Taylor Sheridan Net Worth

What Is Taylor Sheridan's Net Worth and Salary?

Taylor Sheridan is an American screenwriter, director, and actor who has a net worth of $200 million. Taylor Sheridan began his career as an actor in the 1990s and 2000s, appearing in small roles on shows such as "Walker, Texas Ranger," "Veronica Mars," and most notably "Sons of Anarchy," where he played Deputy Chief David Hale. Though he worked steadily, Sheridan grew frustrated with the limits of acting and decided to focus on writing, a choice that transformed his career.

His screenwriting breakthrough came with the critically acclaimed 2015 thriller "Sicario," directed by Denis Villeneuve, which depicted the moral chaos of the U.S.–Mexico drug war. Sheridan followed with "Hell or High Water" (2016), a tense, character-driven neo-Western that earned four Academy Award nominations, including Best Original Screenplay. He then wrote and directed "Wind River" (2017), a haunting murder mystery set on a Native American reservation that solidified his reputation for hard-edged, socially aware storytelling grounded in the American frontier. Each of these films shared a common thread: taut realism, moral ambiguity, and a fascination with characters pushed to the edge by circumstance and landscape.

Sheridan's greatest success, however, has come in television. In 2018, he co-created "Yellowstone," the Kevin Costner–led saga of the Dutton family's fight to preserve their Montana ranch. The series became a cultural juggernaut, drawing some of the largest cable audiences in decades and spawning a sprawling franchise that includes the prequels "1883" and "1923," as well as spinoffs like "Lawmen: Bass Reeves," "Tulsa King," "Mayor of Kingstown," and "Special Ops: Lioness." His work has not only fueled Paramount's streaming service but has also turned Sheridan into an industry cornerstone capable of attracting top-tier talent across genres.

In 2025, Sheridan took his career to an even higher level by signing a record-breaking $1 billion deal with NBCUniversal, an eight-year pact for film and television projects that will make him one of the highest-paid creatives in Hollywood history.

Early Life

Taylor Sheridan was born on May 21, 1970, in Cranfills Gap, Texas. He was raised with minimal means on his family's ranch. For his higher education, he went to Texas State University but ended up dropping out and moving to Austin. There, Sheridan painted houses and mowed lawns.

Acting Career

Sheridan began his professional career as an actor in the mid-1990s; his first role was in an episode of the action crime series "Walker, Texas Ranger." Following this, he appeared in the television film "Her Costly Affair." Taylor went on to make appearances in episodes of various shows over the subsequent years, including "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman," "Party of Five," "Time of Your Life," "V.I.P.," "Strong Medicine," "The Guardian," and "10-8: Officers on Duty." He was later in episodes of "Star Trek: Enterprise," "NYPD Blue," "CSI: NY," and "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation."

Sheridan had his most substantial role yet from 2005 to 2007, when he played the recurring part of Danny Boyd on the mystery drama series "Veronica Mars." An even bigger part came in 2008, when he started playing Deputy Chief David Hale on the action crime series "Sons of Anarchy." Taylor's next significant television role was as Travis Wheatley on his own series "Yellowstone"; he played this character from 2018 to 2021. He subsequently appeared as Charles Goodnight in the "Yellowstone" prequel "1883." Among his other acting credits, Sheridan played a paramilitary field officer in the 2018 action-war film "12 Strong."

(Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)

Film Directing and Writing

Taylor Sheridan first stepped behind the camera in 2011, directing the low-budget horror film "Vile," about a group of people trapped by kidnappers and forced into gruesome survival tests. While the film did little to raise his profile, it marked the beginning of his transition from acting to a full-time creative role in filmmaking.

His breakthrough came as a screenwriter. In 2015, Sheridan wrote "Sicario," directed by Denis Villeneuve and starring Emily Blunt, Josh Brolin, and Benicio del Toro. The tense action thriller, which explored the murky realities of the U.S.–Mexico drug war, was a critical and commercial success, earning Sheridan a Writers Guild of America nomination for Best Original Screenplay. He later returned to write the sequel, "Sicario: Day of the Soldado" (2018).

In 2016, Sheridan solidified his reputation with "Hell or High Water," a modern neo-Western directed by David Mackenzie and starring Chris Pine, Ben Foster, and Jeff Bridges. The film was hailed as one of the best of the year, earning four Academy Award nominations, including Best Original Screenplay for Sheridan. His next project, "Wind River" (2017), saw him both writing and directing. Starring Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen, the murder mystery set on a Wyoming reservation drew praise for its performances, atmosphere, and its unflinching look at violence against Indigenous women.

Sheridan continued to build his resume with high-profile action projects. He co-wrote the Tom Clancy adaptation "Without Remorse" (2021), starring Michael B. Jordan, and directed "Those Who Wish Me Dead" (2021), a thriller featuring Angelina Jolie as a smokejumper protecting a teenager from assassins. While not as acclaimed as his earlier films, these projects demonstrated his growing influence in Hollywood as a go-to writer-director of gritty, muscular thrillers.

