The veteran creator Taylor Sheridan is leaving Paramount after he reportedly clashed with the new leadership at the company. The Yellowstone creator had multiple disagreements with the new management, dragging even Nicole Kidman into the drama, before he decided to depart for good.
Sheridan has signed a billion-dollar deal with NBCUniversal instead.
Reason for Taylor Sheridan leaving Paramount explained
There are multiple things that happened over the course of the past month that ultimately led to Taylor Sheridan ending his long-term relationship with Paramount. As per reports, the primary issue stems from Sheridan’s clashes with Paramount’s new CEO, David Ellison, following the company’s recent merger with Skydance Media (via Wall Street Journal).
Ellison, a supporter of Donald Trump, reportedly suggested a series tied to America’s 250th anniversary in 2026. But Sheridan refused to make something so politically charged. Though Yellowstone has great appeal among conservatives, Sheridan himself has stayed apolitical for most of his career and does not want to stop exploring all facets of the political system without bias.
The Wall Street Journal also revealed that Paramount and Sheridan had disagreements over the budget for Sheridan’s spy thriller Special Ops: Lioness, which stars Nicole Kidman. The Eyes Wide Shut actress got pulled into the drama as well after Paramount signed her for a different project, leading to conflicting dates with Sheridan’s project.
This also contributed to Taylor Sheridan’s decision to leave Paramount, as he felt he did not command enough respect there. Sheridan was also not happy about Paramount’s film division rejecting a script he gave. Meanwhile, many reports have also claimed that Ellison was not keen to work with Sheridan because of the latter’s controlling nature.
Either way, now Sheridan has signed a five-year deal with NBCUniversal worth $1 billion, as per multiple sources. It would be interesting to see what he comes up with in his new network.
