One Of The Most Influential Westerns Of All Time Is A Top 10 Streaming Hit -

Westerns have had a renewed value in television. Following the enduring success of Yellowstone, nearly every major streaming service has at least tried to cultivate a hit Western. Prime Video has had the short-lived Outer Range and Night Sky, both of which come with a sci-fi twist. Netflix, for its part, is attempting to fuse the Western with a bit of romance in the upcoming Ransom Canyon. It has also gone gritty and violent with the well-received American Primeval.

There is something to be said, though, about the classic Western that harkens back to decades past. Even taking into account Yellowstone and its many spinoffs, those shows are driven by aspects of family drama that can have more in common with soap operas than cowboys and gunslingers. But a new streaming hit, which is an old classic, is a fairly direct example of what the genre does so well.

Gunsmoke Breaks Out On The Streaming Charts

It Has Over 600 Episodes

Gunsmoke is one of the most influential Westerns of all time. Created for television by Norman Macdonnell and John Meston, after being developed by Charles Marquis Warren, the drama began as a radio play before making the jump to CBS in 1955. The medium change proved controversial, with audiences not taking kindly to the television version at first. But with time, Gunsmoke developed a legacy of its own. It was a ratings hit, running for 20 seasons and winning a total of 15 Emmys.

Gunsmoke unfolded in Dodge City, Kansas, centering on the central character of Marshal Matt Dillon (James Arness), with a cast that also included Milburn Stone, Amanda Blake, Dennis Weaver, Ken Curtis, Roger Ewing, Buck Taylor, and Burt Reynolds.

Nielsen has revealed that Gunsmoke appears on Top 10 Streaming Charts for the week of March 3 to March 9, taking the eighth spot in the Acquired Top 10 list with 646 million minutes viewed. The Acquired Top 10 refers to shows that are available to stream but did not originally air on a streaming service. This marks a first for Gunsmoke, which streams on Peacock and Peacock, though Nielsen notes that the Western generated 10 billion minutes of viewing in 2024 overall.

It’s worth noting that, for anyone hoping to watch the entirety of Gunsmoke for free, all episodes are available on Pluto TV which doesn’t require a subscription. Peacock and Paramount still have a large number of seasons for anyone wanting to revisit Dodge City or discover it anew.

Our Take On Gunsmoke’s Significance

It May Be Hard To Grasp In A Modern Sense

To make a horror comparison, Gunsmoke is comparable to Halloween. It may be difficult for horror fans to grasp just how important the John Carpenter slasher was, because just about everything that followed carries its style. Gunsmoke is the same, making it a vital watch.

Source: Nielsen

Gunsmoke

Release Date: 1955 – 1974
Directors: Andrew V. McLaglen, Harry Harris, Ted Post, Bernard McEveety, Vincent McEveety
Writers: John Meston, Charles Marquis Warren, Paul Savage