You only need to take a quick look at the 1923 trailer to realize that you’re witnessing a production that doesn’t come cheap. Filmed on location on at least three different African countries (South Africa, Kenya, and Tanzania), with Hollywood heavyweights Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren at the lead, and prioritizing practical effects, the Yellowstone origin story is massive in scale – and in an interview with Deadline, series creator Taylor Sheridan revealed just how massive money-wise.

To no one’s surprise, it’s a lot. In the interview, Sheridan revealed that each episode of 1923 can cost anywhere from $30 to $35 million, which is the cost of a small-budget movie. Sheridan also commented that Paramount is so confident in the Yellowstone universe that when the showrunner asked for an extra eight-episode batch to finish the story (which was then made into Season 2 of 1923), the request was granted with no hiccups:

“I would argue that ‘1883’ was the most expensive first season of a TV show ever made. [1923] was much more expensive. Much more expensive. I don’t know what the ‘Game of Thrones’ budgets were, but I don’t know how they could have been more than this. […] You saw six thousand sheep, three thousand cattle, and as this show keeps going, you’re in Africa. All real. You know how hard it is to move a crew around in Africa in 2022 with COVID, and all the rules and all the politics? [Paramount is] so malleable to the storyteller, or at least to me as the storyteller. They will add episodes because I need it to tell the story. You think about when you talk about a show that’s costing $30 million to $35 million an episode and you just asked for eight more episodes […] and realize I just asked for 240 million dollars.”

1923-yellowstone-zane-brian-geraghty-paramount-plus
Image via Paramount+

RELATED: Harrison Ford on '1923,' Reuniting With Helen Mirren, and Joining the Dutton Dynasty

The Yellowstone Universe is Expensive - But It Pays Off

When you add it all up, based on Sheridan’s reveal you could ballpark the cost of 1923 to about half a billion dollars – which rivals the production of Season 1 of Prime Video’s Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power (according to The Wall Street Journal, the fantasy epic series' first season cost roughly $715 million). The investment is certainly expected to pay off, and at the rate that Yellowstone is going, it pretty much explains why Paramount+ had no reservations about opening their wallet to foot the 1923 bill.

1923 takes place between the Kevin Costner-led flagship series Yellowstone and prequel series 1883. It follows Jacob (Ford) and Cara (Mirren), the ancestors of the Dutton family as they run the Yellowstone ranch facing the challenges of the era including prohibition, a pandemic, a historical drought, and the looming threat of the Great Depression. The cast also features Jerome Flynn, Sebastian Roché, Darren Mann, Michelle Randolph, James Badge Dale, Marley Shelton, Brian Geraghty, Aminah Nieves, Jennifer Ehle, Julia Schlaepfer, Brandon Sklenar, and Robert Patrick.

1923 premiered this week on Paramount+. You can watch a trailer for the series below: