Spoiler Alert for 1883 & Yellowstone
Beyond creating the massively successful neo-WesternYellowstonefranchise, screenwriter Taylor Sheridan acts alongside the Dutton characters he created. Through all five seasons of the flagshipYellowstoneseries, Sheridan plays Travis Wheatley. Travis is a horse trainer and rodeo champion who features throughout season 4 without issues. That said,Sheridan’s role inYellowstoneseason 5 was divisive.
Sheridan also acts in his1883prequel toYellowstone, which witnesses the earliest known members of theDutton family treeas they journey on the Oregon Trail. Their travels end in Montana, where the family settles and begins building the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch. James Dutton meets Sheridan’s1883character, Charles Goodnight, along the way. Goodnight is a genuine hero from the American West who helps the wagon train out of a bind with a couple of Comanche warriors.
1Yellowstone Season 1, Episode 5, “Coming Home”
August 19, 2025
Taylor Sheridan’sTravis Wheatley debuts inYellowstoneseason 1, episode 5, “Coming Home.” The episode opens with a performance from Travis' best cowboys and show horses at the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch. John Dutton is in the market for a good horse, and Travis hustles John on the best steeds he has.
TheYellowstoneseason 5 finale aired on Paramount Network on Sunday, June 12, 2025.
Travis shows off his best horses while telling John the breed, price, and how much the horses can earn in competitions. Travis' role is pretty minute in the episode. John mostly talks to Rip and Jamie, and as a horse trader, Travis is there to do his job in its most basic sense.
2Yellowstone Season 2, Episode 1, “A Thundering”
June 09, 2025
Travis Wheatly doesn’t surface again until theYellowstoneseason 2premiere. Travis is at John Dutton’s ranch in Montana, riding with the landowner, Kayce, Rip, and a few of their best cowboys. On horseback alongside John, Travis makes a remark that implies John Dutton invited him over to ride but then swindled him into work.
You can catch up withYellowstoneon the Peacock streaming app.
The cowboys are chasing a group of runaway cattle that have escaped into a thicket of trees. Back at the ranch, Wheatley helps John Dutton round up cows. While he has seemingly less reason to be in Big Sky Country the second time, Travis' cameo makes sense and is relatively understated.
3Yellowstone Season 2, Episode 5, “Touching Your Enemy”
July 06, 2025
Wheatley returns for a second outing inYellowstoneseason 2 for episode 5, “Touching Your Enemy.” Notably, the cameo from Sheridan marks Travis and Jimmy’s first encounter. Sheridan has a noticeably increased screen presence in the outing as he features alongside a family from North Texas, turning rodeo tricks.
1 Key Yellowstone Character Was Missing From John Dutton III’s Funeral
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Travis challenges Jimmy to a pay-up, where he has to pay all the other competitors he loses to if he comes in last. After failing miserably, Jimmy has to pay Travis and the family he’s traveling with upon Rip’s insistence. Sheridan’s appearance in the outing is more robust than his previous two cameos.
4Yellowstone Season 4, Episode 2, “Phantom Pain”
July 03, 2025
After season two, Sheridan doesn’t appear again untilYellowstoneseason 4, episode 2, “Phantom Pain.” After John Dutton returns home from the hospital, where he recovered from being shot on the side of the road, Travis is back at the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch to sell more livestock. When Rip asks what John’s buying, he says,“Legacy.”
John tells Kayce and Rip that he wants Travis on the road, competing in horse shows under the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch name.
John tells Kayce and Rip that he wants Travis on the road, competing in horse shows under the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch name. Travis tells John it will take a few million dollars to compete properly, saying he wants to build him a team of the best horsemen. Despite Kayce’s warning, John makes the deal, giving Wheatley a reason to return in season 4.
5Yellowstone Season 4, Episode 3, “All I See Is You”
June 11, 2025
Sheridan returns in the next episode, “All I See Is You,” to take Jimmy back to Texas as a favor to John Dutton. John sends Jimmy to the Lone Star State after he disregards John’s warning about the rodeo and gets back on a horse. Jimmy gets injured again, and after John pays his medical bills, Texas is Jimmy’s last chance.
Yellowstone’s 1883 Prophecy Explained In Detail That Spelled The Dutton Ranch’s Ending
Taylor Sheridan predetermined the Yellowstone season 5 finale in a harrowing prequel journey that followed the Dutton family on the Oregon Trail.
