This 10-Hour Taylor Sheridan Movie Is The Greatest Western Of The 21st Century

Published Oct 18, 2026, 5:00 PM EDT Padraig is a Senior Features Writer and has been part of Screen Rant since 2017. Padraig is a writer, editor and retired Game of Thrones extra who has been writing about movies and TV online for over a decade. He has also written for The Irish Times, Den Of Geek, Little White Lies and many more. It's pronounced Paw-rick, BTW. Taylor Sheridan's self-described "ten-hour movie" is the greatest Western he's made to date. One thing that is immediately obvious from looking at Taylor Sheridan's TV empire is that the man REALLY loves himself a Western. From his various Yellowstone TV spinoffs to his American Frontier trilogy of movies like Wind River, it's the genre he returns to time and again. Even amongst the great reviews that greeted his early work, Sheridan's 1883 might be the most acclaimed project of his career. This Yellowstone prequel follows the ancestors of the Dutton clan, charting the harrowing path that led them to the land the ranch was founded upon. It's a moving, elegiac, and violent tale, featuring career-best work from actors like Sam Elliott. Sheridan's writing is particularly sharp in this prequel; for instance, even though Billy Bob Thornton's character only appears in 1883 for four minutes, he still manages to steal his episode. Despite getting a greenlight for a second season, the finale shocked viewers by killing off several key characters, with Sheridan later explaining to Deadline that "We wanted to make a ten-hour movie that ended, and that’s what we did." Taylor Sheridan Labeled 1883 As A "Ten-Hour Movie," And Is His Greatest Work To Date Image via Paramount+ It feels like Sheridan used his Yellowstone prequel as an excuse to make an old-school epic in the vein of Lonesome Dove or The Searchers. Sure, the prequel is rewarding for Yellowstone fans, but it's possible to watch the series with zero knowledge of that show. It functions as a standalone and, true to Sheridan's goal, plays out like a ten-hour film. The story is told through the eyes of Isabel May's teenager Elsa Dutton, as she and her parents take the famous Oregon Trail. In many ways, it's a coming-of-age story for Elsa, as she experiences the harshness of life in the Old West. While Sheridan never sugarcoats how bleak things could be during this period, there is still a lot of humor and emotion in 1883. Taylor Sheridan cameos as real-life rancher Charlie Goodnight in 1883. Sometimes, Sheridan can lean too hard on violence and nihilism in his shows - which certainly happened with 1923 - but 1883 gets the balance just right. The expanded runtime allows viewers get to know and love the characters too - which makes the inevitable death and bloodshed that hits their "wagon train" hit much harder. Sheridan probably could have sliced 1883 down to a three-hour movie if he wanted, but he wisely decided to use the extra runway provided by the miniseries format. Where Yellowstone ran too long, and 1923 needlessly stretched out its story across two seasons, 1883's ten-hour run is perfect. A Second Season Of 1883 Wasn't Possible Speaking again with Deadline, Sheridan stated Paramount always knew that 1883 would be a one-and-done outing. Regardless, its success saw them announce another season anyway, and they later pulled Sheridan into a meeting so he could explain how one key character survived their very definitive death. While characters like James and Margaret Dutton (played by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill) are still alive by the finale, most of the main cast of characters are dead. Ultimately, the prequel was also Elsa's story, which is wrapped up by the time the credits roll on the final episode. While Sheridan might have scraped together some ideas for a new series, it would have felt forced. That's why he took the greenlight for season two and pivoted into another prequel titled 1923 instead. This goes back to his intention to have 1883 act as a self-contained ten-hour saga with a beginning, middle and end. In truth, Sheridan' best work tends to be his movie scripts, where he has to tell a complete narrative within 100 pages. That's why Sicario or Hell or High Water have more punch than any random season of Yellowstone. Regardless, 1883 is a true standout among Taylor Sheridan's output, where he had the budget and the creative freedom to tell the sprawling Western epic he envisioned. Source: Deadline 1883 Release Date 2021 - 2022-00-00 Network Paramount+ 1883 is a Western drama series set at the beginning of Taylor Sheridan's Yellowstone franchise and explores the origins of the Duttons and how Yellowstone came to be. The show chronicles a generation of the Dutton family as they embark on a difficult journey to the western frontier to establish a new legacy. Yellowstone Created by Taylor Sheridan First TV Show Yellowstone Latest TV Show 1923 Upcoming TV Shows The Madison First Episode Air Date June 20, 2018 Cast Kevin Costner, Luke Grimes, Kelly Reilly, Wes Bentley, Cole Hauser, Kelsey Asbille, Gil Birmingham, Brecken Merrill, Jefferson White, Danny Huston Yellowstone is a neo-Western drama series created by Taylor Sheridan and John Linson, centered on the Dutton family and their fight to protect the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch from various adversaries, including land developers and nearby reservations. Premiering in 2018 on Paramount Network, the show has been praised for its depiction of power struggles, family loyalty, and rural conflicts. It has expanded into a franchise with spin-offs such as 1883 and 1923, and an upcoming sequel series is in development.