Outer Range

''Outer Range'' is an American science fiction neo-Western television series created by Brian Watkins. It features an ensemble cast that includes Josh Brolin, Imogen Poots, Lili Taylor, Tom Pelphrey, Tamara Podemski and Lewis Pullman.

The series premiered on Amazon Prime Video on April 15, 2022. In October 2022, the series was renewed for a second season, with Charles Murray taking over Watkins's position as showrunner. The second season premiered on May 16, 2024. It has received generally positive reviews, with particular praise for the performances of its cast (particularly Brolin and Poots). In July 2024, the series was canceled after two seasons.

Premise

Royal Abbott is a Wyoming rancher who is fighting for his land and family. He discovers a mysterious black void in the pasture after the arrival of a female drifter, Autumn, who has a connection to Abbott's ranch. While the Abbott family copes with the disappearance of their daughter-in-law Rebecca, they are pushed further to the brink when a rival family, the Tillersons, try to take over their land.

Cast and characters

Main

* Josh Brolin as Royal Abbott, owner of Abbott ranch, husband of Cecilia, and father of Rhett and Perry
** Teaguen Arbogast portrays Royal Abbott as a child and Christian James portrays him as a young adult (season 2)
* Imogen Poots as Autumn, a strange young woman who arrives at the Abbott ranch and camps out on the land
* Lili Taylor as Cecilia Abbott, the wife of Royal and mother of Rhett and Perry
** Megan West portrays young Cecilia Abbott (season 2)
* Tom Pelphrey as Perry Abbott, Royal's elder son and the father of Amy
* Tamara Podemski as Deputy Sheriff Joy Hawk, the acting sheriff of the county where the town of Wabang is situated.
* Lewis Pullman as Rhett Abbott, Royal's younger son
* Noah Reid as Billy Tillerson, the younger son of the Tillerson family
* Shaun Sipos as Luke Tillerson, the elder son of the Tillerson family
** Preston Alkire portrays young Luke Tillerson
* Olive Elise Abercrombie as Amy Abbott, the 9-year-old daughter of Perry
* Isabel Arraiza as Maria Olivares, a bank teller that Rhett is interested in

Recurring

* Will Patton as Trevor Tillerson (season 1; guest season 2)
* Matthew Maher as Deputy Matt (season 1; guest season 2)
* MorningStar Angeline as Martha Hawk, the wife of Joy Hawk.
* Ofelia Garcia as Rose Hawk
* Deirdre O'Connell as Patricia Tillerson (season 1; guest season 2), the mother of Billy and Luke, and Wayne's estranged ex-wife
* Kristen Connolly (guest season 1) and Monette Moio (season 2) as Rebecca Abbott, Perry's missing wife
* Sam Strike as Deputy Jess Chinlund (season 2)
* Johnny Sneed as Pastor Ken (season 2)

Guest

* Yrsa Daley-Ward as Dr. Nia Bintu
* William Sterchi as Todd Barney
* Barry Del Sherman as Frank (season 1)
* Kevin Chamberlin as Karl Cleaver (season 1)
* William Belleau as Lewis Mays (season 2)
* Kimberly Guerrero as Falling Star (season 2)
* Michael O'Neill as Judge Pettigrew (season 2)
* Deborah Strang as Mustang Sally (season 2)
* Jim Beaver as Mr. Farber (season 2)
* John Ales as Shelton Cape (season 2)
* Lily Joy Winder as Flowers (season 2)
* River Novin as Mountain Lion (season 2)
* Tatanka Means as Officer Edgar (season 2)
* Tokala Black Elk as Officer Daniel (season 2)

Production

In February 2020, it was announced that Josh Brolin had signed on to star in ''Outer Range''. The series is executive produced by Brolin, Brian Watkins, Zev Borow, Heather Rae, Robin Sweet, Lawrence Trilling, Amy Seimetz, Tony Krantz, and Brad Pitt through his Plan B Entertainment. In December 2020, it was announced that Lewis Pullman, Noah Reid, Shaun Sipos, and Isabel Arraiza had joined the cast, alongside Brolin, Imogen Poots, Lili Taylor, Tamara Podemski, and Tom Pelphrey. In April 2023, Christian James, Megan West, Daniel Abeles, Kimberly Guerrero, and Monette Moio were cast in recurring roles for the second season.

The series marks Brolin's first television series role in nearly 20 years. It was filmed over the course of eight months in Las Vegas, New Mexico. On October 6, 2022, Amazon renewed the series for a second season. Principal photography for the second season began in April 2023.

