1883 Star Sam Elliott Explains What Drives His Tragic New Character

The Yellowstone universe expanded on Sunday with the debut of 1883, a series that tells the story of the first Duttons to settle in Montana and found the family ranch. Unlike the flagship series, 1883 is a full-on western, filled with gunslingers and taking place on the treacherous wagon trail from Texas to Oregon. While Tim McGraw and Faith Hill take on the roles of the Dutton settlers, the characters are led by a man named Shea, played by beloved western star Sam Elliott.

Seeing Elliott in a western was likely a big draw for fans, and the series quickly establishes that he isn't just a supporting member of the cast. The story of 1883 is as much Shea's as it is the Duttons', and his tale is most definitely a tragic one. Elliott's first scene is incredibly emotional and sets the tone for the difficult journey he finds himself on the rest of the season. During a roundtable ahead of 1883's premiere, Elliott opened up about the sadness and motivation fueling his new character.

"I think on some level, one of the things that keeps him going, and I think maybe it's one of the reasons that he has taken on this responsibility of being this wagon-boss is to get these people to Oregon," Elliott explained. "Shea's on a personal journey to get himself to Oregon. And I won't tell you why, but that's why he's going there. He's heading for the ocean, which is a bizarre thing for some guy starting in Fort Worth, Texas that. He's driven and he wants to get there. I think that's what really keeps him going. That and his relationship with Thomas, his compadre."

"I just think that having that responsibility of taking care of all those people," Elliott continued. "And it's also the things that leads to more tragedy in his life, as they drop off along the way, he loses them. I think by the end of this thing, he's pretty beat up and makes a decision that he makes in the end of the [series]."

The road to Oregon was a hard one for any traveller making their way across the country in the 1800s, but it looks like Shea's journey may be more difficult than most, fighting his past as well as the elements.

The first two episodes of 1883 are now available on Paramount+. New episodes will be released on the streaming service every Sunday.

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