The popular “Yellowstone” franchise is moving forward with its Matthew McConaughey spin-off, show creators confirmed during a recent interview. Regardless of what happens with Kevin Costner, Paramount is keen on exploring yet another story in the universe, which already includes 1883 and 1923.
Paramount Media Networks President and CEO Chris McCarthy told The Hollywood Reporter in a story published Tuesday that McConaughey’s untitled show was one of ten that he and Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan had in the pipeline.
In addition to the airings of 1883 and 1923, the universe includes upcoming releases of 6666 and Bass Reeves.
McCarthy did not reveal where McConaughey’s show would be placed in the Yellowstone timeline, nor did he address where things stood with Costner, who previously announced he wanted to reduce the amount of time spent on filming the show that earned him a Golden Globe for his portrayal of patriarch John Dutton.
The stalemate of Costner-related news has been an issue since early February when Deadline initially reported the behind-the-scenes strife. Costner was allegedly tired of the commitment to extensive shooting and displeased with the scheduling conflicts it created.
A Paramount Network spokesperson gave a statement to Deadline in which they seemed unwilling to confirm or deny the report, saying:
“We have no news to report. 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.”
While the only news thus far is that McConaughey has been greenlit to move forward, there is still speculation as to when it would be placed.
“The Dutton family legacy has been expounded upon with recent adaptations of the family sage, 1883 and 1923, it is reasonable to think that this new show will continue in that vein,” The American Tribune wrote back in February. “The studio has, in the past, indicated that it would like to explore other times in the history of the ranch, like the 40s and 60s, along with the struggles that the family faced at those times.”
In a separate story, The American Tribune reported on the faux conservatism presented in the popular television series, covering a quote from creator Taylor Sheridan” rejecting the idea” it was meant to appeal to inhabitants and voters in red states. The Tribune wrote:
Many conservatives loved Paramount’s hit show, “Yellowstone,” because it seemed like something of a conservative show. Even if there were woke elements to it, particularly the plotlines regarding the “oppressed” Indians near the ranch, it celebrated masculinity and defending one’s land from outsiders and invaders, values not typically championed in mainstream, woke society.
But the creator of the show doesn’t want you to think that way about it. In an interview with the Atlantic released in that publication’s December 2022 Issue, the creator of Yellowstone, Taylor Sheridan, rejected the idea.
“They refer to it as ‘the conservative show’ or ‘the Republican show’ or ‘the red-state Game of Thrones.’ And I just sit back laughing. I’m like, ‘Really?’ Sheridan said. “The show’s talking about the displacement of Native Americans and the way Native American women were treated and about corporate greed and the gentrification of the West and land-grabbing. That’s a red-state show?”
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