Yellowstone Creator Taylor Sheridan Played Two Different Characters In The Same Franchise

Taylor Sheridan loves to cameo in his own stuff as much as he loves horses and creating characters in shows that make no sense. In the case of the "Yellowstone" universe, for example, the world-builder appeared across centuries when he starred in both the flagship series, "Yellowstone" as Travis Wheatley and also his best prequel series, "1883," as Charlie Goodnight, providing one of the rare occasions when fact and fiction collided.

Starring as two different characters in the same universe was something Sheridan should have been used to, though. Long before his name on a script meant as much as it does now, the go-to scribe for Paramount did double duty in another show in 1994 that housed massive talents in the making like Neve Campbell, Matthew Fox, and Jennifer Love-Hewitt. The show was "Party of Five," which spanned six years and spawned a spin-off series of its own (albeit a short-lived one) with "Time of Your Life." Sadly, the latter show only lasted one season before it was canceled, but that didn't stop Sheridan from appearing in both stories as two completely different characters that made minimal impact. Well, an award-winning writer has got to start out somewhere, right?

During the show that followed 24-year-old Charlie (Fox) as he stepped up to be the head of the Salinger siblings, Sheridan made a small appearance as "Counter Guy" in season 5, episode 24 of the series before "Party of Five" ended on its sixth season. During that time, "Time of Your Life" was released in 1999 and focused on Hewitt's character, Sarah Reeves Merrin, who moved to New York City to get more information about her biological parents. The show also starred Jennifer Garner as Merrin's NYC-based friend, Romy Sullivan, who was a struggling actress.

As for Sheridan, he made another one-time appearance in the spin-off as Connor, in the show's ninth episode. Unfortunately, "Time of Your Life" didn't even finish airing and was canceled after 12 episodes, with the remaining seven of its 19-episode run not being fully shown until 2021. Thankfully, while these early platforms in Sheridan's career didn't last, it didn't stop it from eventually exploding further down the road after he shifted his full focus from acting to making monumental leaps via the likes of "Sicario," "Wind River," and eventually "Yellowstone." Not bad for someone who started out as a mere guy at a counter.