In 2006, HBO’s acclaimed western series, Deadwood was abruptly canceled, even as the network and series creator David Milch promised a pair of Deadwood TV movies that would wrap everything up.
Needless to say, those promises were not kept in the intervening decade. Instead, Milch returned to HBO with John From Cincinnati, a TV series hated by Deadwood fans for the crime of not being Deadwood. Also, John From Cincinnati was just not a good show.
But there is hope that Deadwood may finally live again, if only as a single TV movie. According to TVLine, HBO President Michael Lombardo said that the network has finally given Milch the greenlight to proceed with a Deadwood movie.
“David has our commitment that we are going to do it,” said Lombardo. “He pitched what he thought generally the storyline would be — and knowing David, that could change. But it’s going to happen.”
That’s the good news. The bad news is that Milch is currently tied to another project and unable to write the script for the Deadwood movie until he finishes his current commitment. No one is quite sure how long that will take.
The other potential fly in the ointment will be reuniting Deadwood’s brilliant cast, which included Ian McShane, Timothy Olyphant, Molly Parker, Kim Dickens, Anna Gunn, and Paula Malcomson among others. Some of the former cast have expressed a willingness to revisit their Deadwood roles, but the schedule allow will be a challenge to bring them all together.
But the important takeaway is that HBO wants more Deadwood. And it’s a network that usually gets what it wants. We just don’t know when it will happen.
What do you want to see in the Deadwood movie? Share your thoughts below!
