Deadwood is one of the best shows HBO ever made, and the fact that it was canceled after its third (and best) season has left fans frustrated ever since (even though the final scene and the final line are just about perfect). In the years since, the wheels have been slowly been turning on a movie to provide some kind of closure. This past April, Ian McShane said that showrunner David Milch had turned in a finished script to HBO, and at this point it’s a matter of the network providing a green light.

Although that green light has yet to arrive, Deadline reports that production is eyeing a fall 2018 start date. Previous cast members, which included not only McShane but also Timothy Olyphant, John Hawkes, Molly Parker, and Brad Dourif, have been contacted and it’s a matter of getting everyone scheduled, which should hopefully be less of a hurdle with the filming date a year away and contracting everyone for a film rather than a TV series.

As for what the plot of the film could entail, Deadline says it’s been long rumored that the story would “focus on the town burning (which actually happened on Sept. 26, 1879 taking out 300 buildings) and saloon impresario Al Swearengen (McShane) fleeing by barge.” That would certainly provide some finality to the series, and while part of me definitely wants to return to this world and the rich characters who inhabit it, the success of these endeavors is rare. Usually you’ll get something controversial like Season 4 of Arrested Development rather than a cultural phenomenon like Twin Peaks: The Return.

I’m also curious to see how everything works in to Milch’s schedule. He’s currently helping out on the third season of True Detective, although we don’t know to what extent his work on that project will entail.