Despite the Yellowstone screenwriter and showrunner’s divisive role in season 5, Taylor Sheridan has a different, more likable character within his neo-Western franchise. After significant production delays, Yellowstone season 5, part 2, debuted with six episodes to close out the Dutton family saga as we know it. The second half of the final season was full of twists, but perhaps the least expected was the prominent screentime of Sheridan’s Travis Wheatley, a skilled horseman and friend of John Dutton III. While Travis appeared throughout Yellowstone’s five seasons, his role in the fifth outing received opposition from fans and critics alike.
The fifth and final Yellowstone season was a bold outing for the series, despite criticism that Sheridan’s story ignored some characters while focusing too much on others. Still, the Yellowstone season 5 finale was a satisfying, full-circle ending, allowing the remaining members of the Dutton family to move on from their family’s controversial Montana land legacy. Kayce settled at East Camp with his family after selling the ranch to the Broken Rock Tribe. Likewise, Beth and Rip moved off the ranch to Dillon, Montana, with Carter, where the Beth and Rip Yellowstone spinoff will continue their story.
Why Taylor Sheridan’s Travis Character In Yellowstone Is So Divisive
Travis Wheatley Overshadowed The Yellowstone Season 5 Narrative
Throughout Yellowstone season 5, part 2, Sheridan appeared as Travis Wheatley, a Texas-based horse trainer and rodeo competitor for the Bosque Ranch. Travis had a close relationship with John Dutton, who bought showhorses from Sheridan to bring more profit to the ranch. His prominence in the final outing didn’t change after John Dutton III’s death. Sheridan included himself in most of season 5, part 2, appearing in four of the six episodes that closed the series. Ultimately, Sheridan’s role received backlash because he had more screen time than expected, which might have distracted the plot from other characters.
Sheridan’s role in Yellowstone season 5, episode 13, was particularly off-putting. Beth traveled down to Travis’ Four Sixes Ranch in Texas to ensure the horse trainer would make an adequate profit on her family’s show horses. While Beth’s journey to Texas was a fun addition to the show, the segment was unfocused on the ultimate ending, while other characters’ stories fell by the wayside. For instance, Sheridan’s extensive screentime, partially used to poke fun at Beth, could have been dedicated to Jamie, giving viewers insight into how John Dutton’s adopted son was processing his overwhelming personal and political hurdles.
Sheridan Plays A Much Better Character In 1883 With Charles
Sheridan Plays Real-Life Cowboy Charlie Goodnight In 1883
While Sheridan factored in disappointingly to Yellowstone season 5, he played a different role in another Yellowstone series, one that worked much better. In the first Yellowstone prequel series, titled 1883 for the year it takes place, Sheridan plays Charles Goodnight. Charles is a cowboy who helps the 1883 cast face off with cattle thieves in Kansas City. He is close with Shae Brennan and Thomas, who lead a wagon train on the Oregon Trail that John Dutton III’s great-great-grandfather, James Dutton, tags along with.
Charles Goodnight appears in the 1883 episodes “Lightning Yellow Hair” and “The Weep of Surrender” alongside Sam and Two Feathers, Comanche people who trade with and protect the wagon train. While Shae, Thomas, and James are all capable fighters from their respective experiences in the Civil War, a gang of cattle thieves who stole their herd outnumber them as they engage in a gunfight. Travis’ character provides an assist at the perfect moment, and he, Sam, and Two Feathers fend off the remaining bandits. After their adversaries are dead, Charlie opts to stay and pray for them, highlighting his morality.
Why Charles Is A Much More Likable Role For Sheridan In The Yellowstone Franchise
Charles Goodnight Doesn’t Overshadow The Other 1883 Characters
Sheridan’s Charles Goodnight character has a more palatable screen presence for the Yellowstone showrunner, and there are a few reasons. In Yellowstone season 5, Beth, Rip, and Kayce are somewhat at the mercy of Travis’ antics since they need the money from his expertise to help make the ranch’s mortgage payment. Therefore, in many ways, Travis is positioned as a savior in the final episodes of the neo-Western, which makes his misogynistic jabs at Beth all the more unsavory. Before the final outing, Sheridan mostly appeared on horseback or while making jokes at Jimmy Hurdstrom’s expense, which is the norm.
Charles’ humility lends itself to Sheridan’s character, with Sam and Two Feathers vastly overshadowing his appearance.
In 1883, Sheridan also plays a hero, coming in at the last moment and saving the wagon train’s leaders from dying in a gunfight. Still, upon successfully taking down the cattle thieves, Charles Goodnight credits the Comanche men he rides with for everyone’s safety. Charles’ humility lends itself to Sheridan’s character, with Sam and Two Feathers vastly overshadowing his appearance. Thus, Sheridan’s mistake in Yellowstone season 5 was to saturate the narrative with his character, poking fun at the sixth-generation Duttons as he saved them, whereas his more understated and humble appearance in 1883 works.