Thanks to his role as the no-nonsense right-hand man to Gil Cunningham’s casino owner Thomas Rainwater, Mo Brings Plenty has played a prominent part on powerhouse western series Yellowstone. The Native actor also has become a key piece of Taylor Sheridan‘s burgeoning TV empire, both in front of the camera and behind as Brings Plenty has become a trusted consultant for making sure Native tribes are respectfully featured on screen.
With Lawmen: Bass Reeves, Brings Plenty will continue to be a versatile player in the Taylor Sheridan-verse. According to Deadline, the actor will star in the new series as Minco Dodge, “a Choctaw Native American and friend” to the titular character played by David Oyelowo.
However, despite the new Sheridan series having a western setting and sharing some of the same actors, Lawmen is not connected to Yellowstone or its 1883 spinoff. Showrunner Chad Feehan recently told TV Insider that Lawmen will be a stand-alone story that centers on Reeves’ life from 1862 to 1887, stopping six years short of the Yellowstone spinoff.
Here’s the official synopsis:
From executive producers Taylor Sheridan and David Oyelowo comes the untold story of the most legendary lawman in the Old West: Bass Reeves. Lawmen: Bass Reeves, follows the journey of Reeves (Oyelowo) and his rise from enslavement to law enforcement as the first Black U.S. Marshal west of the Mississippi. Despite arresting over 3,000 outlaws during the course of his career, the weight of the badge was heavy, and he wrestled with its moral and spiritual cost to his beloved family.
Lawmen: Bass Reeves premieres November 5 on Paramount+.