How Dinosaurs Of The Wild West Could Be Like Yellowstone [exclusive]

Sparke Films

Director Luke Sparke made a name for himself last year with "Primitive War," which I called the greatest non-"Jurassic Park" dinosaur movie ever made. It was a wildly ambitious, bonkers undertaking that set prehistoric creatures loose during the Vietnam War. Now, Sparke is back with another project, one that once again involves dinosaurs, albeit in a very different setting.

Inspired by the work of artist Shaun Keenan, Sparke's "Dinosaurs of the Wild West" takes dinosaurs to the Wild West, just as the title implies. Instead of a movie, this will be a TV show, one that gives the story more time to breathe. It's also going to take inspiration, in some ways, from the biggest modern Western around: "Yellowstone."

"This is going to be a series, and that makes it different and also gives me eight to ten hours to tell a story rather than just two, and in the world that it is," Sparke told /Film in an interview tied to the launch of the Kickstarter for his new show. Speaking further, he explained how Taylor Sheridan's beloved small-screen Western will influence his plans for this ambitious undertaking:

"Like 'Yellowstone,' I guess in a way, it's not only a series, I've also been thinking way ahead, but that's what you gotta do these days. Thinking way ahead, there's also multiple spin-offs and it's been great to see the comments online say, 'Oh, I'd love to see dinosaurs in Medieval [times], dinosaurs in Roman [times] as well.' Well, Shaun Keenan has also drawn dinosaurs in the Medieval. So I have ideas of how to spin off into other areas and keep it in this — if West becomes successful, how to spin that off and also tell other stories."

Lucasfilm

Taylor Sheridan built an entire TV empire off the back of "Yellowstone." It now includes multiple spin-offs such as "1883," "1923," "Dutton Ranch," and "Marshals," which audiences love. Luke Sparke isn't necessarily saying that "Dinosaurs of the Wild West" will be "Yellowstone" with dinosaurs, but there's an expansive universe to explore, as his vision for the series imagines a world where dinosaurs and humans have lived side by side for centuries.

"It's kind of like 'Yellowstone' meets 'House of the Dragon'/'Game of Thrones' and with a bit of 'Mandalorian' put in there," Sparke said, unafraid to make some lofty comparisons. Speaking further, the filmmaker explained how he sees those shows as influences on his forthcoming project:

"Obviously, 'The Mandalorian' being that Western gunslinger style. 'Game of Thrones,' because I built this world where there's political intrigue. I mean, there's dinosaurs, obviously, but how to have this chessboard thing happening the way I went into it with the story, and then obviously 'Yellowstone' being for the Western side of it. So those three, if you mash those three together is what I'm coming at you with."

Sparke is aiming to raise around $350,000 on Kickstarter to produce at least the first two episodes of "Dinosaurs of the Wild West." That may not sound like a lot, but Sparke made "Primitive War" for a shockingly low budget of less than $10 million. Anyone who has seen the movie can tell you that the scale is blockbuster-level, despite the relatively low cost. In that way, his ambitious comparisons probably aren't unwarranted. Sparke aims high by design.

Sparke Films

What happens next or how far this goes is entirely up to the audience right now. Luke Sparke partnered with Shaun Keenan because their visions for "Dinosaurs of the Wild West" were aligned. Ultimately, rather than spend a bunch of time pitching that vision to streamers and networks, playing the hurry-up-and-wait game, they decided to take it directly to the fans in hopes of getting things moving.

"I've written the first season and multiple seasons to follow and how I would do the world, the pitch deck, and the characters, and the whole Bible of the thing," Sparke said.

The Kickstarter page notes that this has been developed into an "original cinematic universe" that "blends western frontier mythology with a world where dinosaurs and humans have existed side by side for generations." It also claims that "This is only the beginning."

So yes, this could very well be more than just a single TV season. If the demand is there, this could be a large, dino-filled world with multiple seasons, spin-offs, etc.

At the same time, "Primitive War 2" has been announced, so Sparke is spinning multiple plates at once. But he did make it clear that these projects can coexist, with neither taking the place of the other. He's going to try to make his wild dinosaur TV show, all while making his equally wild dinosaur movie sequel.

"Dinosaurs of the Wild West" is live now on Kickstarter.