Netflix’s New Western Series Becoming A Global Hit Is A Big Reminder To Watch The Streamer’s 8-Year-Old Show With A Far Better RT Score

Western shows are one of the most popular genres on streaming services, but it can often be quite difficult to do them well, especially in their more modern iterations. Classic Western movies, like many of those starring John Wayne or Clint Eastwood, paired well with the original great Western shows, like Gunsmoke, Bonanza, or The Lone Ranger. Now, a new revival of the Western genre has become increasingly popular over the last decade. As a result, streaming services like Netflix and Paramount+ are eager to add exciting new titles to the mix.

Unsurprisingly, there have been some great modern Westerns released recently, and several of them are thanks to Taylor Sheridan. Sheridan’s series Yellowstone can be seen as one of the first shows to really capitalize on the revitalization of the Western genre, and in many ways directly influenced all the Western shows that have come since. Not only was Yellowstone itself a success, but Sheridan also expanded the show’s universe by creating spin-off shows. It is this success for Paramount+ that services like Netflix are chasing through shows like its recent addition, American Primeval.

American Primeval Gives Netflix The Huge Western Series It Wanted

The Series Has Become Massively Popular With Audiences

Immediately following its January 2025 release, American Primeval has become one of Netflix’s most popular shows to date, and certainly its most popular Western. The series centers on the competition for land and power among several groups during the Utah War in the 1850s. While some of the characters and the plot points are fictional, many of the events that happen in the show and the people who play a big role in them were real people involved in the foundation of Utah, making the series even more interesting.

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What makes American Primeval work so well is precisely its ability to blend American history with fictional characters that audiences can’t help but root for. The show also does not shy away from the real horrors of the time, presenting Utah as an often violent and dark place. Though the series only holds a moderate 67% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, audiences enjoyed American Primeval much more, as is evident from its 88% approval rating and appearance on Netflix’s top charts. Its success could point to Netflix pushing for more Westerns in the future as well.

Godless Is Still Netflix’s Best Western TV Show, 8 Years Later

Godless Is An Even More Impressive Western Than Netflix’s Successor

Though American Primeval is now the most popular of Netflix’s Western shows, the streaming service actually released an even better Western eight years ago. The series Godless premiered on Netflix in November 2017, and it was met with critical acclaim. While American Primeval‘s reviews are not bad by any means, Godless‘s reviews are overwhelmingly positive. The series currently holds an 83% critics approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and it was nominated for 12 Emmy Awards and won three.

The series takes place in 1884 in New Mexico when an outlaw, Roy, decides to rebel against his former boss because his violence has gone too far. Roy arrives in a town called La Belle, which creates an interesting and unusual divergence from normal Westerns because the town is almost exclusively made up of women. Compared to many Western shows where the women characters often feel like second thoughts, Godless shines because of its large cast of complex female characters. Beyond the great performances, the series’ plot is well-paced and perfectly self-contained.

Netflix Is Still Missing Something When It Comes To Westerns

The Streaming Service Still Needs A Long Running Western Show

Despite Godless‘s critical acclaim and American Primeval‘s success with audiences, Netflix has still not managed to find the same success with its Westerns as Paramount+ has with those of Taylor Sheridan. The biggest problem with the service’s current Westerns is that they don’t have any multi-year shows and little potential for spin-offs, which is no easy feat to begin with. While American Primeval could return for another season given its popularity, the deaths of many characters would make it challenging and the next season could still be several years away.

American Primeval‘s ending saw many of the most popular characters die, and many of those that remained alive were cast out onto the road again. While it could be possible to regrow the cast around the remaining characters, it does seem like the show was meant to conclude its story after one season. Instead, it seems more likely that Netflix will learn from the audience demand for more shows like American Primeval and work to develop a Western series with further potential for the show’s plot and characters to extend beyond one season, much to the delight of Western fans.

American Primeval

Release Date

2025 – 2024

Network

Netflix

Directors

Peter Berg

Stream

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