If you cast your mind back many years ago, before Game of Thrones, Westworld and True Blood, you’ll remember that HBO first made an impact on the television landscape with shows like The Sopranos, Six Feet Under, The Wire and, of course, Deadwood. It only lasted three seasons, but the Western was one of the most critically acclaimed series of its time and amassed a small but incredibly loyal fanbase. Unfortunately though, the ratings just couldn’t justify the cost to produce the show and it was ultimately given the axe.
However, creator David Milch has always promised us that there’d be more. It’s been well over a decade now since Deadwood left television, but every so often a small update pops up on the proposed movie, which has been in development for a very long time. Said to wrap up the stories of the various characters in a satisfying manner, fans have been holding out hope that it’ll eventually see the light of day. While we wouldn’t expect it to arrive any time soon, it seems that HBO is still intent on making it.
In fact, just recently Ian McShane confirmed as much, saying that the network has the script and is “quite keen” on getting the project off the ground. When that’ll actually happen is anyone’s guess, but we sure hope it’s in the near future as from what we’re hearing, it could be something truly special.
While promoting the new season of Fear the Walking Dead, Kim Dickens, who played Joanie Stubbs on Deadwood, spoke briefly about the movie with Vox, saying that the script made her cry when she read it.
“I loved [the script] … It brought tears to my eyes just to hear those voices again, so perfectly. It was funny at times and sad and painful and beautiful, really beautiful.”
Sounds promising, right? We’ve no doubt that the film would be fantastic, but we also wouldn’t hold our breath for this project to come to fruition anytime soon. Deadwood went off air back in 2006 and ever since, there’s always been chatter of a movie. Here we are though, over a decade later and still nothing has materialized. While the fans no doubt want to see it, you’ve got to wonder if it’d even be a profitable venture at this stage.
Though well reviewed throughout its run, the show was never a huge success in terms of ratings, hence its cancellation, and it’s not likely that many people still care about the series at this point, or even remember it – outside of the hardcore fanbase, that is. Still, hopefully we’re wrong about this, as we definitely want to see more of Deadwood. It was a show that never really caught on like it should have and another chance to revisit this world and its colorful cast of characters would be very welcome. Let’s just hope that HBO actually makes some kind of tangible progress some time soon, or else it’s going to be too late to put this thing together.
Tell us, are you still holding out hope to see more of Al Swearengen, Seth Bullock and the rest of the gang, or were you never really a fan of the show in the first place? Take to the comments section and be sure to let us know!