Danny Bensi and Saunder Jurriaans composed the series' music. Milan Records have released the soundtrack.

Episodes

Season 1 (2022)

Season 2 (2024)

Release

A teaser trailer was released on March 9, 2022. The first two episodes of the eight-episode first season premiered on Prime Video on April 15, 2022, with two new episodes premiering each week.

The seven-episode second season was released on May 16, 2024.

Reception

Critical response

Season 1

The first season was met with mixed-to-positive reviews from critics. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 60 out of 100 based on 23 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.

Ryan Britt of ''Inverse'' called the series "one of the boldest, weirdest, and most affecting sci-fi shows of the 21st century" and praised the performances of Josh Brolin, Imogen Poots and Tamara Podemski. The ''New York Post'' Michael Starr wrote, "''Outer Range'' a bit touch-and-go in terms of its interest factor but, then again, you'll want to know how it all turns out, thanks to the sci-fi twist that saves it from mediocrity." Robert Daniels of RogerEbert.com lauded Brolin, Poots and Lili Taylor's performances and said that the series is "the rare kind of genre-bending work that leaves one wounded in its fresh take on our human existence while offering untold possibilities." Katie Rife of ''Polygon'' commended the direction, performances (particularly Brolin and Poots), soundtrack, and musical score.

In a mixed review, Alison Foreman of ''The A.V. Club'' graded the series with a "C" and wrote, "Despite the promise of a stunning natural setting and a big ol' hole to throw things into, Watkins can't quite come into his own. Even as the soapy interpersonal stories ramp up, there's a nagging feeling ''Outer Range'' never goes far enough." Daniel Fienberg of ''The Hollywood Reporter'' criticized the writing and pacing, saying that "the most infuriating thing about ''Outer Range'', and there are a lot of infuriating things about it, is how almost nobody on-screen is asking any of the questions that audiences will be asking. And, in its general lack of hole-directed inquisitiveness, the narrative progresses at a bizarrely glacial pace." Nonetheless, Fienberg praised the performances of Brolin, Podemski, Poots and Tom Pelphrey. Kristen Lopez of '' IndieWire'' criticized the writing and incoherent tone, while praising the performances of its cast. Lopez graded the series with a "D".

The season was named the 19th best TV show of 2022 by ''Inverse''. TVLine labeled it as the "most underrated drama" of the year.

Season 2

The second season received mostly positive critical reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds an approval rating of 92% based on 24 reviews, with an average rating of 7.2/10. The website's consensus reads: "With a better handle on its characters and a willingness to get even weirder, ''Outer Range'''s sophomore outing is in the zone." On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 72 out of 100 based on 9 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.

Writing for ''The Wall Street Journal'', John Anderson said "Audacity is what makes the show not just watchable but maybe even important: It isn't the singer, or the song, but the singer singing the song while plummeting through space and time." Bob Strauss of ''TheWrap'' considered it "an improvement over the intriguing but less textured first season". Gabriela Burgos Soler of '' Tell-Tale TV'' gave the season a rating of 4 out of 5 stars and wrote, "''Outer Range'' delivered yet another thrilling season, managing to keep its rich world-building and complex characters." Ryan Britt of ''Inverse'' was also favorable with the season, calling it "one of the best sci-fi shows on TV" and lauding Brolin, Poots and Podemski's performances, though he felt disappointed that all seven episodes were released at once, opining that "this is a show you'll want to step away from after a few episodes, and then come back to and savor. If you do it all in a binge, ourhead might be spinning."

However, some critics were unimpressed, especially with the writing. Tom Philip of ''The A.V. Club'' graded it with a "C+" and said that " he seasonis unlikely to thrill all but the most devoted fans of its first outing. And while there's still a decent framework and a game set of actors, there's no escaping the reality that things will need to click ''fast'' if it has any hope of reaching its planned ending."

References

External links

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{{Amazon Video original series

2022 American television series debuts
2020s American drama television series
2020s American mystery television series
2020s American science fiction television series
2020s Western (genre) television series
American English-language television shows
American thriller television series
Lesbian-related television shows
Neo-Western television series
Television productions suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Television shows filmed in Los Angeles
Television shows filmed in New Mexico
Television shows set in Wyoming
Television shows shot in the Las Vegas Valley
Television series by Amazon MGM Studios
Amazon Prime Video original programming
Science fiction Westerns