| Genre: | Drama |
| Based On: | Dallas by David Jacobs |
| Director: | Larry Elikann |
| Theme Music Composer: | Jerrold Immel |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Producer: | Joseph B. Wallenstein |
| Editor: | Harry Kaye |
| Cinematography: | Neil Roach |
| Runtime: | 180 minutes |
| Network: | CBS |
| Related: | Dallas |
Dallas: The Early Years is a 1986 American made-for-television drama film and a prequel to the television series Dallas. The three-hour film aired on CBS on March 23, 1986 between the 26th and 27th episodes of the 1985–1986 ninth season of Dallas.
Written by series creator David Jacobs, the movie chronicles the exploits of Jock Ewing, Ellie Southworth, and Willard "Digger" Barnes from 1933 to 1951, and firmly established the background story of Dallas and how the long and ongoing feud between Jock and Digger started. Larry Hagman also appears in the opening sequence as his character, J.R. Ewing, being interviewed by a reporter who is researching the Barnes – Ewing feud.
While focusing on the triangle of Jock – Ellie – Digger, the movie also features Jock's brother, Jason, and Miss Ellie's father, Aaron, as starring characters. It shows the origins of the Ewing Oil, and Jock's schemings to make it big, and it deals with the inter-family relations of the Ewings, the Barnes, and the Southworths. It also shows Jock's first marriage to Amanda Lewis, and Ellie's relationship with her mother, Barbara, and brother, Garrison.
Warner Home Video released Dallas: The Early Years on DVD April 12, 2011 on the Dallas: The Movie Collection two-disc set.[1]