Yellowstone 1883 images introduce the ancestors of the Dutton family tree

Saddle up and prepare your peepers for a batch of Yellowstone 1883 images that introduce early members of the Dutton family. Launching December 19th on Parmount+, Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone prequel stars country music sensation Faith Hill, Sam Elliot, Tim McGraw, Isabel May, LaMonica Garrett, Billy Bob Thornton, James Landry Hébert, and Eric Bear.

Yellowstone1883 will follow 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.” Sam Elliott will play Shea Brennan, “a tough as nails, handsome cowboy with immense sadness in his past. He has the herculean task of guiding a group from Texas to Montana, and he does not suffer fools.” Tim McGraw and Faith Hill will play James and Margaret Dutton, the patriarch and matriarch of the Dutton family. 

“It all starts with the writing, and Taylor Sheridan is a brilliant writer,” said Sam Elliott in a statement. “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.” Tim McGraw added, “This is truly a dream job. 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.” Faith Hill went on to say that starring in 1883 is “the opportunity of a lifetime. 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.”

Getting back to the matter at hand, Entertainment Weekly debuted several Yellowstone 1883 images on Friday, which give us our best look yet at many of the characters set to be introduced in the highly-anticipated prequel series.

In addition to revealing how Costner’s John Dutton acquired so much land in Montana, Sheridan hopes to lay some harsh rumors about the American West to rest. “The Westerns, in their heyday, followed a very simplistic storyline: You’ve got the white hat or the black hat — the good guy and the bad guy — and a lot of it was justifying their positions,” he explains to EW. “What I try to do is paint a true reflection of a time and a place.”

“I don’t build a world with visual effects,” says Sheridan, who had no plans to write a Yellowstone prequel until Paramount executives said they wanted to see an origin story for the Duttons. I can’t say I’m surprised by their request, given how popular Yellowstone has become throughout the years. We all know how much networks and studio executives love to pluck a Golden Goose once it’s laid a few Fabergé eggs, you know?

Yellowstone 1883 will premiere on Paramount+ on December 19. Let us know if you’re looking forward to this in-demand prequel in the comments section below.