Visionary Taylor Sheridan Entrusts Wittliff Collections with his Archive

Taylor Sheridan, the Academy Award-nominated screenwriter and creator, writer, director and executive producer of multiple record-breaking Paramount Network series, including “Yellowstone,” “Mayor of Kingstown,” “Tulsa King,” “1883,” “Lioness” and “Landman,” will make Texas State University’s Wittliff Collections the home of his creative archive.

“There’s hardly another American writer whose work would be more at home here,” said Carrie Fountain, Wittliff Collections Literary Curator.

“Within these walls echo the voices of Cormac McCarthy, Larry McMurtry and Charles Portis. To acquire the papers of such a preeminent writer making work at the very top of his game will provide endless inspiration and insight to generations of creatives and researchers. We’re honored to welcome Taylor Sheridan home.”

Sheridan’s archive will grow in stages, beginning with drafts of his early scripts and the drafts and papers surrounding his films “Sicario,” “Hell or High Water” and “Wind River,” along with his pilot episodes for his series “Yellowstone,” “1883” and “1923.”

A native of Texas, Sheridan attended TXST as a theater major in the 1990s. He was awarded an honorary doctorate by the university this spring.

“Many of Taylor Sheridan’s stories embody the spirit of Texas. I loved showing him around the Wittliff Collection this spring, and I was truly honored when he discussed the possibility of entrusting his own archive to The Wittliff Collections,” said TXST President Kelly Damphousse. 

David Coleman, Director of the Wittliff Collections, added: “Taylor Sheridan’s storytelling has transformed not only television and film but also the cultural imagination of Texas and the American West. His archive will be an essential resource for understanding how contemporary stories are crafted, and we are immensely proud that he has entrusted The Wittliff to preserve and share his legacy.”

After a successful acting career, Sheridan began writing in his forties, garnering acclaim almost immediately, including an Oscar nomination for his 2016 screenplay “Hell or High Water.” He co-created the hit television series “Yellowstone,” as well as its wildly successful prequels “1883” and “1923.” Along with being a celebrated writer, Sheridan is also a distinguished horseman and inductee into the Cowboy Hall of Fame.

The Wittliff Collections at TXST was founded by Bill and Sally Wittliff in 1986. Bill Wittliff was an Emmy-nominated writer and producer, best known for adapting the screenplay and producing “Lonesome Dove,” starring Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones. The Wittliff Collections mission is to celebrate the “spirit of place” of the Southwest and to ignite the spark of creativity in all of us by collecting, preserving and presenting the cultural heritage of Texas, the Southwest and Mexico. The Wittliff holds more than 500 collections used by researchers all over the world and presents major exhibitions year-round in its ten galleries.