Ever heard the name Bass Reeves? The man, the myth, the legend — he will certainly become a more household name thanks to a new series that dropped on Paramount+ from executive producer Taylor Sheridan (Yellowstone) and creator Chad Feehan. Lawmen: Bass Reeves stars David Oyelowo (Selma, Silo) in the titular role, as we see his epic rise to law enforcement dating back to his days of enslavement. Over the course of eight episodes, Reeves meets a colorful cast of characters played by veteran actors Donald Sutherland, Dennis Quaid, Barry Pepper, and more.

We recently caught up with director Damian Marcano (Snowfall, Winning Time), who helmed episodes four through six, to learn more about the creative process behind this unique new Western series and what it was like collaborating with Oyelowo for a role he was born to play.

Embracing the ‘Sheer Magnitude of This Project’

Period pieces are always a beast, as we’ve come to learn in speaking with the folks behind the scenes of Lawmen: Bass Reeves. Given the success of Yellowstone and Taylor Sheridan’s other successful Western-genre content that has graced the small screen, it’s no wonder a project like Lawmen has generated excitement ever since it was first introduced.

“The thing I love most about this show was, I keep turning the pages when I first had the scripts, and I’m like, ‘It feels like I’m outside a lot,'” said Marcano in detailing what drew him to directing parts of the series in the first place. “So in the creation of large projects, especially once you get into things like period work, like Snowfall or like Winning Time, there’s just an additional cost factor that comes with that time that sort of makes these projects really huge or whatnot.”

Bass was that times 10 because I’ve never had to worry about the cattle count in my scene. I’m like, ‘Oh, wait, how many cattle is that?’ ‘Those are 55, sir.’ And I’m like, ‘I think we need 85.’ And we have to get the correct height of cattle. And I’ve got a line producer running over to me saying, ‘No, if you go 12 inches more on the cattle, it doubles the budget for that. So I’m gonna need you to go with babies.’

“And every day that is making Bass Reeves,” added Marcano, “you are trying to figure out how not just to make it all make sense, but we’re literally set out doing this project trying to find the truth. We wanted each scene to live as if there was no other way for that scene to possibly live. That was the truth, we would just have to sort of take care of all of the side items, if you will, in order for us to get there.”

Related: Exclusive | Lawmen: Bass Reeves Creator on Teaming Up with Star David Oyelowo

David Oyelowo and Set Safety on Lawmen: Bass Reeves
Paramount

Speaking of Westerns, the tragedy that struck the set of Alec Baldwin’s upcoming film Rust certainly cast a dark shadow of production in the genre. “Even if you’ve got a scene where [the characters] Bass and Billy ride into town, just the fact that there are 250 extras in the town and everyone’s got a gun, we have to go through weapons checks,” said Marcano.

So you’d ramp up, ramp up, ramp up, ‘let’s go’ — and then we’d slow down because there’s a weapons check. But guess what, we need to keep everyone safe. And we want to be able to have our performers out there unconcerned for anyone’s safety when they’re trying to recreate this historical moment in a way that’s not been done before.

Besides “the strict attention to detail,” another perk of Lawmen is Oyelowo’s committed turn. It’s awards-caliber stuff that continues to solidify his A-lister status in Hollywood. “David really impressed me with his readiness for this,” Marcano told us. “This was beyond just the actor knowing lines and knowing how to deliver them. This was an actor knowing lines, how to deliver them while riding or galloping on a horse at full speed, and shooting a rifle. I could go on and list so many, but this was really a cut above the rest. And I can’t thank the crew that we had enough because no matter what Texas gave us, those folks got all of this done, rain, sleet, or snow. And they made these beautiful playgrounds for us to be able to go and play in, so I think we owe them quite a bit.”

Related: Lawmen: Bass Reeves Review | David Oyelowo Transforms into a Legendary US Marshall

As confirmed in our separate interview with creator Chad Feehan as well, Oyelowo is a solid collaborator, not just on a professional level, but on a personal level too. “The part that got me the most was just how genuine of a human being he is,” said Marcano, adding:

“I haven’t worked with too many people that are just like that. He is a man that if he tells me something, I can honestly trust and believe in it. And that went a long way because when you’re making something this hard, there is a trust that you have to have between each other… I was pleasantly surprised that Dave is just a beautiful spirit.”

Watch Out For the Half-Episode-Long Shootout
Paramount

And of course, we couldn’t get any spoilers in Marcano’s future episodes, but we had to ask if there was something in particular he’s excited for viewers to experience. “There’s a shootout that takes place in an entire town that we built. And that’s pretty special, that’s what I’ll say,” said Marcano. He elaborated on the massive set piece to come:

I have not, in the last five years of shooting anything in this town, been given the chance to shoot anything that big. Pretty much half of an episode is a shootout. And we still have to adjust some things to make it producible, but those are the nights that you remember.

“We surprised David, which I’m sure that clip will come out at some point,” added Marcano of another special moment from the production. “But it was his birthday, and he didn’t think anybody knew. And that’s the kind of thing you do for not just a good performer, but a beautiful soul. We were all tired, we were all going to be there till four in the morning. But guess what — we needed to take the time out to tell this man, Happy Birthday.”

He and Marcano gave us all a gift with Lawmen: Bass Reeves, now streaming on Paramount+ with new episodes airing Sunday nights.