Taylor Sheridan, who created an incredibly successful TV empire with hit shows such as Yellowstone and Landman, has also faced his fair share of ups and downs off screen.
Sheridan’s career started with him acting in front of the camera before pivoting to screenwriting and producing his own projects. His big break came when he worked on Sicario, Hell or High Water and Wind River. From there, the self-proclaimed cowboy created Yellowstone for Paramount Network, which starred Kevin Costner as the patriarch of a fictional family of ranchers in Montana.
“So I don’t know that it’s flattering [how invested Paramount is], because I don’t think they’re doing it because ‘Yellowstone’ is good,” Sheridan told Variety in 2022. “They’re doing it because 15 million people watch it. And they’re like: ‘A lot of people watch Westerns. Let’s make Westerns.’”
At the time, Sheridan reflected on showcasing the American experience.
“Our job as artists is to hold a mirror up to the world and let people see the reflection, to teach them about a part of life and human experience that they may not be aware of,” he continued. “Whenever we’re ignorant of something, then typically we fear it, or we judge it, or we dislike it. And it’s the job of all artists, I think, to try and find these little pockets of the world and show some humanity.”
Yellowstone ultimately evolved into a franchise with seven spinoffs in various stages of development. Sheridan took it one step further with shows not in the Yellowstone universe: Mayor of Kingstown, Tulsa King, Lawmen: Bass Reeves, Lioness, Landman and The Road.
Despite the continued professional success, Sheridan made headlines for drama behind the scenes including alleged issues with stars of his shows, his approach when it comes to developing each project and more.
Keep scrolling for Sheridan’s ups and downs:
Taylor Sheridan’s Professional Success Before — And After — ‘Yellowstone’
Sheridan got his start as an actor with roles on Veronica Mars and Sons of Anarchy. He went on to write scripts for movies such as Sicario, Hell or High Water and Wind River. He transitioned to the small screen with Yellowstone, which premiered in 2017 and introduced viewers to the fictional Dutton family, who own the largest ranch in Montana.
Since Yellowstone became a hit series, spinoffs such as 1883 and 1923 were picked up by the network. Sheridan previously discussed the dedication that goes into telling authentic stories on screen.
“Because it is so hard, physically, on the actors, on the crew, I feel like the shots look earned. And because Paramount trusts me and gives me the time to go shoot 10 to 14 days for a television episode, we can treat it like a movie, and it looks like a movie,” he told Deadline in January 2022. “We can take the time to rehearse it and light it and build these set pieces. And if I call them and say, ‘I need two helicopters in one day,’ they just go, ‘Alright.’”
He added: “At the end of the day, to go to some of these locations where most people have never been, where you’re opening up a new world, and all of these places or characters in the story, to me, it’s fascinating.”
Taylor Sheridan’s Marriage to Nicole Muirbrook
The prolific producer has been married to Muirbrook since 2013. The couple, who share a son, reside in Texas and have offered glimpses at their romance on social media. In honor of their seventh wedding anniversary, Muirbrook gushed about their relationship.
“To the man I get to do life with. Thank you for the countless smiles, crazy adventures, and all the things in between,” she wrote via Instagram in 2020. “I couldn’t ask for a better husband or father to our son. Happy anniversary baby. I love you.”
Taylor Sheridan Dealing With the Decline of ‘Yellowstone’
Paramount confirmed in 2023 that Yellowstone would be coming to an end — for good — at the end of season 5. This stemmed from lead Kevin Costner not returning for the second half of the final season to shift his focus to directing and acting in Horizon: An American Saga.
Followers of the show were familiar with speculation that Costner and Sheridan had a falling out over the direction of the show. Sheridan, for his part, slammed claims he was at odds with Costner.
“My opinion of Kevin as an actor hasn’t altered,” Sheridan told The Hollywood Reporter in 2023. “His creation of John Dutton is symbolic and powerful … and I’ve never had an issue with Kevin that he and I couldn’t work out on the phone.”
Sheridan also slammed a report that claimed he told Costner to “stick to acting.”
“I never had that conversation with Kevin,” Sheridan said. “There was a time in season 2 when he was very upset and said the character wasn’t going in the direction he wanted. … Kevin felt season 2 was deviating from that, and I don’t know that he was wrong. In season 3, we steered back into it. And I recall him winning a Golden Globe last year for his performance, so I think it’s working.”
At the time, Sheridan hinted that he was now on different terms with Costner.
“Once lawyers get involved, then people don’t get to talk to each other and start saying things that aren’t true and attempt to shift blame,” he noted. “He took a lot of this on the chin and I don’t know that anyone deserves it. [Horizon] seems to be a great priority to him and he wants to shift focus. I sure hope [the movie is] worth it — and that it’s a good one.”
Taylor Sheridan’s Journey to Becoming a Ranch Owner
After previously living in his wife’s native Utah, Sheridan and Muirbrook relocated to Texas.
