Yellowstone fans, unite! It’s finally time to take a look at a spritirual spinoff of the flagship series as Paramount+ released the first trailer for Lawmen: Bass Reeves today. The western series stars David Oyelowo (Selma) as Bass Reeves, a former slave who managed to rise all the way to the police ranks of the U.S. and became the first Black Marshal west of Mississippi. The miniseries is scheduled to premiere in just a couple of months.

Lawman or outlaw? This is the question that the original series will propose to answer, as Bass becomes a high-ranking officer of the law during a time when racial prejudice was alive and thriving. It’s safe to say that the series will put its protagonist at the center of moral issues because law enforcement would only catch up to the historical figure more than a century later. Nonetheless, Reeves as able to arrest over 3,000 outlaws during his career.

The trailer also showcases Oyelowo’s talents as lead, and it’s pretty safe to say that Lawmen: Bass Reeves will be one late-2023 addition to your must-watch list. The cast also features Dennis Quaid (Full Circle), Lauren E. Banks (City on a Hill), Demi Singleton (King Richard), Barry Pepper (True Grit), Forrest Goodluck (How to Blow Up a Pipeline), Garret Hedlund (Tulsa King) and Donald Sutherland (The Hunger Games trilogy).

Why Isn’t ‘Lawmen: Bass Reeves’ Directly Connected to ‘Yellowstone’?

The standalone series first came to life when Yellowstone creator and writer Taylor Sheridan decided to tell yet another chapter that related to the Dutton family. Sheridan has revealed in interviews that, the more he researched about America’s origins, the more material he came up with to tell these stories. That’s why the show was originally titled 1883: The Bass Reeves Story – it would be the spin-off of the spin-off.

However, since it is based on an extraordinary true story, Sheridan decided the show would fare better as its own thing. The spin-off has since become its own standalone anthology series, and the title Lawmen suggests that after Bass Reeves, other legendary marshals and sheriffs will have their stories covered in every new season. The Yellowstone universe continues alive and well, though: A follow-up series starring Matthew McConaughey is currently being developed after Kevin Costner’s abrupt exit.

Paramount+ is set to premiere Lawmen: Bass Reeves on November 5. You can watch the trailer below:

via Collider