Where Is 1883: The Bass Reeves Story Filmed? Filming Locations Revealed
Taylor Sheridan and David Oyelowo are coming together for a new show within the Yellowstone universe – 1883: The Bass Reeves Story. It’ll be an epic, Western historical drama about Bass Reeves, the first Black Deputy U.S. Marshal west of the Mississippi river, who served around the entire Oklahoma territory. So, where was 1883: The Bass Reeves Story filmed?
1883: The Bass Reeves Story will be filmed almost entirely in North Texas. Specifically, scenes will be shot in Fort Worth, Waxahachie, Glen Rose, and Weatherford. It’ll mark Taylor Sheridan’s return to Fort Worth after some scenes for the Yellowstone prequel show 1883 were shot there in September 2021.
That’s actually Taylor Sheridan’s return home, as he is a real-life cowboy born and raised in Texas. One would hope that some scenes would be shot in Oklahoma for that authenticity factor, but Bass Reeves was situated in Texas for a while as well, and I’m absolutely positive the scenography will be spot on, as it always is with Sheridan-led Westerns.
What will 1883: The Bass Reeves Story be about?
1883: The Bass Reeves Story will serve as the second season of the Yellowstone prequel show 1883. However, it’s unclear how big of a connection The Bass Reeves Story and 1883 will actually have. In any case, 1883: The Bass Reeves Story will be the first show within the Yellowstone universe that will be based on a real-life person and events.
Bass Reeves was one of the greatest frontier heroes in American history and the first-ever African American Deputy U.S. Marshal west of the Mississippi river. Bass was born into slavery before fleeing into the Indian Territory and living among the tribes, learning their languages and way of life.
After the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865, Reeves became a free man and was hired as a Deputy U.S. Marshal shortly after due to his knowledge about the Indian Territory and his speaking several Native American languages.
He went on to become one of the most prolific lawmen in history, apprehending over 3000 felons and fugitives, some of which were extremely dangerous and on the most wanted list. Still, Bass Reeves was never wounded, although his hat and belt were said to be shot off a few times.
The show will follow his life and work, as he covered over 75000 square miles of territory, patrolling the entire Oklahoma and Arkansas area. That being said, the show won’t be filmed there – at least it wasn’t announced. Here’s what we know about the filming locations for 1883: The Bass Reeves Story.
1883: The Bass Reeves Story filming locations
Fort Worth, Texas
According to the Fort Worth, Texas mayor, Mattie Parker, Taylor Sheridan is returning to Fort Worth, Texas, to film yet another show within the Yellowstone universe – 1883: The Bass Reeves Story. Some scenes will be shot in Forth Worth, as they were for the first Yellowstone prequel show, 1883.
The scenes for 1883 were shot in Forth Worth Stockyards and the west side of Exchange Street for a period of three weeks in September 2021.
Forth Worth is a beautiful, picturesque, and historic town located west of Dallas. Casting for extras had already begun there, but we’ll get to that in a second.
Waxahachie, Texas
Another beautiful little Texan town will be used for the filming of 1883: The Bass Reeves story – Waxahachie. Waxahachie is located south of Dallas along the 35E road and serves as the seat of the government of Ellis County, Texas.
The Waxahachie City Council approved street and parking closures for the show’s filming just recently and confirmed that several scenes would be shot inside the Ellis County Courthouse on February 13-14, 2023.
Glen Rose & Weatherford, Texas
Two other towns in Texas will be a part of the show as filming locations. As announced on Facebook by Legacy Casting – the company behind the casting of extras for the show – some of the shooting will be done this week in Glen Rose and Weatherford, Texas.
“Bass Reeves – (an 1883 Origin Story) – is now casting for Union and Confederate soldiers. We are having fittings this week, next week and the following – to film the last week in January. If you are 16-50 years old and available in Fort Worth, Glen Rose and Weatherford, TX – email us or let us know your availability on MCF! This will be a FUN project!
Pay for filming is $150 for 12 hours. The best way to apply is to create a profile on mycastingfile.com. It’s the best way to keep up with what we’re casting for on this project or any.”
Glen Rose is located southwest of Forth Worth and Dallas and is a smaller city serving as the county seat of Somervell county, Texas. It’s known for several wonderful parks and historical markers, such as Barnard’s Mill.
On the other hand, Weatherford is also relatively close to Fort Worth, just west of the city. It’s a bigger town than Glen Rose, with a population of over 30000, and serves as the county seat for Parker County, Texas. One of the most beautiful locations here is Lake Weatherford, destined to be featured in the show.
Has the filming for 1883: The Bass Reeves Story begun?
The filming of 1883: The Bass Reeves Story has officially begun in Texas, as was shared on Instagram by the main star of the show, David Oyelowo:
“DAY ONE! My dream of playing this great man starts coming to fruition on this today. Thank you Lord.”
According to Oyelowo’s post, the filming began on January 17, 2023, but there’s no word when exactly it’ll be finished. Oyelowo is also one of the executive producers for the show and was pitching the idea of a Bass Reeves-centered show for a while now before Taylor Sheridan, and Paramount Plus picked up the project.
It’s unclear when the show will premiere, but seeing that filming is in full effect already, we can expect the show to premiere on Paramount Plus by the end of this year.