Paramount+ Shifts Gears Ahead of Taylor Sheridan’s Exit

Paramount+ is retooling its original-program slate as the platform moves beyond the “Taylor Sheridan-centric” era that defined its lineup after the 2021 rebrand from CBS All Access. Head of originals Jane Wiseman, hired by direct-to-consumer chair Cindy Holland, is steering the effort toward “female-forward” series and broader genre offerings that can attract multiple audience segments. An executive familiar with the strategy said the green-light process now seeks projects that can capture both the existing core viewers and new demographics, especially women.

Hollywood Reporter

The streamer’s recent pickups illustrate the new focus. A24-produced legal thriller Discretion will star Nicole Kidman and Elle Fanning; MGM Television’s true-crime limited series Fear Not features Anne Hathaway; and a sequel to Clueless will bring back Alicia Silverstone. Unscripted plans include a dating show from Kinetic Content (working title Making Love) and a youth-baseball reality series Team Moms produced by Kim Kardashian. Paramount+ is also testing short-form “microdramas” in partnership with aTwist, a format that leans heavily on romance and targets the platform’s BET-focused audience.

Hollywood Reporter

Beyond female-led dramas, Wiseman’s team is scouting “grounded genre” projects—big-concept sci-fi, fantasy, and supernatural stories with relatable human drama—citing titles such as Pluribus, Silo, Severance, and Stranger Things as benchmarks. The platform is deliberately avoiding half-hour comedies, preferring to reserve sitcoms for linear broadcast. Sources note that while the volume of deals has surprised some observers, Paramount+ has green-lit 25 new series in the past ten months, though the team remains small and selective.

Hollywood Reporter

Taylor Sheridan’s contract will shift to NBCUniversal in 2029, at which point any new Sheridan projects will be produced exclusively for NBCU platforms. Paramount+ will retain the existing Sheridan catalog, giving the service a transitional period to retain his fan base while rolling out the new slate. An agent familiar with the situation highlighted that the platform’s subscriber base—reported at over 81 million—has been largely buoyed by Sheridan’s titles, underscoring the importance of the upcoming programming shift.

Hollywood Reporter

Paramount+ aims to broaden its appeal to women and international viewers while maintaining a core of genre-savvy audiences. The strategy’s success will hinge on whether the selective, high-profile acquisitions can generate enough subscriber growth to keep the service competitive in the crowded streaming market.

Hollywood Reporter