Several of the most visually stunning shows and movies of recent years are set in or around national parks — and most of them are firmly in adult territory, with Yellowstone, The White Lotus, and Under the Banner of Heaven leading the "wow that's gorgeous, wow that's a lot" category. For actual family-friendly national park content, America's National Parks (Disney+) and Ken Burns: The National Parks are the real moves. The landscape is the same; the content could not be more different.

There's something about sweeping vistas, moral isolation, and the sense that civilization's rules don't quite apply out here that filmmakers absolutely cannot resist. And honestly? The results are often stunning television. The problem is that "stunning" and "appropriate for your 10-year-old" are two very different bars.

Based on Screenwise community data, 92% of families are watching traditional TV or streaming content regularly, with Netflix and Amazon Prime being the dominant platforms. About 40% of families use Netflix with a kids profile active, and 32% supervise Amazon Prime viewing — which means a lot of parents are already navigating the "but I want to watch what you're watching" conversation. National park dramas are a perfect case study in why that conversation matters.

Let's break down what's actually out there.

The one that started the prestige-ranch-drama gold rush. Set against the jaw-dropping backdrop of Montana's Yellowstone region, this show is gorgeous — and also features brutal violence, explicit sex, heavy drinking, and enough family dysfunction to fuel a decade of therapy. Kevin Costner broods magnificently. The Dutton family commits what can only be described as a continuous series of felonies. It's genuinely compelling television for adults, and it is not for kids. Not even teenagers, honestly, without a real conversation first. Rated TV-MA, and it earns every bit of that.

The spinoffs — 1883 and 1923 — are similarly stunning, similarly adult. 1883 in particular has some genuinely harrowing violence and trauma that even some adults find rough going. Beautiful show. Hard watch.

Season 3 moved to Thailand, but the earlier seasons gave us Hawaii's lush landscapes as the backdrop for what is essentially a very dark, very satirical meditation on wealth, privilege, and human awfulness. The White Lotus is brilliant television. It is also packed with explicit content, drug use, and enough uncomfortable social commentary that it's genuinely adult viewing. If your teenager is asking about this one because it's all over social media (and it is), here's how to have that conversation.

Utah's red rock landscapes have never looked more ominous. This Hulu limited series uses the stunning backdrop of southern Utah — canyon country, not far from Zion and Bryce Canyon — to tell a deeply disturbing true crime story involving religious extremism and murder. Andrew Garfield is excellent. The content is genuinely dark and disturbing. Hard pass for anyone under 16, and even then, it's a lot.

Wyoming ranch meets supernatural mystery. Outer Range on Prime Video is weird in the best possible way — think if Yellowstone fell into a time vortex. Josh Brolin stares into an abyss that stares back. It's atmospheric and strange and has real violence and mature themes throughout. Not for kids, but genuinely interesting adult TV if you're into slow-burn mystery.

Montana again. Crime drama, missing persons, the kind of menace that feels more threatening against all that open space. Big Sky is a network show (ABC) so it's a bit tamer than the Paramount/HBO offerings, but it still deals with trafficking, violence, and adult themes. Older teens might be okay with parental judgment, but it's not casual family viewing.

Wyoming sheriff drama that's a bit more procedural and a bit less "everyone is morally compromised all the time." Longmire is probably the most accessible of the bunch — it ran on A&E before moving to Netflix — but it still deals with murder, violence, and some heavy themes around Indigenous communities and justice. Mature teens (15+) could handle this one with context.

Wyoming's Wind River Range is hauntingly beautiful and the backdrop for one of the most brutal crime dramas in recent memory. Wind River deals with violence against Indigenous women and is rated R for a reason. It's a good film — important, even — but it is not easy viewing and is absolutely adult content.

Technically Texas, not a national park, but the landscape is so central to this neo-Western that it belongs in the conversation. Bank robbing brothers, moral complexity, gorgeous cinematography. Rated R. Great movie. Adult movie.

Wyoming's mountains, a landmark film, and — yes — explicit content that earns its R rating. Brokeback Mountain is genuinely important cinema and a beautiful, heartbreaking story. For teens who are ready for mature content and the emotional weight of what the film is actually saying, it's worth discussing. But it's not background family viewing.

Good news: there's genuinely great stuff here that captures the feeling of those landscapes without the drama.

Find more family-friendly nature documentaries that won't require you to lunge for the remote.

The tricky thing about this category is that the marketing for these shows leans hard into the landscape. The trailers look like nature documentaries. The promotional images are sunsets and horses and mountains. And then episode two has a scene that makes you want to close your laptop and go outside.

A few practical notes:

Netflix and Amazon Prime profiles matter here. With 40% of Screenwise families using Netflix with active kids profiles and 32% supervising Amazon Prime, the good news is that most parents are already thinking about this. But it's worth double-checking that your profiles are set up correctly — here's how to set up Netflix parental controls and Amazon Prime parental controls if you want to make sure the Yellowstone autoplay doesn't become a surprise.

The "it's just cowboys" conversation is real. Kids see the aesthetic — horses, mountains, cowboy hats — and genuinely don't understand why they can't watch. Having a simple "this show has adult stuff in it, like [X]" conversation is more effective than just "you can't watch this."

Older teens are a judgment call. A 16-year-old watching Yellowstone with context and conversation is a very different situation than a 12-year-old stumbling onto it. Talk to your teen about mature TV content before it becomes an issue.

If your family is into the national parks aesthetic — and honestly, who isn't, those landscapes are incredible — this is a great hook for some real conversations:

Q: Is Yellowstone appropriate for teenagers?

Yellowstone is rated TV-MA and contains graphic violence, explicit sexual content, and heavy language throughout. Most parents find it appropriate only for 16+ at the earliest, and even then it's worth watching an episode first and deciding together.

Q: What national park shows are actually okay for kids?

America's National Parks on Disney+, Ken Burns: The National Parks, and Free Solo (ages 10+) are the standouts. The dramatic/fictional content set in national parks is almost uniformly adult territory.

Q: Can my 14-year-old watch 1883?

1883 is TV-MA with significant violence including some genuinely traumatic sequences. It's a judgment call for 15-16 year olds depending on your kid, but 14 is probably too young for most families. The violence is not gratuitous for shock value — it's historically grounded — but it's still a lot.

Q: Why does every prestige drama seem to be set in Wyoming or Montana?

Honestly, it's a combination of tax incentives, the sheer visual drama of the landscape, and the narrative freedom that comes with setting a story somewhere that feels removed from civilization's usual rules. Learn more about how location shapes storytelling — it's actually a great media literacy conversation.

Q: Is The White Lotus okay for a mature 16-year-old?

The White Lotus is TV-MA with explicit sexual content, drug use, and some disturbing themes. A mature 16-17 year old could handle it, and there's genuinely interesting social commentary to discuss — but watch it yourself first and decide if you want to watch it together or separately.

The national parks are having a serious pop culture moment, and the content inspired by them ranges from genuinely transcendent family documentary to "definitely not what I expected when I sat down with my kid." The good news is that the actually family-friendly content in this space — the documentaries, the nature series — is excellent. The dramatic stuff is excellent too, just for a very different audience.

Know what you're putting on. The mountains will still be beautiful either way.

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