Donald Sutherland Joining New Taylor Sheridan Series
Donald Sutherland will star in Taylor Sheridan's upcoming Paramount+ series about the real-life Western hero Bass Reeves. The project, which began life connected to Yellowstone, will now be the first season of an anthology series named Lawmen. David Oyelowo, who played Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma, will star in the title role.
Sutherland scored a recurring role as Judge Isaac Parker, reports Variety. The character is described as "an imposing and commanding judge in the Fort Smith Courthouse with a complicated legacy." Garrett Hedlund, Joaquina Kalukango, Lonnie Chavis, Rob Morgan, Ryan O'Nan, Justin Hurtt-Dunkley and Shea Whigham also have recurring roles.
Aside from Oyelowo, the main cast is headlined by Dennis Quaid, Forrest Goodluck, Lauren E. Banks, Barry Pepper, Grantham Coleman, and Demi Singleton. Quaid will play Sherrill Lynn, a deputy U.S. marshal, while Banks plays Reeves' wife Jennie. Singleton stars as Reeves' daughter Sally.
The real Reeves lived from 1838 to 1910 and was famous for being the first black deputy U.S. marshal west of the Mississippi River. He reportedly arrested over 3,000 fugitives while working in Arkansas and Oklahoma Territory. Chad Feehan (Ray Donovan) created Lawmen: Bass Reeves and serves as executive producer and showrunner. Production is already underway and Sheridan is set to direct the pilot.
Oyelowo and his wife, Jessica Oyelowo, are executive producing the series under their Yoruba Saxon banner. Sheridan is an executive producer, alongside David C. Glasser, David Permut, Ron Burkle, Bob Yari, and David Hutkin. Christina Voros is directing five episodes of the season. MTV Entertainment Studios, 101 Studios, Bosque Ranch Productions and Yoruba Saxon are the studios behind the series.
Sutherland, 87, is one of the most beloved actors of his generation, with nearly 200 credits to his name, stretching back to the 1960s. Although he has incredibly never been nominated for an Oscar, he received an honorary Oscar in 2017 for his extraordinary body of work. He won an Emmy in 1995 for the made-for-TV movie Citizen X and earned another Emmy nomination in 2006 for Human Trafficking. His most recent projects include Swimming With Sharks, Moonfall, The Undoing, Alone, Ad Astra and The Hunger Games movies.
Bass Reeves was originally developed as part of the Yellowstone franchise, which also includes the prequel series 1883 and 1923. Another prequel series, 1944, is now in development. At one point, it was titled 1883: The Bass Reeves Story. Sheridan is also working on the spinoff 6666. Sheridan's other Paramount+ projects include Jeremy Renner's Mayor of Kingstown, Tulsa King with Sylvester Stallone, and the upcoming Lioness with Zoe Saldana and Nicole Kidman.