Watch Billy the Kid

Billy the Kid is an 8-episode dramatic series that premiered on Epix in 2022. It provides a fictionalized account of the life of legendary Old West outlaw Billy the Kid, from his humble beginnings to his ascent into legend. The show opens in 1859 New York, where we meet young Billy and his mother Kathleen. They are Irish immigrants seeking a better life out West. After his mother dies of tuberculosis, 15-year-old Billy boards a wagon train headed to New Mexico Territory in search of his biological father. Along the way, he befriends Rio Cutler, who becomes like an older brother.

When Billy arrives in Lincoln County, New Mexico, he quickly gets a sense of the simmering tensions between the English settlers and Hispanic locals. He meets rancher John Tunstall, who takes Billy under his wing. Tunstall is locked in a rivalry over land and cattle with Lawrence Murphy and James Dolan, who have the local sheriff and justice system under their control.

Billy also crosses paths with renowned gunman Richard Brewer, and fellow outlaws Doc Scurlock and Charlie Bowdre. Calling themselves “The Regulators”, this group sides with Tunstall in his feud with Murphy and Dolan. After Tunstall’s murder, Billy swears vengeance and starts down the path to becoming an outlaw himself.

A good chunk of the first season deals with Billy coming of age and choosing sides. He’s torn between finding his biological father and forging a surrogate family with the Regulators. Actor Tom Blyth plays Billy as a soulful, introspective young man forced to grow up fast and make impossible choices.

As tensions escalate between the Regulators and Murphy-Dolan faction, a full-fledged frontier war breaks out known as the Lincoln County War. Led by Brewer and Billy, the Regulators go on a crusade for vigilante justice. The all-out gun battles and raids result in Billy claiming his first kills and solidifying his legend as a gunslinger.

The show portrays the psychological toll this frontier violence takes on Billy. Despite his reputation growing, he begins questioning the cycle of vengeance he helped set off. He knows the feud between the Regulators and Murphy-Dolan crew will only end badly. This moral quandary makes Billy the Kid a more complex figure than just a ruthless criminal.

While staying true to many historical facts and real-life figures, Billy the Kid does take some creative liberties for dramatic purposes. Many details about Billy’s parentage and early life remain uncertain, so the show imagines potential scenarios. The writers also condensed events and timelines, as the Lincoln County War played out over several years.

Ultimately, Billy the Kid humanizes a larger-than-life American outlaw. It captures the drama and grittiness of the Old West through stunning New Mexico cinematography. At the heart is a coming-of-age tale about Billy desperately searching for community while becoming consumed by violence and vengeance.

Billy the Kid is a series that is currently running and has 2 seasons (12 episodes). The series first aired on April 24, 2022.