You don’t need to sign up for all of the world’s best streaming services for hit shows, as Netflix is enough… if you’re happy watching its own versions of shows.
Hit Neo-Western Yellowstone has been a massive success for Paramount Plus with many seasons and spin-offs, and Netflix is clearly hoping to get a piece of the action with its new series Territory.
Released on Thursday, October 24, Territory is about the Lawson family which owns Marianne Station, the largest cattle station in the world. This empire is constantly under assault, however, and the Lawson’s need to fight for ownership against rivals, criminals, businessmen and Indigenous elders if they want to keep their land.
If you’re a fan of Yellowstone, that synopsis will sound familiar, because it too is about a family (the Duttons) defending their ranch (the Yellowstone Ranch) against various peoples who want it for themselves (neighbors).
Territory is different in one key way, as it’s set in Australia. The show was filmed in South Australia and the Northern Territory and, while Marianne Station isn’t a real place, the real world’s largest cattle station is in South Australia (the show wasn’t filmed there, though).
A large cast appears with Anna Torv, Michael Dorman, Robert Taylor and Sam Corbett playing the Lawsons and many more actors joining in other roles. Another famous name directs with Wolf Creek director Greg McLean behind the camera. Overall Territory is reported to be South Australia’s biggest Netflix series, the first shot in the Northern Territories and one of the largest from the country as a whole.
One thing stands in the way of Territory being a bona fide Yellowstone rival though, and that’s longevity: only six episodes of the show will arrive in the first season, which won’t give us much time to get to know the characters or story.
For context, Yellowstone started with 9 episodes in its first season, and that figure has quickly blossomed to 53 for the main series and a rapidly rising number as part of the spin-offs (18 at the time of writing).
Yellowstone is set to end in November, and like the plot of these shows themselves, a succession drama is brewing for its replacement. Territory is Netflix’s contender and it’ll surely be hoping that the show is a big enough hit to justify follow-up seasons.
