Paramount+’s Surprise Cancellation of Hit Taylor Sheridan Show Sets Up More Bad News for Subscribers

The past calendar year has been a big one for Paramount. Not only did they get fully acquired by Skydance to form a new mega-entertainment company, but they also released major blockbusters like Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning and the surprising box office hit, The Naked Gun. In addition, they made major moves in the TV space, with new seasons of hit shows on Paramount+ like Landman, Mayor of Kingstown, and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, plus brand new hit shows that catered to their audience, like MobLand. It hasn’t been all sunshine and rainbows, however.

Even with the mountain-sized hype for Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, the Tom Cruise sequel barely outgrossed 2023’s Dead Reckoning and fell well below the highest-grossing movies in the series. Furthermore, Paramount+ released the worst-rated Star Trek feature film in almost forty years, one that might set a franchise record for most Razzie wins. The biggest shakeup for Paramount this past year wasn’t the acquisition of the company, or their moves to try and acquire rival Warner Bros. Discovery, or their failures, but that longtime studio golden goose, Taylor Sheridan, is setting his sights on greener pastures and is leaving soon.

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Paramount+ Cancelling Mayor of Kingstown Means Subscribers Keep Getting Bad News

Last October came news that Taylor Sheridan, the creator of the hit Yellowstone-franchise but also the mind behind Mayor of Kingstown, Tulsa King, Landman, and Lioness, was set to depart Paramount as his main creative partner. Instead, Sheridan signed a deal with NBCUniversal to take his talents to their side of the studio system upon the completion of his exclusive deal with Paramount. Sheridan will officially be able to start making feature films at Universal later this year, but the one piece of good news is that Sheridan remained tied to Paramount for his television output until 2028. Though this was seen as a bit of a positive, as Paramount could continue to press Sheridan for new shows and fresh seasons of their most successful series, it’s starting to look like sour grapes are winning out.

According to Puck, Cindy Holland, Chair of Direct to Consumer for Paramount, reportedly cancelled Mayor of Kingstown, not only shortening its fifth season but declaring that it would be the last. Holland’s decision to end the show was reportedly made despite “Sheridan’s wishes” to keep the series going, and could be tied to Sheridan’s decision to move away from Paramount. The outlet goes on to point out that Holland hasn’t actually ordered any new shows from Sheridan since last summer, despite still being under contract for two more years, but also notes that she is reportedly “questioning the successful rollout strategy for the shows and moving stuff around.”

When Sheridan’s move was announced, it was hoped by fans that Paramount would continue to let him operate in his various sandboxes. After all, the shows he has created remain the most reliable hits for the streaming studio (Season 2 of Landman has a 50% increase in viewership over Season 1 and was the top series for Paramount+), plus, they would continue to own these franchises well after his departure and could keep making new seasons and spinoffs. The abrupt conclusion of Mayor of Kingstown seems to indicate that the studio is less interested in keeping Sheridan’s work going, knowing that he’s preparing to pick up his ball and go elsewhere soon.

As a result, this brings up a major question for the future of non-cancelled shows from Sheridan, like Tulsa King, Lionness, and the aforementioned Landman, plus ordered spinoffs that haven’t even shot yet, like the Samuel L. Jackson-led NOLA King, now titled Frisco King, and that’s in addition to the expansive Yellowstone franchise and its many shows. Will any of these shows be allowed to continue without Sheridan? Or will they all be canned despite successful ratings? To date, Paramount+ has largely depended on the viewership of Sheridan’s shows to bolster its subscriber count, and it remains to be seen how loyal those subscribers might still be if their favorite shows ended without notice. For now, it seems they’re preparing to start pulling back on their biggest cash cow.