| Genre: | |
| Creator: | Chad Feehan |
| Theme Music Composer: | Chanda Dancy[1] |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Num Episodes: | 8 |
| Runtime: | 32–57 minutes |
| Network: | Paramount+ |
Lawmen: Bass Reeves is an American Western television miniseries created by Chad Feehan, who also serves as showrunner, and executive produced by Taylor Sheridan, Feehan, David C. Glasser, David Oyelowo, Jessica Oyelowo, David Permut, Christina Alexandra Voros, Ron Burkle, Bob Yari, and David Hutkin.[2] It is based on the life of the first African American Deputy U.S. Marshal west of the Mississippi River, Bass Reeves.[3] The series premiered on Paramount+ on November 5, 2023, with back-to-back episodes.[4]
It was announced in September 2021 that Taylor Sheridan was developing a television series based on Reeves, with David Oyelowo set to star in the role.[6] In May 2022, the series was ordered at Paramount+ and was temporarily named 1883: The Bass Reeves Story. It was initially described as a spinoff of the series 1883, itself a prequel to Yellowstone,[7] but has since been confirmed to no longer take place in the Yellowstone universe.[8] [9] The show is heavily based on the first two books of The Bass Reeves Trilogy by Sidney Thompson: Follow the Angels, Follow the Doves, and Hell on the Border.[10]
Dennis Quaid joined the cast in January 2023.[11] Forrest Goodluck, Lauren E. Banks and Barry Pepper were cast in February,[12] [13] with Grantham Coleman and Demi Singleton added the following month.[14] [15] Garrett Hedlund was also cast.[16] In April, the series was retitled Lawmen: Bass Reeves in order to expand the series to depict other prominent lawmen, with Donald Sutherland, Joaquina Kalukango, Lonnie Chavis, Rob Morgan, Ryan O'Nan, Justin Hurtt-Dunkley and Shea Whigham joining the cast in recurring roles.[17]
Filming for the series began in Fort Worth, Texas in October 2022.[18] In January 2023, Quaid stated he had begun filming for the series.[19] Filming wrapped by early June 2023.[20]
Lawmen: Bass Reeves premiered on Paramount+ on November 5, 2023.[2] The first two episodes of the series then aired on CBS on November 12.[21]
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the series has an approval rating of 81% based on 26 reviews, with an average rating of 6.4/10. The site's consensus reads: "With David Oyelowo capably stepping into the stirrups of Bass Reeves, this gritty procedural is slow to the draw but hits its mark nonetheless."[22] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 65 out of 100, based on 16 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[23]
| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black Reel Awards | August 13, 2024 | Outstanding Television Movie or Limited Series | Lawmen: Bass Reeves | [24] | ||
| Outstanding Lead Performance in a TV Movie/Limited Series | David Oyelowo | |||||
| Outstanding Writing in a TV Movie or Limited Series | Terence Anthony | |||||
| Outstanding Musical Score | Chanda Dancy | |||||
| Outstanding Editing | Michael Schultz | |||||
| Outstanding Makeup & Hairstyling | Kelley Curry | |||||
| Outstanding Production Design | Wynn Thomas | |||||
| Astra TV Awards | August 18, 2024 | Best Actor in a Limited Series or TV Movie | David Oyelowo | [25] | ||
| Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards | September 7-8, 2024 | Outstanding Music Composition for a Limited or Anthology Series, Movie or Special (Original Dramatic Score) | [26] |