Ever sinceTaylor Sheridan’s2015 hitSicariodebuted, he quickly became a critically revered multi-hyphenate in Hollywood. Award-winning films likeHell or High Waterand hisYellowstonetelevision empire soon followed, establishing the Texas native in the industry asa character-focused storyteller, notably ridding himself of writer’s room constraints and breaking traditional, plot-driven rules. As his work garners continued praise, fans have turned their attention to his rise to fame. Before discovering his behind-the-scenes talent, Sheridan began his film career as an actor.
Despite becoming aWestern staple of modern film and TV, his first claim to fame was FX’s outlaw, biker-gang dramaSons of Anarchy. Created and directed by Kurt Sutter, the show follows lead Jax Teller (Charlie Hunnam) as he navigates the titular club (often referred to by the acronym SAMCRO) after his father’s death. Although SAMCRO protects its Californian hometown from various threats, it also runs an illegal arms business. While questioning the club’s criminality, Jax faces pressure from local law enforcement. That’s where Sheridan’s recurring role as Deputy Chief David Hale comes into play. Hale acts as an antagonistic foil to the gang’s lawlessness, as well as Chief Wayne Unser (Dayton Callie).
Sheridan made 21 episode appearances during the series' seven-season runbefore being killed off in Season 3. Sutter has stated in the past that Hale’s death was planned in case a contract agreement couldn’t be made between executives and Sheridan. So, what exactly happened during their negotiations that led to Sheridan’s abrupt exit from the show?
Sons of Anarchy
Sheridan Thought ‘Sons of Anarchy’ was His Big Break
Like many up-and-coming thespians, Sheridan’s early career involved a lot of struggle. The working actor was introduced on-screen back in 1995 in an episode ofWalker, Texas Ranger. He was then cast in a string of minor small-screen appearances inDr. Quinn,Medicine Woman,Star Trek: Enterprise, and as Danny Boyd in Season 2 ofVeronica Mars. Finally, in 2008, he landed his first recurring role as Deputy Chief David Hale inSons of Anarchy.
After years of scraping by with small parts,Sheridan believed that Hale was going to be his professional breakthrough, acting as a crucial milestone to his ambitious dreams in show business. In an interview withThe Hollywood Reporter, he confessed that he saw himself eventually becoming a silver-screen success story, “The plan was always to become a big movie star, then move back to a ranch and just do movies with Martin Scorsese when I felt like it.”
Although Sheridan’s justice-seeking officer was a fan-favorite,the actor’s career still proved stagnant, and he wasn’t even making enough money to get by on the role alone. Sheridan wanted to keep his acting dreams alive, but after his eventual departure fromSons of Anarchy, he concluded that moving beyond them was the best decision for his film career going forward.
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Why Did Sheridan Leave ‘Sons of Anarchy’?
When Sheridan suddenly exited fromSons of Anarchyin 2010, show creator Kurt Sutter didn’t go into too much detail about the actor’s reasons for quitting. He simply disclosed thatthey didn’t come to a contractual agreement, resulting in the actor leaving to pursue other projects. However, Sheridan opened up about what really happened in a 2021interview with Deadline, “At that time they were offering me what I thought was a very unfair wage.” Even though he was a series regular,Sheridan was paid noticeably less than all of his co-stars. Since he was struggling financially and needed a second job just to pay his bills, he and his attorney tried to negotiate a raise.
During a conversation between his lawyer and an unnamed business affairs attorney for the show,Sheridan was told that he “probably deserves to make more,” but a raise wasn’t going to happen. According totheYellowstonecreator, they were paying him exactly what they thought he was worth, “And that’s really when I quit. It wasn’t so much over money. It was so much more that that’s how the business saw me.” Thus, Sheridan’s unexpectedSons of Anarchydeparture wasn’t because he wanted to go after other roles.
In the end, he wasn’t fairly compensated for his work, was met with an uncompromising legal team, and didn’t feel valued as a part of the show. Instead of remaining “11 on a call sheet” and continuing to deal with difficult executives, Sheridan decided to make a career pivot right then and there — from acting to writing — to create on his own terms.
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Sheridan Built His Own Television Empire
Although it was a hard lesson to learn, Sheridan respects Hollywood rejecting his on-camera work. He admitted to The Hollywood Reporter, “I was a fair actor, but that’s all I’ll ever be.“Instead of doubling-down on his on-screen dreams, he listened to the harsh feedback he got while onSons of Anarchy. And it was the best decision he could have ever made.
Motivated by an $800 bank balance, the then 40-year-old Sheridan got to work, and it didn’t take long before his writing career paid off. He remembers the early days vividly,“The first thing I ever wrote [the pilot episode forMayor of Kingstownin 2011] got me meetings at every major network, at every agency. I had multiple people trying to buy it.“His professional turn immediately proved to be one leading him in the right direction. Sheridan also created his first screenplay forSicario,written on spec. Immediately after, he began writing what he believed would be an easier sale: the eventualOscar-nomineeHell or High Water. Soon, both scripts sold, and he was catapulted into critical and box office acclaim.
Now a well-known, successful player in the industry that once spit him out as an actor, Sheridan has since spearheaded several films, as well asthe hit Western seriesYellowstone, starring Kevin Costner. The latter has become a massive TV franchise with two spin-offs already released:1883and1923. Needless to say, despite the issues he had before quittingSons of Anarchy, Sheridan has since found his true calling as a writer, director, and producer (and we’re so glad he did).
StreamYellowstoneon Peacock andSons of Anarchyon Hulu.
