Should Sheridan’s Yellowstone Universe Been Nominated For More Awards?
It’s Emmy season again, when all your favorite television shows compete for awards like Outstanding Comedy Series or Lead Actor in a Drama Series. The awards also highlight excellence in directing, writing, production design, acting, lighting, and makeup. They encompass everything that brings your favorite series to life.
This year marks the 77th Emmy Awards, hosted by Christian comedian Nate Bargatze.
As the nominees for this year’s show have just been announced, fans are once again surprised that Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone Universe and its subsequent series are not bigger contenders.
For example, Yellowstone has a massive fan base and over 11 million viewers for a single episode in its final season. At one point, it was America’s most-watched television series, yet it has not won any Emmy Awards.
While the show has earned a few technical nominations, it has not won any Emmys or been nominated in the major categories.
This gap between viewership and fan ratings versus critical recognition has made some question why this prolific series hasn’t received primetime honors.
David Glasser, the executive producer of many of Sheridan’s series, discussed this phenomenon with Vanity Fair in 2022.
He shared that most people are surprised to learn that the series has not yet won an Emmy. “When I tell people it’s only ever gotten one nomination, they really don’t believe it.”
In 2022, when 1883 was released, Glasser expressed his disappointment with the cast and crew, noting that production was complex.
“These are not easy shows to make,” he says. “For 1883, when we said we were going to take 30 wagon trains and 300 people across America—we did it. Except for a tornado, there were no special effects. We started in 108-degree weather in July, and we ended up in negative 5 on the top of a mountain in Montana. So if it doesn’t get that recognition, we feel for our crew and our cast and the team that have put this together.”
How Did Sheridan’s TV Series Perform This Year?
This year’s Emmy nominations are no different. 1923 has been nominated for two awards.
The show was nominated for Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Period or Fantasy Program, and Outstanding Period Costumes.
RELATED: The 10 Most Shocking & Devastating Deaths In Taylor Sheridan’s “Yellowstone” Universe
Though these nominations are well-deserved, reflecting the hard work and creativity of the costume and production teams, Glasser was hoping that 1923 would help elevate the Yellowstone universe, which includes Yellowstone and its prequels 1883 and 1923, along with several spinoffs still in development, into the spotlight of prime time recognition.
Glasser shared in 2022,
“I think [1923] is going to really catapult it all to the next level. So maybe two years from now, if we’re still in the same boat, I might try to come up with a theory. But right now my head is down on delivering Taylor’s shows.”
The Emmy awards are decided through a peer voting system. The Television Academy, divided into 31 peer groups representing specific areas of television, has over 26,000 members. This raises the question: if Yellowstone or Taylor Sheridan’s shows are overlooked, could they be snubbed in the voting process?
What Does Taylor Sheridan Think About This?
During his Joe Rogan interview Taylor Sheridan shared that he was very aware about how his series have been viewed by critics.
He said, “It’s not surprising that critics hate it [Yellowstone] because it’s not designed for them.”
Joe Rogan was suprised by this and questioned Taylor Sheridan.
Sheridan simply said yeah and then continued to share that critics were “confounded by its success.” Watch them discuss this in further detail in the first few minuets of the video below.
