During a surprise appearance at the Paramount UK Upfronts, Kelly Reilly officially revealed that Dutton Ranch will begin filming season 2 in just a few months.
Yellow stone spin-off Dutton Ranch was a huge success for Paramount+ and the anticipated Season 2 renewal came with two yet-to-be-aired episodes from Season 1. Filming will begin in early 2027, Reilly said.
Dutton Ranch follows Reilly’s character, Beth Dutton, as she starts over, alongside stars like Annette Bening, Ed Harris and Cole Hauser. Reilly starred in five seasons of Yellowstone, which ended in 2024.
Dutton Ranch reached 12.9 million viewers worldwide in its first week, Reilly, a U.K. native, told the audience of executives, advertisers and press at Paramount UK, just two and a half weeks after the $110 billion Skydance mega-merger.
She described Dutton Ranch as “a risk I’m proud we took, removing Beth from the mothership to start a new life in South Texas with lots of snakes.” “The response across the world, well, I’m surprised and grateful,” she added.
Branagh and Sarsgaard on “Laird”
Big stars like Kenneth Branagh and Peter Sarsgaard were also in attendance that night in the lead role in the upcoming Jez Butterworth Paramount+ drama. Laird. First images were shown Laird and producer David Glasser sat alongside Branagh and Sarsgaard to speak to the audience throughout the show.
Situated in the modern Scottish Highlands, Laird IIt’s an epic family saga in which a proud Scotsman, Drummoch (Branagh), challenges a shadowy American billionaire, Peter Bergstrom (Sarsgaard), determined to buy back the Glens.
Branagh said the series was about a “dysfunctional family” confronted by an “extraordinary character”, played by Sarsgaard. “It’s a great world and there are a lot of compelling characters created by people who know how to put these things together,” he added. “It’s a very unique experience.”
Sarsgaard said filming Laird It’s like “being shot out of a cannon.” “We are working, we really are,” he added. “I really like his intensity.”
Garnering one of the biggest applauses of the evening, Sarsgaard said he “didn’t feel conflicted” playing a malevolent American billionaire in Laird. “It’s an interesting time to be an American in the world,” he added. “When I grew up, you watched Raiders of the Lost Ark and the Nazis were the bad guys. But I don’t feel conflicted at the moment. This looks good to me and I really enjoy this aspect.
Glasser, the head of 101 Studios, has directed numerous hits for Paramount, including Yellow stone And MobLand. His teaser for season 3 of the latter: “Someone will challenge Tom Hardy this season.” This elicited one of the biggest cheers of the evening.
Via video link, Samuel L. Jackson presented a trailer for King Frisco to the audience, while soccer superstar David Beckham was on hand to speak about his Beckham and his friends Champions League series which will soon become international. “Finally my mom can watch it too,” Beckham joked.
Indeed, Paramount+ owns the Champions League soccer rights in the U.K. and Germany starting next year after a heated auction that would have been far higher than the current $1.3 billion deal in place with Warner Bros. Discovery’s TNT Sports (when the deal was struck, the two did not merge). The five-year deal is one of the largest in international sports rights.
Also early on, under the leadership of Lee Sears, president of advertising sales for Paramount’s international markets, executives talked about a new world in the United Kingdom, where Paramount’s 5 struck a historic advertising deal with Channel 4. At the same time, Paramount integrated ads for Paramount+ and Pluto TV.
The event at London’s Royal Academy comes just two and a half weeks after the Skydance merger closed. Audiences at the UK Upfronts were treated to a brilliant preview of the best content from Paramount-Warner Bros. to the tune of a remix of The Beatles’ “Come Together” and Eminem’s “Let’s Get Down to Business.”
The event was packed with executives, announcers and journalists.
Gn entert
