“That’s what I find so intriguing about it”: Taylor Sheridan Smartly Evaded the MCU Problem With Yellowstone Despite Creating a Shared Universe for the Duttons

Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone has certainly turned many heads. One would assume a series set in a Western setting about family and land would get much attention, however, this show managed to impress many of its viewers. While on the surface its plot seems simple, it has a way of presenting very real characters in realistic situations, which has certainly helped with the show’s success.

So much so, that it has created a world of its own. There have been many spin-off projects that have been announced with the series’ affluence. When it comes to building a universe, a lot can go wrong. The MCU is the perfect example of this, amid all of its shortcomings.

However, Sheridan mentioned a key detail about the spin-off that can save them from a lot of future problems.

Yellowstone Spin-Offs Are Already Doing Something Right

Taylor Sheridan gave an interview with Deadline where he talked about the spin-offs of the iconic Western series, Yellowstone. He specifically talked about how, when he was writing the second 1883, he kept hitting walls. He was finding it difficult to figure out where he wanted to take the story after a majority of the characters died at the end of the first season. However, he soon came to a realization.

Everyone is dead. I don’t know how to write the next season of this damn thing [1883] but I kept hunting history, and I kept finding things.

The executive producer realized that the Dutton family was full of potential, regardless of which generation or period he picked. This opened a new can of worms for him, as he understood just how many stories he could tell.

However, there was one thing that the creator wanted to factor in when he was making these spin-offs.

It’s the one great thing about the Dutton family; you can skip generations and put them in all these unique situations, and it has nothing to do with Yellowstone, nothing to do with 1883 and yet it’s tethered completely to them, but they’re all standalones. That’s what I find so intriguing about it.

Sheridan mentioned that he enjoyed the fact that these shows could exist on their own. While there were some connections here and there between the shows, one did not need to watch all to watch one. Making standard shows added intrigue to the entire project for the producer.

Taylor Sheridan Avoids Marvel’s Biggest Mistake

While Taylor Sheridan may have made all the shows standalone for the sake of professional satisfaction, a pattern followed by the Marvel Cinematic Universe shows that such an approach may be the smarter one. For its entire duration, Marvel has released project after project, which are all interconnected.

While such an approach was fine during its early release, fans have started to find it quite annoying now, over 15 years, 33 films, and 10 shows later. Many have voiced that watching all of these projects just to understand what is happening in one movie can get quite tedious.

Sheridan seems to have avoided this by making all of the shows standalone. One does not need to watch everything to understand what is going on in the series, and fans do not need to follow a specific watch order. It is safe to say that Yellowstone’s viewers appreciate such an approach.

Yellowstone is available for streaming on Peacock.