'Yellowstone' creator Taylor Sheridan directed a horror flick that he just wants people to forget
Before Taylor Sheridan became the powerhouse behind ‘Yellowstone’ and its spin-offs, he worked on a horror movie. But chances are, you’ve never heard of it. Released in 2012, the low-budget film falls into the 'torture horror' genre, similar to the ‘Saw’ movies that were popular at the time. It’s not exactly the kind of project you’d expect from the mind behind hit Western dramas, but it was Sheridan’s first feature as a director. The project has an interesting backstory. Sheridan didn’t plan to make ‘Vile’. A friend of his had started the film, ran into trouble, and begged Sheridan to step in and help finish it. Sheridan agreed, seeing it as an opportunity to learn.
In an interview, he once said that he doesn’t consider ‘Vile’ his 'real' debut. He just helped “keep the ship pointed straight,” as he put it. “I would say [Wind River] is my feature debut. A friend of mine raised — I don't know what he raised — 20 grand or something, and cast his buddies, and wrote this bad horror movie, that I told him not to direct. He was going to direct it and produce it, and he started and freaked out, and called and said, ‘Can you help me?’ I said, ‘Yeah, I’ll try,’” Sheridan explained, as per reports. But that experience taught him lessons that would later shape his career, especially when he made the critically acclaimed ‘Wind River’.
‘Vile’ is the story of a group of strangers forced to inflict torture and pain to escape a house. While not an award or critical winner, it still found its niche audience and received a Blu-ray release. “I think it's generous to call me the director. I think he was trying to say thank you, in some way. It was an excellent opportunity to point a camera and learn some lessons that actually benefited me on ‘Wind River,’” Sheridan added.
In an interview with Motion Pictures, Sheridan revealed that he didn’t even get to edit the movie. Despite the challenges, he thinks they managed to do some interesting things with the film. “The reality is, I did Vile as a favor for a friend of mine who worked for me, a 27-year-old kid in acting class who wrote it. He had me read it and I gave him a ton of notes. He was impatient to turn it into a movie. He wanted to make it himself. When his mother passed away, he took the life insurance money and hired actors, a producer, and a director, who ran off with his $3,000,” Sheridan revealed. He added, “He freaked out and I said, 'Let me see if I can help you.' ...I was as surprised as anyone that I got a 'directed by' credit.” Sheridan now is one of the most sought-after creators in Hollywood.
