While the main Yellowstone series is currently snarled up due to an ongoing dispute between Kevin Costner and Taylor Sheridan, the various prequels and spin-offs are continuing apace. When the Lawmen Bass Reeves release comes around in November, it looks as though it will be the most historically authentic of the various Yellowstone iterations so far, as it’s based on real-life people and events.
David Oyelowo spoke to Entertainment Weekly before the actors’ strike about the timeless nature of the cast, sets, and costumes of Lawmen Bass Reeves; “One of the joys of this show has been populating the cast with truly great actors who can embody the time. There are actors who have something contemporaneous about them, and then there’s actors like Dennis Quaid, Shea Whigham, Barry Pepper, Forrest Goodluck, and Lauren E. Banks who sort of feel like they’ve been here for a long time.”
“And I’m not talking about their age, I’m just talking about that sort of primal feeling. It’s been amazing to have these sets, have these costumes, and then have these actors that, you know, if you squint and block out the cameras, you do feel like you’ve somehow found yourself in a time machine and that’s been a real joy.”
Oyelowo plays the real-life deputy marshal Bass Reeves, who was a slave, an unwilling participant on the confederate side of the Civil War, then an escapee who lived with Indian tribes before serving for over 30 years as an officer of the law. Reeves made over 3,000 arrests with very little blood spilled – something virtually unheard of at the time.
Lauren E. Banks plays Reeves’ wife Jennie, Quaid plays his fellow deputy marshal Sherrill Lynn, and Whigam plays George Reeves – the son of Reeves’ slave-owners who make him join the confederate army. Barry Pepper plays Esau Pierce, leader of the 1st Cherokee Mounted Rifles and Goodluck plays Billy Crow, a young Cherokee man who likes to look his best in the latest fashions.
While we’re waiting for Lawmen Bass Reeves to begin in November, check out our guide to the best westerns. You can also find out what we know so far about the 1923 season 2 release date and the Yellowstone 6666 release date.