Therefore, Sheridan’s appearance inYellowstoneseason 4, episode 3, marks Jimmy’s transition from Montana to Texas. Travis doesn’t show Jimmy kindness as he takes on the employee. As Jimmy rides away with Travis Wheatley, it sets up both characters to appear in the6666Yellowstonespinoffabout the Four Sixes Ranch in Texas.
6Yellowstone Season 4, Episode 4, “Winning or Learning”
July 15, 2025
Yellowstoneseason 4, episode 4, “Winning or Learning,” picks up where the previous outing left off. Jimmy is in Texas again with Travis, and the episode opens with them pulling into their first horse show together. Jimmy grooms Travis' horse as Wheatley prepares to ride, telling Jimmy luck has nothing to do with his performance.
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Then, Jimmy watches as Wheatley competes successfully. The horse competition features cameos from a few other professional competitors to fill out the segment. Although Jimmy goes to send a letter to Mia back at the ranch, he doesn’t opt to mail anything, and Jimmy’s story outside Montana begins to evolve at Travis' side.
7Yellowstone Season 4, Episode 7, “Keep the Wolves Close”
June 05, 2025
Yellowstoneseason 4, episode 7, opens with Jimmy and a group of cowboys herding a massive group of cattle on the Four Sixes Ranch. However, Travis is back in Montana at the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch. The Four Sixes and Bosque Ranch owner is on a hiatus from Texas, helping John and Rip with their steers in Montana.
Episode 7 briefly flashes to Travis on horseback, where he’s chasing after a bunch of cows and yelling at them in a typical cowboy fashion. Wheatley is in Montana after leaving Jimmy at the Four Sixes Ranch and telling him he is heading to Yellowstone to deliver horses. Therefore, Sheridan’s appearance aligns with a string of season 4 cameos.
8Yellowstone Season 4, Episode 9, “No Such Thing as Fair”
June 20, 2025
In Sheridan’s final appearance ofYellowstoneseason 4, Travis is again on the road for a rodeo. Jimmy is also at the event and watches Wheatley’s performance. Jimmy has evolved by episode 9, which is evident when he compliments Travis for his performance and doesn’t go unnoticed by the horse trainer.
Travis and Jimmy have a genuine conversation, free of the insults Sheridan’s character typically throws at Jimmy. Wheatley tells Jimmy that he must have learned quite a bit if sent to help at the horse shows. Travis tells Jimmy they’re heading back to Montana at the end of the outing, judging that Jimmy’s training is complete.
91883 Season 1, Episode 7, “Lightning Yellow Hair”
June 27, 2025
After a handful of cameos in theYellowstoneflagship, Sheridan appeared as a different character in theYellowstone1883prequelabout the earliest-known members of the Dutton family. James and Margaret Dutton traveled the northwest variant of the Oregon Trail from Texas to Montana, and the offshoot follows their journey. They meet Sheridan’s character somewhere in Kansas.
Taylor Sheridan’s Forgotten Yellowstone Character Is So Much Better Than Travis
Taylor Sheridan’s role as Travis Wheatley in Yellowstone season 5 was divisive, but the screenwriter has a more likable character in the franchise.
Based on a real-life rancher,Taylor Sheridan played Charles Goodnight in1883.Charlie helps the wagon train out of a bad spot when James, Shea, and Thomas are engaged in a gunfight with bandits who steal their cattle after a storm. Goodnight appears alongside Sam and Two Feathers and complements the Comanche warriors for their success in the fight.
101883 Season 1, Episode 8, “The Weep of Surrender”
August 04, 2025
After helping James Dutton fend off a group of bandits, Charles Goodnight stuck around for1883episode 8, “The Weep of Surrender.” Charles rides with James, Shea, Thomas, Elsa, Sam, and Two Feathers to round up a group of horses after a tornado. It’s an excellent scene for the characters who have just survived two life-threatening instances.
In Taylor Sheridan’s1883episode 8 cameo, Charles Goodnight tells Shea about barbed wire, warning him about the plan to turn the American West into individualized parcels of land.
Episode 8 marks the end ofTaylor Sheridan’s character cameo in the TV show, in which Charlie says goodbye to his longtime friend Shea Brennan. Charles tells Shea about barbed wire and then rides off into the sunset. Charles Goodnight is humbler than Sheridan’s Travis Wheatley character, overshadowed by the Comanche warriors he rides with and his thick beard.
