Netflix Western ‘American Primeval’ Challenges Taylor Kitsch and Betty Gilpin to Survive in Trailer
The trailer for American Primeval is set in the brutal American frontier of 1857 where only one goal matters: survival.
Taylor Kitsch and Betty Gilpin lead a sprawling ensemble that traverses America, heading West, in this epic story, a limited series for Netflix that is a raw, adventurous exploration of the birth of the American West. As for the violence depicted in the series, as is shown in the trailer, the series’ Native consultant Julie O’Keefe told Tudum in an interview, “After reading historical accounts of what happened to Native people of that time period, the violence in American Primeval is tame.”
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The series is described as a fictionalized dramatization and examination of the violent collision of culture, religion and community as men and women fight and die to either keep or claim the lands that make up the brutal American frontier. Among those men and women are multiple Native Tribes who have long occupied the lands: the Shoshone, Paiute and Ute.
From director/executive producer Pete Berg (Painkiller), writer/creator/executive producer Mark L. Smith (The Revenant) and executive producers Eric Newman (Narcos) and Alex Gayner, American Primeval also stars Kim Coates, Dane DeHaan, Saura Lightfoot-Leon, Derek Hinkey, Joe Tippett, Jai Courtney, Preston Mota, Shawnee Pourier and Shea Whigham. Smith and Newman are showrunners.
The logline reads: “This is America … 1857. Up is down, pain is everywhere, innocence and tranquility are losing the battle to hatred and fear. Peace is the shrinking minority, and very few possess grace — even fewer know compassion. There is no safe haven in these brutal lands, and only one goal matters: survival.”
All six episodes release Jan. 9, 2025, on Netflix.
In order to deliver an authentic story centered around the three Tribal Nations involved in the series’ story, American Primeval brought on O’Keefe as the Indigenous Cultural Consultant and Project Advisor. Speaking to Netflix’s Tudum, O’Keefe explained how she worked with a network of Native artists, artisans and cultural experts to create an accurate onscreen portrayal of how these different Tribal Nations lived.
“My approach comes from an academic approach focused on authenticity. It is assumed by the majority in Hollywood that one person can answer any ‘Native American’ question. There are 574 federally recognized Tribal Nations in the U.S., so that is literally impossible,” she said. “The goal for a Native consultant, even though I refer to myself as an Indigenous Cultural Consultant, is to make sure the director and all departments are provided with the accurate information so that different Tribal cultures are not borrowed or mixed together to portray some kind of a hodgepodge of cultures that have nothing to do with the Tribe being portrayed. Imagine if you buried the Pope in lederhosen with a Buddhist nun officiating Catholic rites, while everyone danced with a Union Jack flag. That is what it looks like to see your culture misrepresented.”
She added, “The days of Gunsmoke and Bonanza are over. No more brown paint or weird symbols painted on people’s faces. Language is authentic. Clothing is not all fashioned after Geronimo, and not everyone is running around in a headdress. Not all Tribes live in tipis — or if they do, it’s not the same type of tipi which you will see in American Primeval.”
Berg added of her role, “Julie was there every day making sure that we got it right — that we got the hair right, the jewelry right, the clothes right, the language right, the behavior right, for the time period and Nations. I knew what I didn’t know, and she was extremely valuable in helping us all make sure that we did get it right. We’re very mindful of how important it is that all of these different groups are honored, that our research and depictions are accurate.”
Artisans, traditional language speakers from each Tribe, who worked on American Primeval, include: Hovia Edwards-Yellowjohn (Shoshone Bannock-Navajo), Pete Yellowjohn (Shoshone Bannock), Georgette Running Eagle (Shoshone Bannock), Robert Perry, Kugee Supernaw (Quapaw and Osage) and Son Supernaw (Quapaw-Osage and Caddo), Joe Cheshawalla (Osage) Debbie Cheshawalla (Choctaw) and Molly Murphy Adams (Oglala Lakota).
American Primeval comes as Paramount Network’s hit Taylor Sheridan Western Yellowstone is potentially wrapping its flagship series after setting ratings records and launching a Western genre craze. The currently airing season 5B was announced as its final season, though a sixth season is in talks.
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