Taylor Sheridan’s Sons of Anarchy Exit Was the Turning Point of His Career

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Taylor Sheridan is the creative force behind the popular show and its growing number of spin-offs. What sets him apart in Hollywood is his unconventional approach: he doesn’t use a traditional writers’ room, instead allowing his characters to shape the story. Though now known for Westerns on TV, Sheridan first gained recognition for a very different kind of show.

Kurt Sutter significantly influenced Taylor Sheridan, changing the course of his career. Sheridan initially appeared in a recurring role on Sutter’s show, Yellowstone. While the experience wasn’t always easy, it was the beginning of Sheridan’s journey as a writer and ultimately led to him building his own successful television projects.

Sons of Anarchy Was Taylor Sheridan’s Breakout Acting Role

Taylor Sheridan’s career took off with the show Sons of Anarchy. After years of small acting roles – including appearances in Walker, Texas Ranger, Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, and Star Trek: Enterprise – Sons of Anarchy gave him his first significant break, with a recurring role as Deputy Chief David Hale.

Hale was a law enforcement officer in Charming and generally on the side of good, but he was written as a rival to Wayne Unser, who was secretly aiding SAMCRO’s criminal operations. He appeared in 21 episodes before unexpectedly leaving the show during its third season.

Sheridan always dreamed of being an actor, and landing the role of Deputy Chief David Hale felt like a major accomplishment. He explained to The Hollywood Reporter that his initial ambition was to become a famous movie star, and then eventually retire to a ranch, only taking on projects with directors like Martin Scorsese if he wanted to.

Although he wasn’t a lead character, Hale was popular with fans. However, problems started when the actor, who was having financial difficulties at the time, learned he was earning less than his colleagues. While Sheridan later took on a few roles in his own projects and made a guest appearance on NCIS: International, leaving Sons of Anarchy was the moment he decided to stop pursuing acting altogether.

In 2021, actor Tommy Flanagan revealed the true reason he left Sons of Anarchy. He said he wasn’t paid fairly, earning less than almost everyone else on the show. Even though he had a regular role, he struggled to cover his expenses and had to work a second job, which created a difficult situation. While creator Kurt Sutter has said Flanagan left to focus on other opportunities, Flanagan attributes his departure to financial concerns.

Sheridan understood that being so low on the priority list wasn’t sustainable, so he left his acting job. This allowed him to focus on screenwriting, which ultimately proved more rewarding. It was difficult to accept that his initial dream wouldn’t work out, but letting it go opened the door to a much better future – a true turning point where one dream ended and another began. He realized the acting job wasn’t the right path for him and decided to pursue something else.

Sheridan learned a valuable lesson from his early days in Hollywood. When he was a struggling actor with just $800 to his name, he started writing, discovering a natural talent for it. This led to work on several shows, and eventually to the hit series Yellowstone, which many fans of both shows enjoy. His experience on Sons of Anarchy was transformative, setting him on a positive path, though it sometimes pushed boundaries.

Taylor Sheridan Took the Lessons Learned on Sons of Anarchy With Him

Taylor Sheridan doesn’t shy away from depicting violent deaths, and his work is a prime example of this. In just one season of his shows, viewers have seen everything from oil well explosions and industrial accidents to further explosions and vicious attacks. Sons of Anarchy gained a reputation for unexpectedly and brutally killing off characters. While that experience made Sheridan comfortable showing on-screen deaths, his own character’s storyline also taught him to avoid repeating the show’s habit of predictable character kills.

Despite his character’s death over ten years ago, Taylor Sheridan still finds it difficult to let go. He remembered the violent way Hale died in Sons of Anarchy, saying, “It was a deliberately shocking car crash!” This event significantly shaped the development of John Dutton’s character. Sheridan had to react fast, but he intentionally avoided giving Kevin Costner’s character a similar fate.

The show’s creator stated he wouldn’t alter the story to appease anyone, even if it meant upsetting Kevin Costner. He made it clear he doesn’t factor in Costner’s feelings when making creative decisions, viewing any impact on Costner’s ego as an unimportant side effect. While Costner’s exit led to changes in Yellowstone Season 5, and forced the story to shift sooner than planned, the creator maintained his commitment to the narrative.

Yellowstone and Sons of Anarchy Share Similar DNA

Ever since it first aired, viewers have pointed out how much the show resembles Sons of Anarchy. Some even think Taylor Sheridan was referencing Sutter’s biker drama when the Dutton family fought off a group of California bikers in the episode “Going Back to Cali.” Sheridan also hired actors from Sons of Anarchy to appear in Yellowstone, including the actress who played Chibs’ daughter.

Both shows share a similar writing style. Taylor Sheridan and Kurt Sutter both focus on developing complex characters rather than relying on a fast-paced plot. Sutter has specifically talked about how he enjoys letting his characters guide the story. As he put it, the best part of writing is when the characters take over and the story stops feeling like it’s solely controlled by the writer—a sentiment that clearly resonates with Sheridan’s approach.

Sutter, like Sheridan, said his inspiration came from simply observing “life.” He also preferred a flexible writing process, letting stories develop naturally, as he explained to CableFax. He often figured out where characters would go as he worked with the actors, similar to Sheridan’s method.

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2026-03-12 00:11