Summary
Kevin Costner had trouble launching a new planned Western movie franchise in 2024, but the sequels could be saved now thatHorizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1is now streaming. The director and star ofHorizon: An American Sagaspent years developing this passion project, with the idea for the franchise expanding into four different movies.Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1is the first installment of the new Western franchise for Costner. His faith in the film was so substantial that he was willing to walk away from finishingYellowstoneto create this replacement series.
The franchise officially debuted in theaters on June 12, 2025, withHorizon: An American Saga - Chapter 2scheduled to releaseless than two months later. These plans were altered due to the movie’s performance, as not as many people went to theaters to see Costner’s vision brought to life. It appeared that those who helped makeYellowstonea smash hit on streaming elected to wait untilHorizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1went to streaming to see it, too. Whether for a first-time viewing or to rewatchHorizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1’s ending, it’s now time.
Every Kevin Costner Western, Ranked Worst To Best
Kevin Costner has appeared in several well-received Westerns, and here’s every film from the genre he’s appeared in ranked from worst to best.
Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1is now streaming on Max, marking the first time the movie is available on a streaming service. Warner Bros. previously made the movie available to buy or rent on PVOD platforms to give consumers a different option besides waiting for the Max release and needing a subscription.Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1’s streaming release comes 56 days after it debuted in theaters. That is a few weeks earlier than expected based on Warner Bros.’s average wait between a film’s theatrical and streaming release dates.
Max subscriptions cost $9.99 a month with ads, $16.99 a month without ads, and $20.99 a month for the Ultimate Ad-Free plan
The story ofHorizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1revolves around multiple different groups of characters and storylines set in the mid-1800s. These include Frances Kittridge (Sienna Miller) and her daughter growing close with Trent Gephardt (Sam Worthington), Costner’s Hayes Ellison crossing paths with Marigold (Abbey Lee), the pursuit of Ellen Harvey (Jena Malone) by the Sykes family, and the Apache tribe trying to keep their land safe from being colonized. These storylines intersect in different ways asHorizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1weaves its narrative across many years.
Every Storyline In Horizon: An American Saga, Ranked Least To Most Interesting
Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1 featured seven different main storylines, but some of them were more compelling and interesting than others.
Horizon Chapter 1’s Theatrical Release & What Went Wrong
The Movie Underwhelmed At The Box Office
Expectations were high at one point forHorizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1’s theatrical release and how it could perform at the box office. However, projections continued to dip as the movie’s release drew closer, and it was effectively dead on arrival on August 15, 2025. It only made $11 million during its opening weekend domestically, finishing third in the weekend overall.Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1did not have good legs from then on, asit finished with $29 million domestically. It only added $5 million internationally to give it a total of $34 million.
Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 have a combined budget of $100 million
The troubles forHorizon’s box officecame from a multitude of places. It did not help thatCostner’s movie received mostly negative reviews from critics, driving its Rotten Tomatoes score down to 48%. Audiences were reasonably mixed on the 3-hour-plus epic, giving it a 70% rating on the Popcornmeter. Westerns already have difficulty finding an audience in theaters nowadays, as they are not the dominant movie genre like before. Without having a strong word of mouth behind it,Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1couldn’t find much traction.
The extensive franchise plans forHorizon: An American Sagamight have also turned away some viewers. The sequel was planned to come out only a few weeks later, but Warner Bros. reversed that decision after seeing how poorlyChapter 1did at the box office. Still, the movie’s title tells audiences that this is not a standalone story, and Costner very much treats the movie like the introduction to a larger narrative.
Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1’s Streaming Release Could Help The Sequels
It Already Did Well On PVOD
With so much uncertainty about the fate ofHorizon: An American Saga’s sequels, the streaming release forChapter 1could be a pivotal moment for Kevin Costner’s franchise and its future. The movie’s potentially massivesuccess as a streaming movie on Max could be enough to help convince Warner Bros. to let Costner finish making the third and fourth installmentsthat are currently in need of more financing. TheHorizon: An American Saga’s sequels could even be made directly for streaming ifChapter 1proves to be a big enough hit for Warner Bros.’s streaming service.
There is reason to believe this will happen too.Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1already dominated VOD chartsafter its release. That shows that there is interest in Costner’s films, just not as a big-screen movie franchise. Any significant impact thatHorizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1makes on Max as a streaming release is good news for Kevin Costner, especially when it comes to getting a new release date forChapter 2. If the opposite happens, the chances of these sequels happening continue to drop.
