The volatile world of Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone has left its audience twisting and turning over what new surprise lurks in the shadows. Every season arrives with an overstuffed burden of family drama and brutal politics that never fail to entertain or enslave the viewers to an adrenaline-driven rollercoaster. But all of it would have never seen the light of day considering the rocky start that the creator had during his initial pitch at HBO.
Fortunately, an act of good faith on the part of an executive who believed in his vision set the director down the path of getting Yellowstone to where it is now. Although very few artists have the luxury of enjoying a smooth sailing ride to greatness in their prime, Sheridan proved how sheer will and a stroke of good timing can help achieve one’s dreams, however rough the journey may be.
Taylor Sheridan Struggled to Get Yellowstone on the Air
Known for his brash and straight-to-the-point attitude, Taylor Sheridan‘s confidence in his own talent is what raised him to the highest rungs of Hollywood’s creative ladder and made him one of the most desirable writer-directors of modern times. However, the industry is fueled by studio and network executives who hold the power to green-light whichever projects they deem fit for their audience.
As such, Sheridan’s creative vision could only take him so far before he stumbled at HBO’s door after his Yellowstone script got put under the surgical scalpel of the studio executives. The harassment of getting his show made (including getting the veteran actor, Robert Redford to come out of retirement only to dump him at HBO’s whim) finally had Yellowstone creator meet the Vice President of the studio to sort things out.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Sheridan revealed that the V.P. was quick to turn him down saying:
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 Montana]. It should be a park or something.
As the V.P. would come to realize later, undercutting Taylor Sheridan and dismissing his Yellowstone script would become one of the greatest losses incurred by the network, as is evident by the show’s legacy at Paramount.
Taylor Sheridan Gets His Revenge on HBO
Taylor Sheridan is one of the few people whose talent shines bright when his creativity is allowed to flow freely. Without studio execs constantly breathing down his neck or suggesting “notes” on how to make a perfectly fine script better, Sheridan’s Yellowstone turned out exactly how he envisioned it.
To HBO’s dismay, an IP (with four spin-off shows) that could have been theirs now not only earned a pretty penny for Paramount but also became the biggest and most unprecedented show on the planet along with a multitude of Emmys, Golden Globes, and SAG Award nominations. Sheridan did not stop there and has churned out 3 other original series (Mayor of Kingstown, Tulsa King, and Special Ops: Lioness) with 3 more on the way (6666, Landman, and Empire of the Summer Moon).
When a call from the HBO office then reached Taylor Sheridan to congratulate him on his unbridled success, the adulation came attached with a pitch for a new family drama. To Sheridan’s credit, he coolly wrote back “Great idea. It sounds just like Yellowstone.” And the rest, as they say, is history.