There’s no doubt that HBO is still kicking themselves for turning away Taylor Sheridan and Yellowstone around 10 years ago.
There’s an alternate universe out there where shows like Yellowstone and Landman are welcomed into audiences’ homes with HBO’s signature static intro. The Home Box Office is known for its stellar, original programming (like The Sopranos, The Wire, Game Of Thrones), and for being able to include more cursing and nudity with little to no limitations.
With adult themes more prevalent on HBO, it’s fun to imagine how different some of Taylor Sheridan’s show would look underneath the subscription channel’s umbrella. According to Sheridan, Yellowstone was originally in the running to air on HBO, but he and the network couldn’t agree on some certain aspects of the show, including the portrayal of some of the characters.
When Sheridan sat down with The Hollywood Reporter, he recalled a crisis meeting with HBO’s vice president. Specifically, he remembers himself and co-creator, John Linson, asking why the network didn’t necessarily love the show and what it stood for:
“We go to lunch in some snazzy place in West L.A. And John Linson finally asks, ‘Why don’t you want to make it?’ And the VP goes, ‘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 rural Montana). It should be a park or something.’”
Sheesh.
HBO higher ups also had an issue with the Beth Dutton character. But Taylor Sheridan was trying to land his show on the iconic network, so he probably softened up his stance and said that Beth Dutton could be modified, right? Wrong. The Yellowstone creator stood his ground, and much like Beth Dutton would in the hit show, he spoke what was on his mind with no filter at all:
“So I said to them, ‘Okay, everybody done? Who on this call is responsible for a scripted show that you guys have on the air? Oh, you’re not? Thanks.’ And I hung up. They never called back.”
And I guarantee that HBO regrets never giving Taylor Sheridan a call.
He’s quite literally a billion-dollar-man in 2026. Sheridan is arguably the biggest name in all of television (and movies, for that matter), and is the name behind some of the most successful series in the past decade. Yellowstone averaged just shy of 10 million viewers every episode, and that number stretched even higher during its fifth and final season. And the monster ratings for that show basically got everything else green lit for Sheridan.
Yellowstone spinoffs continue to bring in millions upon millions of viewers, which is almost unheard of in the modern day of media consumption. Prequels 1883 and 1923 were beloved by Yellowstone fans, and the Beth Dutton and Rip Wheeler spinoff that recently premiered, titled Dutton Ranch, just set a record for the biggest premiere on Paramount+. Around 12.9 million people tuned in during the show’s first week.
Then when you factor in other series outside of the Yellowstone brand (but still under the Sheridan umbrella) like The Madison, Mayor of Kingstown, Landman… it’s quite literally a nightmare scenario for HBO to look back on. They could have had Taylor Sheridan from the get go, but they thought what he was writing up was “too middle America.”
It’s got to go down as one of the craziest bag fumbles (losing something you should have had) in the history of television.
