One of the biggest players in television is changing teams.
“Yellowstone” creator Taylor Sheridan will leave his longtime home at Paramount and move his overall deal to rival NBCUniversal in 2029, according to a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to comment.
Sheridan’s deal with Paramount concludes at the end of 2028. Financial terms were not disclosed, though two people familiar with the matter said the move was not based on money. Puck, which first reported on the NBC deal, said that a contributing factor in the move was that two of Sheridan’s creative partners were let go from Paramount.
The move is a blow to Paramount, which has focused on wooing high-profile talent to the studio since its takeover by tech scion David Ellison and his Skydance Media.
The media company — which is now angling to buy Warner Bros. Discovery — has shelled out massive sums to acquire sports media rights, keep the iconic “South Park” cartoon and lure filmmakers away from competitors, including “Stranger Things” creators Matt and Ross Duffer and “A Compete Unknown” director James Mangold.
Sheridan’s universe of “Yellowstone” shows, in particular, has been a key franchise for Paramount. Company executives specifically mentioned the creator’s shows as a “cornerstone” of the Paramount+ streaming service during a luncheon with reporters this summer.
The western-themed show, which debuted as a cable series in 2018, became one of the hottest scripted series on TV, a remarkable turnaround from its early days when “Yellowstone” was passed on by a number of potential homes before landing at Paramount.
The popularity of “Yellowstone” was a boon to Sheridan, leading to spinoffs such as “1923” and other shows from his production company including “Tulsa King,” “Landman” and “Mayor of Kingston.”
After Sheridan’s move to NBCUniversal, Paramount will continue to own the library of his existing shows, as well as any subsequent seasons or spinoffs from those series, according to another person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to speak publicly. Paramount currently has 14 of his shows in production or in the pipeline over the next few years.
Representatives for Paramount, NBCUniversal and Sheridan all declined to comment.
