Taylor Sheridan began his career as an actor but shot to fame as a writer with TV shows such as Yellowstone and Tulsa King, and movies such as Sicario and Wind River. Sheridan’s works are known for their explorations of rural American life and often see a clash between traditional American life and modernity.
One of the primary examples of this school of thought is the Kevin Costner starrer Yellowstone. The show has garnered a dedicated fan following and constantly has a massive viewership, despite not impressing critics. Sheridan reportedly mentioned that he knows that critics hate his show as there is ‘no plot’ in it and is designed to be hated.
Taylor Sheridan Opens Up About Yellowstone’s Success
Taylor Sheridan transitioned from an acting career to a screenwriting career after featuring in shows such as Sons of Anarchy and Veronica Mars. Sheridan reportedly tapped into his childhood in the rural parts of the USA and set Yellowstone in Montana and Livingston. He reportedly pitched the show to HBO, which passed on and it was eventually greenlit by Paramount.
Yellowstone has been a huge hit among viewers and has increased its viewership with each season. Its season 5 premiere reportedly broke the record for the highest view count for a scripted TV show of 2022, with 12.1 million viewers tuning in to watch the Kevin Costner starring Western’s season premiere (via THR).
Despite enjoying the success from its audience, the show has not managed to impress critics. Many reviewers have reportedly criticized the show’s writing and its stripped-down premise of a land battle. However, Taylor Sheridan reportedly agreed with the hate received by critics and said that Yellowstone did not have a proper plot.
He reportedly addressed the issue in The Joe Rogan Experience podcast,
“It has no plot, really. In that, I have a lot of opportunities to poke fun, but also kind of point out different points of view, and kind of really study a way of life and a world. There’s a lot of defiance in the way I do it…It’s not surprising that critics hate it because it’s designed for them to hate.”
He also addressed the analytical articles written by various publications about the show’s success, especially its success in the so-called Red States of the USA.
Taylor Sheridan Denies Yellowstone As A ‘Red-State’ Drama
Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone has been regarded as a celebration and a tribute to the old American way of life, especially in the rural parts of the country. Though the show bears similarities with other power-struggle-oriented shows such as Succession, the Western does not seem to get the same amount of critical and awards recognition as the show.
Many have called the show a ‘red state drama’ and have labeled it as a show that appeals to the conservative crowd of the country. The New York Times also named the Kevin Costner starrer as a ‘conservative fantasy’. However, Taylor Sheridan reportedly disagreed with such labels and mentioned to The Atlantic that the show was far from being a conservative drama,
“They refer to it as ‘the conservative show’ or ‘the Republican show’ or ‘the red-state Game of Thrones’. And I just sit back laughing. I’m like, ‘Really?’ The show’s talking about the displacement of Native Americans and the way Native American women were treated and about corporate greed and the gentrification of the West, and land-grabbing. That’s a red-state show?”
Though Sheridan agreed that much of its artifacts and milieu consists of elements that can be labeled as typical red state elements, the show itself has a different ideology that could not be bifurcated in simple terms.
Yellowstone is streaming on Peacock and the Paramount Network.
