Yahoo News Yellowstone boss explains surprising way new spin-off 1923 came about
The following article contains discussion of themes including suicide.
1883 spoilers follow.
Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan has revealed the surprising way that new spin-off 1923 came about.
The new period drama starring Harrison Ford and Dame Helen Mirren takes place in the same universe as Yellowstone, continuing the epic tale of how the Dutton family settled in Montana a century ago.
The series grew out of fellow prequel 1883 about an even earlier generation of the family, though that series ended in tragedy as Sam Elliott's character Shea Brennan took his life in the finale along with other major characters dying.
In a new interview with Deadline, Taylor Sheridan has explained that he came up with the idea for 1923 because Paramount boss Bob Bakish expected 1883 to continue with a second season.
"I know [Paramount] read the scripts, but they don’t read scripts, so when they read the last episode of 1883, I don’t think they digested what had just happened, even though I made it quite clear from the very beginning," the writer explained.
"The story I heard is Bob Bakish watched it and said, ‘wait a minute, [Elsa] dies! They all die? What do we do in season two?’ I said, there is no season two. They’re like, there better be a f**king season two because we already picked it up. I’m sitting here going, 'guys, everyone is dead'."
He added: "They wanted to have a meeting about how Sam Elliott survived his suicide. By the very nature of the term, it’s not something survivable, and who would want to see that? So, I said I’ll come up with another peek into the window and I sat there and tried to look at it."
Sheridan shifted 40 years forward to 1923 for a new drama series that will examine the expansion of the American West and Prohibition of alcohol sales. Joining Ford and Mirren are Game of Thrones' Jerome Flynn, Vice's Brandon Sklenar and The Good Fight's Jennifer Ehle.
1923 is streaming on Paramount+ in the US and Canada, with episodes available to stream the next day in the UK and Australia. Yellowstone season five airs on the same platform.
We would encourage anyone who identifies with the topics raised in this article to reach out. Organisations who can offer support include Samaritans on 116 123 (www.samaritans.org) or Mind on 0300 123 3393 (www.mind.org.uk). Readers in the US are encouraged to visit mentalhealth.gov or the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
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