Landman Producer Taylor Sheridan Once Shared The Screen With This '80s Sitcom Star

Taylor Sheridan may be the king of TV, but earlier in his career, the creator of "Yellowstone" and "Landman" was a working actor trying to make a name for himself. His biggest acting gig — at least, the biggest before he started appearing in his own shows — saw Sheridan working alongside Katey Sagal, best known for her work as Peggy Bundy, the big-haired, bonbon-loving mom on "Married... with Children." Sheridan and Sagal both starred in "Sons of Anarchy," a down and dirty retelling of Shakespeare's "Hamlet" by way of an immoral California motorcycle gang. 

The series turned its star, Charlie Hunnam, into a household name and showed the world a different side of Sagal, who was known for her comedic talents. In the show, Sagal, who is married to "Sons of Anarchy" creator Kurt Sutter, took on the role of Gemma Teller, the mom of Hunnam's Jax Teller. And there, along for the ride, was Sheridan, playing Jax's mirror opposite, the cleancut do-gooder Deputy Chief David Hale. 

But fans of the hit series were shocked when Sheridan's character was killed off in the first episode of season three in 2010. And, for a moment, if looked like his time in the entertainment industry had ended, with the actor only making a single episode appearance on "NCIS: Los Angeles" in the years that followed. Then, in 2015, his first written script, "Sicario," became a critical hit, earning three Academy Award nominations. Since then, Sheridan's career has been wild bronco racing through the plains.

Taylor Sheridan's life has become a rags to riches story that usually only happens in a movie. But for the mind behind "Lioness" and "Mayor of Kingstown," his life may have been very different had he stayed on "Sons of Anarchy" for the show's seven-season run. As fate would have it, Sheridan left the hit series because he felt unappreciated. After playing a major role in the first two seasons of "Sons of Anarchy," Sheridan's contract was up for renewal, but the show's higher-ups weren't willing to pay him what he felt he should be earning. He told Deadline, "At that time, they were offering me what I thought was a very unfair wage. It was less than virtually every other person on the show, and not enough for me to quit my second job." 

Sheridan left the show and focused on his writing, getting his behind the camera break with "Sicario." He also received an Oscar nomination for his follow-up, 2016's "Hell or High Water." In 2017, he wrote and directed "Wind River," and, the year after that, "Yellowstone" premiered and became an instant hit, ensuring Sheridan and its stars would live wildly lavish lives. Still, Sheridan may hold a bit of a grudge. In the third season of "Yellowstone" he wrote an episode, "Going Back to Cali," that sees the Dutton Ranch face off with a biker gang from California and chase them out of Montana, only after making them dig their own graves. It's hard not to see the connection.