Yellowstone Director Explains Why Taylor Sheridadn's Travis Is All Over The Final Episodes, And It Makes Total Sense (Except For The Strip Poker Scene)

Screenshot of Taylor Sheridan's Travis smoking a cigar at poker table in Yellowstone Season 5
(Image credit: YouTube TV)

The list of upcoming Yellowstone shows remains lengthy, even though the number of episodes of the flagship series is now non-existent, with most of the characters’ stories closing out with the Season 5 finale. (Beth and Rip have their own spinoff coming, but that’s another story.) One character whose tale was left open-ended was Taylor Sheridan’s horse wrangler Travis, who popped up more than usual in the final six episodes, and not just to emasculate Jimmy.

Sheridan’s recurring smack-talker also wasn’t just utilized to show off his horse-riding skills, but to help Rip and Beth sell off the ranch’s horses and other aftermath duties following John’s death in the midseason premiere. And then there was “Give the World Away,” where Travis hosted a clothing-optional pool party where strip poker and being sleazy went hand in hand, with guest star Bella Hadid also in the mix.

The co-creator faced slightly more criticism than usual for those on-screen antics, and executive producer Christina Alexandra Voros, who also directed several episodes in Season 5, talked with Variety about why Sheridan chose to write his own character into the final episodes as often as he did, with it serving as a way to balance what was lost when Kevin Costner exited the show earlier in 2024. As she put it:

I also think that if you ask him about it, this was a very depressing season of television. Bringing Travis in allowed for a little bit of comic relief in a season that you didn’t get much of that. That’s always been part of Yellowstone. Terrible things happen, you lose people, but then there’s a funny scene in the bunkhouse, or there’s a great country musician that people don’t know about who gets discovered in this cameo. That’s always been part of the DNA of the show.

Voros was initially asked to compare and contrast Taylor Sheridan and Travis Wheatley, and she had nothing but good things to say about the show’s big boss and his skills as a writer and director, as well as an on-set general. She also noted that both Sheridan and Travis were “tremendous” at being salesmen and at beating the system.

And in that way, it sounds like he wanted to shake up the otherwise melancholy vibe for the majority of the characters dealing with emotional fallout. (And not just for John, but also for everybody mourning Colby’s surprise death.) Granted, he could have done it in a way that didn’t involve clueless card players’ gratuitous nudity, but I guess there are only so many ways to make Jimmy feel dumb.

Christina Alexandra Voros continued, saying it made more sense for Sheridan to step in as Travis and get a little goofy as opposed to forcing that kind of behavior onto characters who wouldn’t be feeling so naturally mirthful. In her words:

So I think people were so wrapped up in the tragedy of this final season that some folks forgot that there’s always been an element of comedy in this. It’s always been present, and he just cast himself as the element that brought some of that levity because everyone else was so absolutely devastated about the loss of John Dutton. It would be hard to find the comedy from Beth and Rip and Kayce. I thought it was a pretty bold move on his part, but I think it served the story.

I totally get how all of that makes complete sense, and I still feel the need to go back and point to that strip poker and scene and say, "But that?" Rather than being genuinely amusing as most of his quick in-and-out scenes are, this more candid look at Travis' life revealed a little too much that we didn't need to see. It's not as if I ever thought he was a total bookworm at home without anyone else around him, but it was all still a bit much.

Will Travis show up in Beth and Rip's spinoff, or in the slow-moving 6666 spinoff that'll be set at the titular Texas ranch? We'll hopfully find out long before it airs during the 2025 season or beyond, so stay tuned.

Nick Venable
Assistant Managing Editor

Nick is a Cajun Country native and an Assistant Managing Editor with a focus on TV and features. His humble origin story with CinemaBlend began all the way back in the pre-streaming era, circa 2009, as a freelancing DVD reviewer and TV recapper.  Nick leapfrogged over to the small screen to cover more and more television news and interviews, eventually taking over the section for the current era and covering topics like Yellowstone, The Walking Dead and horror. Born in Louisiana and currently living in Texas — Who Dat Nation over America’s Team all day, all night — Nick spent several years in the hospitality industry, and also worked as a 911 operator. If you ever happened to hear his music or read his comics/short stories, you have his sympathy.