'Yellowstone' Creator Taylor Sheridan Is Somewhat Infamous for His Politics

Writer and show creator Taylor Sheridan is best known for his series Yellowstone. The series follows the Dutton family, who owns the largest ranch in Montana. Their ranch is known as the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, or "The Yellowstone," which is where the series takes its name from.

The series is a peek into rural life as the Duttons navigate complex drama with the neighboring Broken Rock Indian Reservation, Yellowstone National Park, and developers trying to change the landscape. Because of its pro-rancher slant, many people assume it's a so-called "red-state" show, promoting conservative ideals. Yet creator Taylor's politics are infamously complicated. Here's what we know.

When you write a series that's blatantly pro-rancher and tackles topics of individual freedoms such as the right to ranch how you see fit on your own property, it's easy to assume you lean conservative. Especially if the characters in the show do. Portrayals in the show of women, Indigenous people, and other vulnerable populations have been problematic, according to some. This leads some to assume Taylor is staunchly conservative.

Yet Taylor's politics appear to be more nuanced than that. In an interview with Joe Rogan, Taylor discussed topics that conservatives typically eschew, such as climate change and clean energy. The two also criticized a conservative darling, capitalism, and discussed the effect that political dishonesty has had on the average person. In general, straying into very non-conservative realms.

In 2017, he came under fire from conservatives by making a comment about former and President-elect Donald Trump, with the supposed quote reading, "Can we just impeach that motherf---er right now?" Taylor later denied saying that and blamed the whirlwind of being at the Cannes Film Festival for his supposed slip of the tongue.

And to make his views even more confusing, in a 2018 interview with Esquire, he both espoused and criticized "woke" talking points, saying, "Help me, Mr. Harvard-f---ing-Ph.D., convince the man who’s losing his ranch, who can’t afford his kid’s college. He has no health care, he has no f---ing clue what Obamacare is. He’s never seen a social security f---ing office, his only concept of federal government is taxes. How do I convince that guy he’s privileged? You won’t do it."

He continued, “You should be mindful of not berating the subject you are trying to educate and find a way for them to digest your point of view without turning them off to it.”

So with a combination of the substance of the Yellowstone series and Taylor occasionally championing conservative causes, it's no wonder that people have accused him of creating a "red-state" series.

However, Taylor himself finds the concept laughable and has openly scoffed at the idea of his series being "red-state." In an interview with The Atlantic, Taylor was asked about a quote from New York Times journalist Ross Douthat calling Yellowstone "the most red-state show on television."

He responded, "They refer to it as ‘the conservative show’ or ‘the Republican show’ or ‘the red-state Game of Thrones. And I just sit back laughing. I’m like, ‘Really?'” He added, "The show’s talking about the displacement of Native Americans and the way Native American women were treated and about corporate greed and the gentrification of the West, and land-grabbing. That’s a red-state show?”

So while Taylor is clearly making some kind of a political statement, it seems up to the viewer to interpret it. He writes about causes dear to those who hold liberal views, yet often takes a conservative approach to solving them. Perhaps the power of his opinion is in the mystery of it all.