Let’s get this out of the way first: NBCUniversal and the prolific Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan have a deal that will see the multi-hyphenate leave Paramount for NBCU. There’s a film deal, which will kick in next year, and a series deal, expected to begin once Sheridan’s Paramount obligations are over after 2028.
That being said, neither NBCUniversal, Paramount, or Sheridan have officially confirmed his looming departure, or that the new deal actually exists.
That isn’t stopping Comcast’s co-CEO Mike Cavanagh from citing Sheridan as proof that the company is able to cut deals with the biggest names in entertainment, when grilled by a Wall Street analyst Thursday about the company’s “competitive position” in the marketplace.
“You’ve seen lots of news lately about us attracting the NBA, Taylor, Sheridan and the like over the long term,” Cavanagh said, acknowledging both the ample news coverage of Sheridan and the unusually long timeframe in which the deals span (the NBA deal, likewise, runs into 2036). Sports, movies and original shows will be a key driver for the company moving forward, he added.
“Just look at the partners we’ve attracted on the talent side, from again, Taylor Sheridan and [Blumhouse founder] Jason Blum and [Illumination founder] Chris Meledandri and Steven Spielberg and Jordan Peele and Christopher Nolan coming up,” he added later. “So obviously, pay one movies and originals are a piece of the pie of driving scale in Peacock and likewise, sports has been very successful for us. It’s live as a lot of the coverage is had, and it’s hard to build the kind of portfolio that we have.”
Cavanagh’s comments are the first time anyone on any side of the deal has acknowledged Sheridan’s looming move, though as The Hollywood Reporter noted in a behind the scenes story about the negotiations, NBCUniversal content chief Donna Langley had been pursuing a deal with Sheridan for months.
Langley “had multiple meetings with the hitmaker over the summer and who gradually became the Sheridan Whisperer. Initially, Langley approached Sheridan about a film deal, but the conversation expanded to include television and streaming in August when it became clear he was having serious doubts about reupping his TV deal with the new Paramount.”
At some point, NBCUniversal and Sheridan will make that film (and eventually series) deal official, but for now, Wall Street can rest easy knowing that it isn’t fake news. After all, the co-CEO said so.
