While he might be the king of cowboy culture with Yellowstone, Taylor Sheridan has a whole army of other TV shows and movies that prove he’s one of the best masters of drama around.
Sheridan is arguably one of the most powerful figures in television right now. His hands are on the reins of an epic cowboy kingdom, from the big finale in Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2 to the plethora of Yellowstone spinoffs.
However, he’s not a one-trick pony. Neo-Western storytelling may be his hay and water, but his writing and directing credits are wide-reaching.
From some of the best Westerns on the big screen, to crafting a bunch of the best TV shows around, Sheridan is hot property. So, let’s take a look at everything he’s done.
Taylor Sheridan movies
Vile (2011)
Vile is technically Taylor Sheridan’s directorial debut — though he disagrees — and unlike the rest of his oeuvre, it’s an extraordinarily brutal, torture-porn horror movie. It follows a group of people who are kidnapped, forced to inflict pain on each other in order to escape.
He told Rotten Tomatoes in 2017: “I would say [Wind River] is my feature debut. A friend of mine raised… $20,000 or something, cast his buddies, and wrote this bad horror movie that I told him not to direct.
“He was going to direct and produce it, and he started and freaked out. He called and said, ‘Can you help me?’ I said, ‘Yeah, I’ll try.’ I kind of kept the ship pointed straight, and they went off and edited, and did what they did.
“I think it’s generous to call me the director. I think he was trying to say thank you, in some way. It was an excellent opportunity to point a camera and learn some lessons that actually benefited me on Wind River.”
Sicario (2015)
Sicario, written by Taylor Sheridan, is an all-star crime thriller directed by Denis Villeneuve. It follows Kate Mercer (Emily Blunt), an FBI agent recruited by a government task force to flush out Mexican drug lords operating at the US border.
The cast also includes Daniel Kaluuya, Josh Brolin, Benicio del Toro, and a cameo from John Bernthal. It’s quite literally one of the best movies of the last decade, too, and a must-watch in our eyes.
Hell or High Water (2016)
Hell or High Water, written by Taylor Sheridan, is a neo-western heist drama directed by David Mackenzie. The story sees two brothers (Chris Pine and Ben Foster) rob banks in an effort to save their family ranch. When they are pursued by two Texas Rangers (Jeff Bridges and Gil Birmingham), things get a little messy.
This is another bona fide hit from the pen of Sheridan. Hell or High Water was even nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Original Screenplay.
Wind River (2017)
Wind River is written and directed by Taylor Sheridan. The thriller follows two agents (Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen) in their efforts to solve a brutal murder on the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming.
It’s yet another sharply written, superbly executed movie from Sheridan. We highly recommend you watch Wind River as part of a loose trilogy with Sicario and Hell or High Water.
Sicario: Day of the Soldado (2018)
Sicario: Day of the Soldado is written and helmed by Taylor Sheridan, who took on directing duties after Denis Villeneuve opted not to return for the sequel. Blunt didn’t return, either, with the film instead following Josh Brolin and Benicio del Toro’s characters amid drug cartels smuggling terrorists across the border.
Sadly, Sicario 2 is not as good as its predecessor, though that’s a high standard to live up to. It’s a perfectly solid thriller movie in its own right, and the double-act of Brolin and del Toro will always be fun to watch.
Without Remorse (2021)
Taylor Sheridan was tapped by Paramount to rewrite Without Remorse, Michael B. Jordan’s debut as John Clark in the (short-lived) Tom Clancy cinematic universe.
In an interview with CinemaBlend, director Stefano Sollima explained how Sheridan’s contributions impacted the movie. “It changed a lot because when I came on board, we had a script that was written by Shawn Ryan. Do you remember, the creator of The Shield, and it was written in the early ’90s,” he said.
“Of course I pitched my vision that was pretty radical because I wanted to modernize the story. But, it wasn’t easy. And then I already worked with Taylor Sheridan and I knew that he was the perfect writer because… we have a lot of common taste in how to pay attention to the psychological evolution of a character and to be really accurate in the geopolitical description. So we changed it a lot, and our story it’s different from the book.”
Those Who Wish Me Dead (2021)
Those Who Wish Me Dead marked Taylor Sheridan’s second movie as a writer-director. The movie stars Angelina Jolie as a smokejumper who helps a young boy flee from assassins who killed his father.
Similar to Sicario 2, Those Who Wish Me Dead is absolutely fine without excelling in any particular area. It has a fairly interesting story, Jolie and Bernthal have a good screen presence, but it’s simply a bit forgettable.
Taylor Sheridan TV shows
Yellowstone (2018-2024)
Yellowstone is the cornerstone of Taylor Sheridan’s career, premiering in 2018 and becoming the unlikely launchpad for a whole franchise. The Western show primarily follows John Dutton (Kevin Costner), the patriarch of a powerful rancher family in Montana, and the drama that threatens to engulf them.
The final batch of Yellowstone episodes will wrap the main timeline up. However, the Dutton family tree has many branches, and there’s lots more to come from these cowboys, we’re sure. (For instance, if we’re to believe those Yellowstone Season 6 rumors about Beth and Rip, then it might not be the end after all.)
The Last Cowboy (2019-present)
Unlike Sheridan’s other work, The Last Cowboy is a reality series chronicling the elite western competition of horse reining. Sheridan rounds up eight men and women to show off their best skills on a horse, with a $1 million prize up for grabs.