“We were living in Park City, and Taylor really didn’t like the snow,” Muirbrook said in an interview with Cowgirl Magazine in 2021. “So, he rolled over one morning and said, ‘Honey, we’re getting the hell out of here,’ and I’m like ‘Where are we going?’ ‘We’re going to go to Texas.’”
The pair currently own two Texas ranches: the Bosque Ranch and the 6666 Ranch a.k.a the Four Sixes. Sheridan has used both locations as the backdrop for Yellowstone and its subsequent spinoffs.
“We have 12 dogs, some chickens, and cats because I love to rescue,” Muirbrook added in 2021. “It’s nice to have the space to do that.”
Taylor Sheridan Being Honored
In 2021, Sheridan was inducted into the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame and three years later he was inducted into the Texas Business Hall of Fame.
Taylor Sheridan’s Comments About MMIW Law
After making Wind River, Sheridan credited the film with the 2022 reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), which “expand[ed] special criminal jurisdiction of Tribal courts to cover non-Native perpetrators of sexual assault, child abuse, stalking, sex trafficking and assaults on tribal law enforcement officers on tribal lands.”
Sheridan spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about the movie’s alleged impact.
“[The film] actually changed a law, where you can now be prosecuted if you’re a U.S. citizen for committing rape on an Indian reservation, and there’s now a database for [Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, or MMIW],” he claimed in 2023. “That law had a profound impact. All social change begins with the artist, and that’s the responsibility you have.”
Attorney Mary Kathryn Nagle, who is a member of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, slammed Sheridan’s comments.
“Sheridan’s attempt to take credit for the passage of VAWA is gross and completely discredits years of tireless advocacy from the Native community,” she said in a statement. “His movie Wind River perpetuates the myth that the FBI investigates MMIW cases. They do not. Sheridan should be apologizing, not taking credit for a victory secured by Indian Country advocates and led by Native women.”
Taylor Sheridan’s Surprising Views About Collaborating on His Writing
Sheridan was also asked by THR in 2023 about taking sole credit — or a co byline — on every episode of Yellowstone and later some of his other TV shows.
“I decided that I am going to tell my stories my way, period,” he said amid the WGA strike. “I don’t really give a s*** what a line producer or some physical production person thinks.”
Taylor Sheridan’s Falling Out With Kevin Costner
Reports originally claimed Costner’s strict schedule demands caused issues behind the scenes that resulted in his exit from Yellowstone. Sheridan himself hinted at a breakdown in communication with Costner.
The actor, meanwhile, told Deadline in 2024 that he would have been happy to return for the second half of Yellowstone’s final season — if the scripts had been ready. “I was straight up with [Sheridan], and he said what we would do, and I believed him, and we didn’t get there,” he said.
Taylor Sheridan’s Lawsuit Against Yellowstone’s Cole Hauser
Cole Hauser, Taylor Sheridan Daniele Venturelli/WireImage;Greg Doherty/Getty Images (2) for Wynn Las Vegas
Us Weekly confirmed in December 2023 that Sheridan’s Bosque Ranch filed a lawsuit against Hauser’s coffee company, Free Rein, for trademark infringement, unfair competition and false advertising.
The lawsuit alleged that Hauser’s coffee brand has a logo which seems similar to Sheridan’s “B and R” design for his ranch. Sheridan claimed that Free Rein is “confusingly similar” to his brand and “constitutes false and misleading descriptions of fact that are likely to cause confusion or to cause mistake” as to which goods are associated with Bosque Ranch, which was founded nearly 20 years ago.
Sheridan went on to point out that Bosque Ranch publicly announced a new craft coffee centered around the “cowboy way of life” in June 2023. The screenwriter questioned the timing of Hauser’s brand, which was launched “a little over three months” later. According to the legal paperwork, Hauser, who played Rip on Yellowstone, did “not receive permission or authorization” from Sheridan.
The filing requested that Hauser’s company stop using the Free Rein brand and “destroy all products, marketing and promotional materials” that relate to their brand. Bosque Ranch also noted that they expect Free Rein to pay “compensatory damages” because Free Rein is “irreparably damaging” Sheridan’s business.
Hauser didn’t file a response to the lawsuit and one month later, Sheridan’s legal team requested the suit be dismissed.
Taylor Sheridan’s Shocking Exit From Paramount
News broke in October 2025 that Sheridan closed a film and TV deal with NBCUniversal. The five-year overall deal for film, TV and streaming is set to begin January 1, 2029, after Sheridan’s TV deal with Paramount — which goes through 2028 — officially ends.
Sheridan’s collaborator and producing partner David Glasser and his 101 Studios also signed a first-look film and TV deal with NBCUniversal, which is set to begin in early 2026 after obligations to Paramount are fulfilled.
Paramount will retain the rights to Yellowstone and the other franchises Sheridan created under his deal with the company, so he is expected to create brand new IP for NBCUniversal. Sheridan’s move comes after Paramount’s recent merger with Skydance. The change led to the exit of Paramount Global co-CEO Chris McCarthy, who worked closely with Sheridan.
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