Taylor Sheridan built one of television’s biggest franchises after a pay dispute on “Sons of Anarchy” convinced him that his future wasn’t in acting.
Sheridan, 56, discussed the career-changing experience during the June 30 episode of “The Howard Stern Show.” The “Yellowstone” creator called the experience the “worst beating” he took in Hollywood, but also the “greatest gift” because it pushed him toward writing.
Nearly two decades later, Sheridan has created or worked on a growing list of television hits, including “Yellowstone,” “1883,” “1923,” “Mayor of Kingstown,” “Tulsa King,” “Lawmen: Bass Reeves,” “Lioness,” “Landman,” “Marshals” and “The Madison.”
Now, Sheridan is preparing to leave Paramount for NBCUniversal under a deal valued at approximately $1 billion.
Taylor Sheridan Quit ‘Sons of Anarchy’ After $15,000-Per-Episode Offer
Before becoming a writer and producer, Sheridan spent years working as a television actor. His credits included “Walker, Texas Ranger,” “NYPD Blue,” “CSI” and “Veronica Mars.”
He landed the role of Deputy David Hale on “Sons of Anarchy” in 2008. Despite the show’s success, Sheridan told Howard Stern that he wasn’t making enough money to support himself solely through acting.
“It’s a very successful cable show. I’m an actor on this show making scale,” Sheridan said.
Sheridan recalled appearing alongside Charlie Hunnam on the show’s DVD cover but still needing another job.
“And I literally would leave the set of that show and go to my other job, cause I didn’t make enough on that show to pay my rent and live,” he said. “So, after season 2, I told them, ‘Guys, I’m not coming back and doing this again for this price. I’m just not doing it.’”
Sheridan said other supporting actors made about $20,000 per episode. He wasn’t asking for the salaries earned by stars including Hunnam, Ron Perlman and Katey Sagal. Instead, he wanted comparable pay to the show’s other regular performers.
The studio offered him $15,000 per episode with 10 guaranteed episodes.
“I do the math on it, and I said, ‘That’s not a raise,’” Sheridan recalled.
The ‘Yellowstone’ Creator Says Hollywood Told Him He Was ‘Replaceable’
The response Sheridan’s attorney received when attempting to negotiate ultimately changed the trajectory of his career.
“My attorney responded to this business affairs guy,” Sheridan told Stern. “He said, ‘Look, I’ve got kids on (expletive) cooking shows on YouTube that make more than that.’”
According to Sheridan, the executive responded, “Well, then the guy should go get a cooking show on YouTube. We just don’t have to pay him because there’s 50 of that dude. I can recast that guy tomorrow.”
Sheridan said the exchange made him realize he was “eminently replaceable” as an actor.
“I can’t take this job and tell my son, ‘Son, you can be anything you want to be, but I’m going to miss your soccer game cause I’ve got a Windex audition,’” Sheridan recalled.
“So, I quit the show,” he continued. “I told him, I said, ‘Look, whether you want to call it pride or ego or integrity, I don’t know what you call it, but I just realized I’ve maxed out what I can do as an actor in this industry. So, I’m not going to try to do it anymore.’”
“Sons of Anarchy” killed off Sheridan’s character at the beginning of season 3.
Sheridan Turned to Writing After ‘Sons of Anarchy’ Exit
Sheridan decided that the people with real power in Hollywood were the ones telling the stories, so he began creating his own.
He directed the 2011 movie “Vile” before writing the 2015 thriller “Sicario,” starring Emily Blunt, Benicio del Toro and Josh Brolin.
Sheridan followed it with “Hell or High Water,” starring Jeff Bridges, Chris Pine, Ben Foster and Gil Birmingham. The screenplay earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay.
He then wrote and directed “Wind River,” starring Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen.
Sheridan told The Hollywood Reporter in 2023 that he eventually accepted his limitations as an actor.
“I was a fair actor, but that’s all I was ever going to be,” Sheridan said. “Hollywood will tell you what you’re supposed to do, if you listen. If you’re banging your head against the wall for 20 years trying to be an actor, maybe you shouldn’t be an actor.”
Writing produced a much different reaction.
“But the first thing I ever wrote [the pilot for ‘Mayor of Kingstown’ in 2011] got me meetings at every major network, at every agency,” he said. “I had multiple people trying to buy it.”
‘Yellowstone’ Turned Taylor Sheridan Into a TV Powerhouse
“Yellowstone” debuted on Paramount Network in 2018 and became a ratings hit, launching a television universe that included prequels “1883” and “1923.”
Sheridan expanded beyond the Dutton family with “Mayor of Kingstown,” “Tulsa King,” “Lawmen: Bass Reeves,” “Lioness” and “Landman.” His television slate has since expanded with “Marshals” and “The Madison.”
“People couldn’t understand how a linear cable channel that no one can even find suddenly had the biggest show on television,” Sheridan told THR. “Because it has cowboys and this is supposed to be a dead genre, right? Of course, that’s not what the show is really about; that’s just the sugar on the pill.”
Sheridan’s projects have also attracted established Hollywood names, including Harrison Ford, Helen Mirren, Demi Moore, Michelle Pfeiffer, Sylvester Stallone, Zoe Saldaña and Billy Bob Thornton.
Jill Wagner, who co-created “Lioness” with her husband, David Lemanowicz, and stars as Bobby, recently described Sheridan’s approach to working with people he trusts.
“He’s not necessarily always nice. He’s fair and if he tells you he’s going to do something, he does it. And that’s rare in the industry,” Wagner told Decider.
Wagner also credited Sheridan with including her throughout the process of making the series.
“He didn’t, and he’s included me in every step along the way,” she said of the possibility that Sheridan could have taken the concept and developed it without her. “He wants me to learn. And I think that’s incredible. And I also know he’s very loyal to his friends and the people he works with.”