Television Creating, Directing, and Writing

Sheridan's greatest impact has been in television, where his storytelling has redefined the modern Western and helped reshape the streaming landscape. In 2018, he co-created "Yellowstone" with John Linson for the Paramount Network. The show stars Kevin Costner as John Dutton, a powerful Montana rancher protecting his family's land from developers and political rivals. Mixing family drama with frontier themes, "Yellowstone" became one of the most-watched scripted series on cable television, spawning a new generation of fans and putting Paramount back on the map as a major content player.

Building on that success, Sheridan expanded the so-called "Sheridanverse" with multiple spinoffs. In 2021, he created "1883," a limited series that chronicled the Dutton family's journey west after the Civil War, starring Sam Elliott, Tim McGraw, and Faith Hill. It was followed in 2022 by "1923," featuring Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren as another generation of Duttons facing Prohibition, drought, and the Depression. These shows deepened the "Yellowstone" mythology and demonstrated Sheridan's ability to attract A-list Hollywood talent to the small screen.

Beyond the Dutton family saga, Sheridan built a slate of unrelated hits across genres. He co-created "Mayor of Kingstown" with Hugh Dillon, a bleak crime drama starring Jeremy Renner as a power broker in a Michigan prison town. He followed with "Tulsa King" (2022), featuring Sylvester Stallone as a displaced New York mobster rebuilding his empire in Oklahoma. His spy thriller "Special Ops: Lioness" (2023), led by Zoe Saldaña and Nicole Kidman, drew strong viewership on Paramount+, while "Lawmen: Bass Reeves" (2023) dramatized the life of the legendary Black U.S. Marshal. Another anticipated project, "Land Man," set in the Texas oil industry and starring Billy Bob Thornton, explores the environmental and economic complexities of America's energy boom.

ViacomCBS Deal

Sheridan's television empire was made possible through a sweeping overall deal with ViacomCBS (now Paramount Global). Signed in 2021, the multi-year agreement, reportedly worth nine figures, cemented his role as a cornerstone of Paramount's streaming strategy. Under the deal, Sheridan produces content exclusively for Paramount Network and Paramount+, with multiple series in development or already airing as part of his growing slate. The partnership has turned him into one of the most powerful figures in television, credited with transforming Paramount+ into a serious competitor in the streaming wars by anchoring its programming around his popular, interconnected dramas.

$1 Billion Universal Deal

In 2025, Sheridan shocked Hollywood by leaving Paramount for a record-breaking deal with NBCUniversal reportedly worth more than $1 billion. The agreement, negotiated directly with NBCU's entertainment chairman Donna Langley, is divided into two phases: an eight-year film pact beginning in 2026 and a five-year television deal starting in 2029, after his Paramount obligations expire. The total value includes guaranteed compensation over the duration of both deals and could exceed $1 billion depending on the success of his projects.

Langley personally courted Sheridan at his Texas ranch, offering him what insiders described as a "Big Fish" role within NBCUniversal's ecosystem. The deal positions Sheridan to write, direct, and produce films for Universal Pictures and create original television series for NBC, Peacock, and affiliated platforms. It also includes a first-look agreement for his longtime collaborators at 101 Studios, ensuring continuity in his production infrastructure.

The move followed growing creative friction at Paramount after its merger with Skydance Media. Under new CEO David Ellison and streaming chief Cindy Holland, Sheridan faced increased scrutiny over his shows' massive budgets—some exceeding $20 million per episode—and resistance to new pitches such as "The Correspondent." Feeling creatively constrained, Sheridan opted to align with Langley, who promised greater autonomy and long-term creative investment.

The deal is widely seen as one of the largest individual talent contracts in Hollywood history, rivaling past megadeals signed by Ryan Murphy, Shonda Rhimes, and J.J. Abrams. For NBCUniversal, it represents a strategic effort to anchor its Peacock and film divisions around a single proven franchise architect. For Sheridan, it marks a new chapter in an already unprecedented run, securing him both creative freedom and billionaire-level compensation as he transitions his storytelling empire to a new studio home.

Personal Life

In 2013, Sheridan wed actress and model Nicole Muirbrook. The pair lives in Weatherford, Texas.

6666 Ranch

In March 2022, Taylor led a group of investors in purchasing a legendary ranch in Texas called the "four-sixes" ranch. The full 266,000-acre ranch was originally listed for $341 million. In December 2020, a 142,000-acre portion of the ranch was listed separately for $192 million. Taylor and his partners purchased three portions of the ranch:

• 142,000 acres in Guthrie, Texas
• 114,000 acres that are spread across Carson and Hutchison counties
• A 9,500 square foot ranch called Frisco Creek Ranch in Sherman County

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