The Taylor Sheridan universe continues to find speculation about what’s left for the writer at Paramount and what’s in store for his coming move to NBCUniversal. With work left to do before his contract at Paramount expires, fans are hopeful to see some more Yellowstone spin-offs. Recently, Matthew McConaughey confirmed that he’s still talking with Sheridan about a possible 1950s-era story about the Duttons. As characters moved from the ranch, the series kept up with them from time to time, opening the door for spin-off speculation. One of the best underdogs in the series is Jimmy (Jefferson White). When he left the Yellowstone Ranch for the 6666s, a real ranch in Texas, Sheridan filmed some scenes there and befriended many people along the way, including owner Anne Windfohr Marion. When Sheridan asked to film there, Marion pressed him on why. He impressed her with his answer, “because this way of life is dying.” After Marion passed away in 2020, Sheridan was offered the 156-year-old ranch and bought it for $330 million. Ever since, there have been rumors about a Sheridan series being developed about the storied property.

Speaking with Dale Brisby on the Rodeo Time podcast, Sheridan gives a definitive answer on a Yellowstone spin-off about the 6666s. As Sheridan said, “there is never going to be one. I would never fictionalize that ranch.” Sheridan makes his case but also shares that he has “all the scenes of Jimmy at the 6666s pulled out and strung together, and it makes its own perfect little movie, where you watch him go there as this misfit and leave a man and a respected cowboy.” Here’s hoping it could become a standalone release; who doesn’t love seeing an underdog prevail? When it comes to creating a narrative around the 6666s, Sheridan continues:
“If I was going to try and make some kind of show about the 6666s. Now I’m making up lives. Now I have to invent a drama, right? We can’t just watch some kid learn how to rope every single episode, right? So now I’m trivializing and fictionalizing something where real people work, and they raise their families there. And I could never do that to them. I can never do that to the cowboys who’ve dedicated themselves…and everybody that works on that ranch. I’m very protective of the 6666s.”

Jefferson White as Jimmy in Yellowstone, wearing a red 6666 shirt and a cowboy hat on a ranch.Paramount Network

Sheridan has every right to protect the brand he’s invested so much money and time and his heart into. Just as his characters fight to preserve their ranch and way of life in a fictional world, Sheridan is dedicated to protecting his ranch in reality. “People have so many misconceptions about ranching and cattle and cowboys,” Sheridan says, “No one’s ever shown them an accurate portrayal of cowboys.” This includes Yellowstone, which Sheridan accurately describes as primarily a “soap opera” with “little nibbles” of real ranching mixed in.

When Sheridan was first granted time to film at the 6666s, he promised Marion that there would be no dramatic or violent scenes filmed on the property. The goal was to show Jimmy’s growth as a cowboy. Sheridan aims to keep that promise by protecting any depiction of the ranch in its purest form. While that may disappoint fans, as a season focused on the 6666s would certainly not disappoint, we’ll have to respect Sheridan’s dedication to the storied property he has promised to protect.

Release Date

2018 – 2024-00-00

Network

Paramount Network

Directors

Stephen Kay, Taylor Sheridan, Christina Alexandra Voros, Guy Ferland, John Dahl

Writers

John Coveny, Ian McCulloch