"What it takes to run a ranch" - When Taylor Sheridan opened up about how he created the entire world of Yellowstone

Taylor Sheridan is widely known as the creator of the hit TV series Yellowstone and its prequels, 1883 and 1923. The neo-Western drama series, Yellowstone, came to an end after five seasons, with its finale episode airing on December 15, 2024.

In an interview for the Cactus Reining Classic dated April 6, 2023, Sheridan opened up about how he approached the series. He said his goal with the show was to shed light on this way of life because many people residing in big cities have no idea where their food comes from.

"They don't know what it takes to run a ranch, and not that Yellowstone is entirely accurate—you know, it's a dramatized world—but it's rooted in truth and authenticity."

He further said:

"And it made cowboy cool again. And all of a sudden, and I would imagine ranch hands experienced it as well, everything in this space has really accelerated and taken off, and it's exciting to watch."

Yellowstone revolved around the Dutton family and its patriarch, John Dutton III's efforts to protect their ranch from threats like land grabs, developers, and political powerplays. The show features intense family dynamics and clashes over land, power, and loyalty.

Taylor Sheridan also appeared on the show as the character Travis Wheatley, a no-nonsense horse trader and expert rider. Wheatley worked with John Dutton to train horses and sell cutting horses.

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Taylor Sheridan had originally pitched Yellowstone to HBO

Before Yellowstone became a sensation on the Paramount network, it almost never saw the light of day because Sheridan had pitched it to HBO as a movie. Although they decided to change the format to a series, they kept delaying it for one reason or the other.

According to an interview Taylor Sheridan gave to The Hollywood Reporter, dated June 21, 2023, HBO's then-programming president, Michael Lombardo, was on board. However, the rest of his team was not as keen.

The one thing they all agreed on was that the patriarch had to be played by an A-lister. Sheridan pitched Kevin Costner for the role, but HBO was not convinced. They wanted Robert Redford, so Sheridan met Redford and could get him on board. Recalling what happened next, the Sicario director said:

"I call the senior vice president in charge of production and say, ‘I got him!’ ‘You got who?’ ‘Robert Redford.’ ‘What?!‘ ‘You said if I got Robert Redford, you’d greenlight the show.’ And he says — and you can’t make this sh*t up — ‘We meant a Robert Redford type.’"

At that point, Sheridan and co-creator John Linson were frustrated with the network and decided to confront the Vice President about it in a meeting.

"And [Yellowstone co-creator] John Linson finally asks: ‘Why don’t you want to make it?’ And the VP goes: ‘Look, it just feels so Middle America. We’re HBO, we’re avant-garde, we’re trendsetters. This feels like a step backward. And frankly, I’ve got to be honest, I don’t think anyone should be living out there [in rural Montana]. It should be a park or something.’"

They also took issue with the character of Beth Dutton. Ultimately, the show was called off and would have never been made if it were not for Lombardo, who gave Sheridan the script back before exiting the company. Luckily, after a few more network rejections, Paramount agreed to do it on Sheridan's terms.

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Yellowstone is available to stream on Paramount+.