Sam Elliott, Faith Hill & Tim McGraw To Star in ‘Yellowstone’ Prequel, ‘1883’

Country superstars Faith Hill and Tim McGraw will co-star in 1883, the highly anticipated prequel to the Emmy nominated show, Yellowstone.

Paramount+, the streaming service from ViacomCBS, and MTV Entertainment Studios announced the news on Wednesday (Aug. 3), also revealing that Academy Award nominee Sam Elliott will co-star in the show alongside the country power couple. 

According to a press release, “1883 follows the Dutton family as they embark on a journey west through the Great Plains toward the last bastion of untamed America. It is a stark retelling of Western expansion, and an intense study of one family fleeing poverty to seek a better future in America’s promised land — Montana.”

Naturally, McGraw and Hill will play a couple: James and Margaret Dutton, the patriarch and matriarch of the Dutton family. Elliott will portray the role of Shea Brennan, a tough as nails, handsome cowboy with immense sadness in his past. 

Additional cast members to be announced.

“It all starts with the writing, and Taylor Sheridan is a brilliant writer,” said Elliott. “I think the western genre speaks clearly to both of us. The classic struggles of man against man, man against nature, and man against himself. It’s all there, in 1883, and I’m honored to be a part of it.”

“This is truly a dream job,” said Tim McGraw. “Taylor has found a way of storytelling that brilliantly creates these epic dramas and family sagas with so much depth and creativity. The Duttons are tremendous characters and it’s so thrilling to be able to bring them to life. As a kid growing up riding horses, you think about dream jobs like this and I am just so excited to work with this amazing cast and crew.”

“This is the opportunity of a lifetime,” said Faith Hill. “The Duttons are a formidable family and it is an absolute dream to bring such a strong female character like Margaret Dutton to life. I am humbled and honored to work with Taylor and his entire team.”

“‘Yellowstone’ is a massive hit show with tens of millions of fans – with ‘1883,” we are taking those fans back to the origin story, and in the process, turning the ‘Yellowstone’ world into a global hit franchise to fuel the growth of Paramount+,” said Chris McCarthy, President/CEO, MTV Entertainment Group. “We are thrilled to have Sam, Tim and Faith as the stars of Taylor Sheridan’s new series exclusively for Paramount+ around the world.”

“We are thrilled to have Academy Award nominee and acting legend Sam and hugely talented, award-winning artists Faith and Tim all join the Taylor Sheridan universe,” said David Glasser, CEO of 101 Studios. “Taylor’s proven his immense capability of creating captivating characters and immersive worlds and there’s no exception here with 1883 and Sam, Faith and Tim’s characters. We are looking forward to this further expansion of the world of Yellowstone and bringing it to audiences everywhere.”

1883 will be executive produced by Taylor Sheridan, John Linson, Art Linson, David Glasser, Ron Burkle and Bob Yari.