As Many As 4 Yellowstone Prequels In Development After Massive Success of 1883 and 1923
Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan has revealed up to four more Yellowstone prequel series will be announced following the success of 1883 and 1923. The Western drama currently has a massive audience of live viewers, with the latest episode of Yellowstone, season 5, episode 8, drawing 8.19 million viewers when it aired on Paramount Network. The success of Yellowstone has spawned two prequels for Paramount+, 1883 and 1923, alongside four other shows currently in development.
Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Sheridan revealed that, beyond Yellowstone season 5 part 2 and all other announced shows in the franchise, an estimated three to four more prequels have yet to be revealed. The series creator estimates the budget for each sequel could be on par with a season of Game of Thrones. Check out what Sheridan had to say below:
[The prequels are] time capsules of life in Montana as a microcosm of the world as a whole. They’re big spectacles, and the more that you move into the modern era, the bigger that spectacle becomes. I know these are huge bets Paramount makes on me every time. I’m asking them to give me Game of Thrones season six money for what is essentially a pilot every year, and that’s a big ask. As long as I do my job well, and people don’t bore of the genre, I think there will be enough for many more [prequels] — three or four. Chris McCarthy trusts me, because I haven’t been wrong yet.
How Many Yellowstone Shows Will There Be?
Sheridan’s estimate of three or four more Yellowstone prequels may not include 1944, a sequel to 1923 which was announced in early 2023. His estimate also doesn’t include Lawmen: Bass Reeves, a spinoff about the real-world first Black US Deputy Marshal which is also set around the same time as 1883. If neither 1944 nor Lawmen: Bass Reeves are included in Sheridan’s count, there could be up to six Yellowstone prequels yet to air.
Given the year-based titles of 1883, 1923, and 1944, Sheridan clearly intends to explore time periods that get closer and closer to the present day in his unannounced Yellowstone prequels. With plenty of time periods to choose from, there’s no telling where the next Yellowstone prequels will take viewers.
In addition to Yellowstone prequels, Sheridan is also involved in a Matthew McConaughey Yellowstone spinoff, seemingly set after the events of Yellowstone. A spinoff titled 6666 about the Four Sixes Ranch is also in production. Even after Yellowstone ends with season 5 part 2, there will still be plenty of series from the Yellowstone universe being produced. It remains to be seen just how big the Yellowstone franchise will become as more prequels are announced in the future.
