“1883,” the prequel to Paramount Network’s “Yellowstone,” is coming to the network. Beginning Sunday, June 18, the first two episodes of the series will premiere at 8/7c, after which the series will move to a weekly release schedule.
To be clear, this is not the second season of the Tim McGraw and Faith Hill Western drama. Instead, Paramount would only air episodes of this limited series on its own network. “1883” first premieres on Paramount+ in December of 2021. The series ran for 10 episodes before ending in February of 2022.
The news has caused some confusion among fans. on Sunday, Official “Yellowstone” Account Posted it was a week away from the “premiere” of “1883”. One user commented, ‘I am confused. How is this a premiere? [sic] I watched the entire series last year.”
“Is this a new season? Or the first?” Another user wrote.
Set in its titular year, “1883” follows the post-Civil War generation of the Dutton family. After leaving Tennessee to go to Texas, a wagon train eventually takes them to Montana and the future site of Yellowstone Ranch. The limited series was created by Taylor Sheridan and is the second installment in the “Yellowstone” universe.
Although “1883” is a limited series, it has its own sequels. Paramount originally announced that plan to give Additional episodes of the prequel series and the sequel series continued with “1923”. Starring Helen Mirren and Harrison Ford, the drama follows the Dutton family as they survive a long list of hardships ranging from Prohibition and a drought to the early stages of the Great Depression. That series premiered in December of 2022 and was given a second season in February.
Sheridan’s upcoming ‘Lawman: Bass Reeves’ will also be a spinoff of ‘1883’. Starring David Oyelowo of the anthology series, Season 1 will tell the story of the first black deputy US marshal west of the Mississippi River, a man who reportedly made over 3,000 arrests, yet was never injured.
While “1883” premiering on the Paramount network may be confusing to fans, it makes sense from a network synergy perspective. “Yellowstone” premiered on the network first and remains a Paramount Network original. It was only after the entertainment company got more serious about streaming that Paramount+ began exclusively premiering its sequels.
