‘I’m a premium product maker’: ‘Yellowstone’ creator Taylor Sheridan on his high-budget shows
If cost-cutting media outfits want to hitch their ride to prolific hit-making “Yellowstone” creator Taylor Sheridan, they need to understand one thing right out of the gate: He only lives in the world of top-shelf showmaking.
So don’t complain if the shoot is over budget. Go cut the budget of a lesser-known showrunner who doesn’t have Sheridan’s knack for capturing the attention of the TV-watching universe.
“I mean, they cost what they cost. And it’s a constant battle, right,” Sheridan said at Yahoo Finance Invest. “And they could argue — I’m sure that they would — that if we could have made ‘Landman’ for $50 million less, they could have made $50 million more. But I disagree because now the product isn’t as valuable. And so you have less viewers. So it costs less, but you made less.”
Sheridan added, “I’m a premium product maker. I only know how to do it one way. I learned how to direct and produce making movies. So I only know how to do that. I don’t know how to make a TV show, and I’m not trying to learn. I want ’em to look like movies.”
After spending years as a struggling character actor and reaching success in iconic shows like “Sons of Anarchy,” Sheridan pivoted to screenwriting in his forties and quickly established himself as a premier chronicler of the modern American frontier.
His career reached unprecedented heights when he co-created “Yellowstone,” turning the neo-Western drama into a ratings juggernaut for Paramount that evolved into a sprawling multi-series television empire.
Along with “1883” and “1923,” Sheridan has also created “CIA,” the military drama “Lioness,” and the oil-rich boomtown story “Landman.”
All of these series feel like movies from when the opening credits roll. That comes at a high cost, which at times has found Sheridan at odds with the bean counters at the likes of Paramount.
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Leveraging the singular cultural footprint of his programming universe, he subsequently rocked the <a href="https://comicvibe.com/alliance-entertainment-accelerates-collectibles-growth-rate/” title=”Alliance Entertainment Accelerates Collectibles Growth Rate”>entertainment landscape by striking a blockbuster deal with NBCUniversal in late 2025.
The deal will start in 2029 and will reportedly see Sheridan create some 20 new shows. Overall deal value: a reported $1 billion.
Asked how he has been able to continue his big-budget productions in the age of media cost-cutting, Sheridan has a very simple answer.
“I just don’t call them back,” Sheridan said.
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