national "Hanami Hour," which honors the Japanese custom of celebrating cherry blossom season. Starting March 22, they'll be offering a special combo of Nigori Sake and a Spicy Tuna and Salmon Cone for $18. Not exactly sure what that has to do with cherry blossoms? Maybe lost in translation. But a sake special is always a yes. March 22-April 5

New Artisan Distillery
On March 30, the makers of Roxor Gin & Botanical Bourbon are launching a budget-friendly new program for the spring/summer, with a weekday happy hour featuring $5 gin and bourbon cocktails, because gin and bourbon is what they make. Stick around for trivia, karaoke, and a Friday Piano Series on their in-house Steinway Piano. Fancy! The March 30 opener debuts with Trivia Night from Sporcle, whom they say is the leading trivia company in the U.S., and who are we to disagree. Monday-Friday 4-7 pm

Nobu Dallas
Japanese restaurant-bar at the Hotel Crescent Court is part of an international sushi chain from celebrity chef Nobu Matsuhisa that opened in Dallas in 2005 with a celebrity-packed event that included co-owner/investor Robert DeNiro jetting into Dallas to attend. It was exciting! Their happy hour, launched in 2019, has a special name — Tanoshi Hour — and is a killer deal. It features three specialty cocktails, $10 each, that include a lychee & elderflower martini. Plus sake and wine by the glass for $8, Japanese beer for $6, and a menu of snacks including sushi, tacos, and chicken wings, also $10 each. Available in the bar area only, Monday-Friday 5-7 pm

Pyramid Lobby Bar
The bar at the Fairmont Dallas hotel in the Dallas Arts District has a new Texas Happy Hour, with delicious bites and great deals on brews and other beverages, plus live acoustic country music by Tyler Hammond on Thursdays 5-8 p.m. The drink lineup includes $6 Texas draft beers, $10 glasses of wine (house Cabernet, Chardonnay, and Prosecco), and $12 margaritas and Texas mules. Appetizers are $8 and include sweet potato fries, shishito peppers, lamb sliders, and chicken fried deviled eggs. Monday-Friday 2-6 pm, Thursday 11 am-12 am

Sky Blu Rooftop Bar
Design District venue is hosting a cheap-drinking day on March 24 from 4 pm-2 am with a quartet of classic cocktails — the Aperol Spritz, Manhattan, Negroni, and gin martini — for $10. It's just for that day but it's a Friday which is a plus. You do need to pay $10 for valet. As discount drink experiences go, this one has its limitation. But hey, rooftop views, and a discount is a discount. March 24, 4 pm-2 am