Every Taylor Sheridan Project, Ranked
From Yellowstone to Sicario, this is the ultimate sendup of TV's favorite real-life cowboy.
Serious question: Is any television writer more prolific than Taylor Sheridan nowadays? We'd bet our ranch (and then some) that the answer is no. Over the past decade, the real-life cowboy, who is now 53 years old, channeled his wild, been-everywhere experience straight into his pen. The result? Well, at first, a handful of stellar films: Hell or High Water and Sicario, just to name a couple.
As the 2010s moved along, Sheridan took on a much taller task: bringing the western back to American television screens. Enter Yellowstone, which eventually became the most-watched series on cable television. Not bad for a rancher from Cranfills Gap, Texas! Of course, Sheridan didn't stop there, pumping out Special Ops: Lioness, Mayor of Kingstown, Lawmen: Bass Reeves, and Tulsa King over the next few years.
Now, with Yellowstone returning this fall, we figured it was high time to rank every Taylor Sheridan project, from worst to best. Enjoy, fellow cowfolks.
Those Who Wish Me Dead
Angelina Jolie stars as a firefighter in this 2021 box-office bomb that follows a kid running from assassins out to kill him more than it does actual firefighting. Luckily, Sheridan has so many projects that it’s OK if you’ve never even heard of this one.
Without Remorse
Critics didn't love love with Sheridan’s Tom Clancy adaptation, but Without Remorse still starred the fantastic Michael B. Jordan and Queen & Slim’s Jodie Turner-Smith. The project sat in development hell for over 20 years—the rights to the novel were bought in 1993—with production, at one time, forced to move away from including Mission: Impossible’s Christopher McQuarrie. So you can’t really blame this one on any one party.
The Last Cowboy
Only major Sheridan heads may recognize this one, but the Yellowstone creator actually started a horse-riding competition series over at CMT, titled The Last Cowboy. It’s entertaining enough for newcomers to the sport, while also providing technical details for those who are more adept. Still, the series could include a lot less talking and a lot more horse-riding.
Sicario: Day of the Soldado
Josh Brolin was the king of the world when this Sicario sequel debuted in 2018, starring in both Deadpool 2 and Avengers: Infinity War in the same year. Though Day of the Saldado didn’t hold a candle to the original film, it’s still a must-watch for Sicario fans.
Wind River
Wind River established the working relationship between Sheridan and Jeremy Renner, but it was clear from this second-career feature that the Yellowstone writer experienced a bit of a sophomore slump. The story, which follows the plight of Indigenous women in America, would be explored much more in-depth in shows like 1923.
Mayor of Kingstown
Though Jeremy Renner leads this prison drama with gusto and grit, Mayor of Kingstown just might be Sheridan’s weakest series yet. The bits with Renner brokering deals between the city’s gangs and its massive prison system are intriguing enough, but too much time is spent on the awful, physical abuse of the mayor’s femme fatale.
Tulsa King
Sylvester Stallone was the perfect choice for this bizarre mob series that sends a New York City mafioso—who is just out of prison—over to Oklahoma to kick up some extra cash for the family. Naturally, there isn’t much to do in Tulsa, but Stallone makes it work.
Hell or High Water
Sheridan’s most famous film, Hell or High Water, features Chris Pine and Ben Foster as two bank robbers on the run from Texas Rangers. He also garnered an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay—and had Yellowstone greenlit by Paramount just a year later.
1923
It’s hard to fully judge 1923, since we’re in the middle of its two-season arc, but the second Yellowstone spinoff series really brought an insane amount of content our way. Brandon Sklenar’s Spencer Dutton fights lions in Africa and braves the high seas. We also have Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren on the Dutton ranch. What an insane idea—and major kudos to Sheridan for pulling it off.
Special Ops: Lioness
Based on a real-life undercover CIA program, Lioness entered entirely new territory for Sheridan. Previously, every series followed an archetypical American cowboy operating in a different town. Lioness has the same feel of something like Mayor in Kingstown—in that it’s closely examining American policy in a way in which no one usually walks away a winner. But it was also a nice chance of pace to see Sheridan do something more female-focused.
Lawmen: Bass Reeves
David Oyelowo is fantastic in Lawmen: Bass Reeves, which is based on a real-life legendary lawman. Though the series lost its way toward the end (see: Barry Pepper’s dubiously iconic line, “What do you think about my dinosaur bones, Bass Reeves?”), Oyelowo portrayed the first Black U.S. deputy marshal of the west with the kind of respect and reverence that the long-forgotten hero deserved.
Sicario
The first film to get Taylor Sheridan in the room as one of the most in-demand writers of his time, Sicario follows Josh Brolin as a CIA officer who teams up with an FBI agent (Emily Blunt) and a vengeful assassin (Benicio del Toro) to apprehend a dangerous Sonora Cartel lieutenant.
1883
Oh, you want cowboys? I’ll give you cowboys. Hell, Sheridan even gave us cowboy numero uno Sam Elliott to lead off this Yellowstone limited series, alongside country stars Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. Following the earliest Duttons in America as they travel the Oregon Trail and settle in Montana, it’s the ideal prequel for Yellowstone fans.
Yellowstone
Like Succession with horses instead of board meetings, Yellowstone created a TV empire that grew out of a damaged Montana family to become the most-watched drama on cable television. Kevin Costner won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a TV Drama this past year, and even the series supporting cast maintains a die-hard fanbase. Shows like Yellowstone essentially reestablished the American western on cable television, forcing every aspiring actor and their dog to have at least one headshot wearing a cowboy hat.
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