Deadwood
Dialogue-drivenThe writing's voice is the main event.This show: 10/10Rural & frontierCountryside, wilderness and frontier living.This show: 9/10GrittyRaw, unglamorous realism in both look and subject matter.This show: 9/10Morally grayNo clean heroes or villains anywhere in sight.This show: 9/10Tight writingNo wasted scenes, just disciplined storytelling.This show: 8/10Period pieceSet meaningfully in a past era.This show: 8/10Ensemble castMany characters carrying equal weight.This show: 8/10Dark toneShadowy mood and subject matter, a shade short of outright bleak.This show: 8/10
Rate this series
Starring
Timothy OlyphantIan McShaneMolly ParkerBrad DourifW. Earl BrownJohn Hawkes
Written by
David Milch
Starring
Timothy OlyphantIan McShaneMolly ParkerBrad DourifW. Earl BrownJohn Hawkes
Written by
David Milch
Ratings per Episode
Votes per Episode
Deadwood Episode Ratings Heatmap
| Avg | E1 | E2 | E3 | E4 | E5 | E6 | E7 | E8 | E9 | E10 | E11 | E12 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S1 | 8.3 | 8.2 | 8.2 | 8.1 | 8.8 | 8.0 | 8.1 | 7.9 | 8.2 | 8.0 | 8.6 | 8.3 | 9.1 | |
| S2 | 8.3 | 8.6 | 8.2 | 7.9 | 8.2 | 8.1 | 8.5 | 8.3 | 8.0 | 8.6 | 8.2 | 8.3 | 8.9 | |
| S3 | 8.3 | 8.3 | 8.4 | 8.1 | 8.1 | 9.0 | 8.0 | 8.0 | 7.9 | 8.2 | 8.6 | 8.9 | 8.4 |
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About
"Foul-mouthed frontier poetry about capitalism eating a town"
Set in a lawless Dakota gold-rush camp in the 1870s, this show follows saloon owners, prospectors, lawmen, and outlaws as the settlement claws its way toward civilization, mostly through greed, violence, and backroom deals. It moves slowly and talks constantly, but the dialogue is dense, profane, and almost musical, closer to Shakespeare than to typical Western shootouts. The draw is atmosphere and language over action: a muddy, grimy world full of morally compromised people you end up caring about anyway. It rewards patience and close listening more than most prestige dramas.
Watch it for
the densest, most inventive profane dialogue ever written for television.
Maybe skip if
you need fast plotting or clean heroes rather than slow-burn ensemble grime.
Written by our AI editor to help you decide, spoiler-free by design.
All Seasons
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Season 12004
8.331K1211h 8m
1876. The Black Hills Indian Cession, two weeks after Custer's last stand. Witness the birth of an American frontier town – and the ruthless power struggle between its just and unjust pioneers. In an age of plunder and greed, the richest gold strike in American history draws a mob of restless misfits to an outlaw settlement where everything – and everyone – has a price. The settlers, ranging from an ex-lawman to a scheming saloon owner to the legendary Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane, share a constant restlessness of spirit, and survive by any means necessary. Welcome to Deadwood... a hell of a place to make your fortune.
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Season 22005
8.323K1210h 19m
1877. A new day is dawning in the Black Hills outlaw camp of Deadwood. For better or worse, times are changing, and the transformation from camp to town is imminent. Unsavoury new arrivals - looking to cash in on the lucrative anarchy – and a government of outsiders usher in an era of hard decisions and brutal power struggles among the camp's founders. Seth Bullock is the new Sheriff and forced to stand his ground against two conniving brothel owners: cutthroat Al Swearengen, and his chief rival, the cunning Cy Tolliver. The women of Deadwood prove their mettle as Calamity Jane, Alma Garret, Trixie and Joanie stake their claim in this dangerous town of scheming misfits, all learning the hard way... fortune comes with a price...
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Season 32006
8.320K1210h 11m
The lawless era in Deadwood is coming to an end. As the town's first elections approach, it becomes apparent that, like it or not, civilization is on its way. But a civilized town is not necessarily a peaceful town, and the power struggles that determine the fate of Deadwood have never been more brutal. A ruthless newcomer, businessman George Hearst, threatens to reshape the town in his own image, forcing Deadwood's settlers – including the steadfast lawman Seth Bullock and the cutthroat saloon owner Al Swearengen – to form strategic alliances if they expect to thrive, and survive. While bloody conflicts change the face and fate of the town, the citizens of Deadwood come to the harsh realization... some fortunes are better left unclaimed.
Full Cast & Crew
Cast
Timothy Olyphant Seth Bullock
Ian McShane Al Swearengen
Molly Parker Alma Garret
Brad Dourif Doc Cochran
W. Earl Brown Dan Dority
John Hawkes Sol Star
Paula Malcomson Trixie
Dayton Callie Charlie Utter
Leon Rippy Tom Nuttall
William Sanderson E.B. Farnum
Crew
David Milch
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