Mayor of Kingstown (2021-present)
Mayor of Kingstown, created by Taylor Sheridan and Hugh Dillon, first premiered in 2021. It stars Jeremy Renner as Mike McLusky, a former inmate of the titular Michigan town’s prison who becomes its unofficial “mayor”, brokering peace and deals between criminals and cops.
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If you’re a fan, we’ve got a breakdown of all the Mayor of Kingstown filming locations.
1883 (2021)
1883 is the first of Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone prequels, following the Dutton family as they migrate from Texas through the Great Plains to find a new life in Montana. Despite being one of his finest creations, we’ll never see 1883 Season 2, as this was always intended as a limited series.
Tulsa King (2022-present)
Tulsa King was created by Taylor Sheridan but that’s as far as his involvement goes on this one. The series follows Sylvester Stallone’s Dwight “The General” Manfredi, a mafia capo who emerges from prison after a 25-year sentence and heads to Tulsa to build a new crew. Season 2 is in full swing, so don’t forget to check out the Tulsa King filming locations.
1923 (2022-present)
1923 is Taylor Sheridan’s second Yellowstone spinoff, catching up with the Duttons in the early 20th century. The show pits them against Western expansion, prohibition, and the Great Depression. The 1923 cast includes mega-stars Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren.
Local news outlets began reporting that Yellowstone 1923 Season 2 had begun filming from July 2024, so it looks as though things may be on track, though we’re still eagerly awaiting news on a release date.
Special Ops: Lioness (2023-present)
Special Ops: Lioness is Taylor Sheridan’s most recent series, on which he serves as its creator and showrunner.
Said to be inspired by “an actual US Military program”, it “follows the life of Joe while she attempts to balance her personal and professional life as the tip of the CIA’s spear in the war on terror.”
“The Lioness Program, overseen by Kaitlyn Meade and Byron Westfield, enlists an aggressive Marine Raider named Cruz to operate undercover alongside Joe among the power brokers of State terrorism in the CIA’s efforts to thwart the next 9/11.”
Thankfully, Lioness Season 2 has officially been confirmed, so there’s more heart-pounding spy action on the way.
What else has Taylor Sheridan worked on?
Taylor Sheridan was an actor before kickstarting his creative path, playing a recurring role in Sons of Anarchy.
He played Deputy Chief David Hale in the show, but he met a grisly end (as most characters in that series do). He also plays the recurring role of Travis Wheatley in Yellowstone, a horse seller and showman.
Aside from this, Sheridan has also appeared in movies like White Rush and 12 Strong. He’s also popped up in the Star Trek timeline for one episode of Enterprise, and had a recurring role in Veronica Mars.
He also had a big hand in bringing Lawmen: Bass Reeves to life as a producer. Though technically not connected to Yellowstone, we do hope to see a Bass Reeves Season 2 at some point.
Upcoming Taylor Sheridan projects
Alongside further seasons for 1923, Lioness: Special Ops, and Tulsa King, Taylor Sheridan has a number of projects in development, including three Yellowstone spinoffs and a drama about the oil industry.
Landman (November 2024)
Away from cowboys, Sheridan is working on a show called Landman. It’ll star Jon Hamm, Demi Moore, and Billy Bob Thornton, and will be released in November 2024. It remains to be seen just how involved Sheridan will be with this one, though he’s down as creator and executive producer at the moment.
Landman will explore the Norris family’s journey through the troublesome world of the oil rig industry in West Texas.
Yellowstone 1944 (TBC)
Yellowstone 1944 is the third Yellowstone prequel to come in the franchise. Taking place not long after the events of 1923, it’ll likely pick-up where 1923 Season 2 leaves off. As such, we expect to see Spencer, Alexandra, Jack, and Liz Dutton run the family ranch, raising the next generation of Duttons.
Above all, this should likely answer the question of John Dutton II’s parentage, since this has been one of the biggest questions surrounding the Dutton family tree.
The Madison (TBC)
At the same time 1944 was announced, a sequel series, Yellowstone 2024, was also revealed to be in development. This is the series everyone was speculating about, since names like Matthew McConaughey and Michelle Pfeiffer were attached. In May 2024, it was also announced that Kelly Reilly, Cole Hauser, and Luke Grimes would also be reprising their roles from Yellowstone.
However, in August 2024, things changed direction. It was reported that Yellowstone 2024 would actually be titled The Madison, and confirmed that Michelle Pfeiffer would be the series lead. Patrick J. Adams and Matthew Fox were also confirmed to be joining.
As described by Paramount, the series “is a heartfelt study of grief and human connection,” and follows a New York City family in the Madison River valley of central Montana. So, it looks as though this isn’t Taylor Sheridan’s sneaky way of continuing Yellowstone, after all.
6666 (TBC)
6666 has been in development for quite some time, and is set to focus on the famous Texas ranch of the same name. No cast has been confirmed, but considering Yellowstone’s Jimmy decided to live on the 6666 ranch with his new girlfriend (and future wife) the last time we saw him, it’s looking very likely that the new series could center around him.
The 6666 ranch is a major piece of Sheridan lore, since the Yellowstone creator actually owns the property in real life.
For more from the Duttons, check out the Yellowstone soundtrack or our list of the best Yellowstone deaths. You can also learn more about Taylor Sheridan and Kevin Costner’s feud, or find out how to watch every Kevin Costner Western.