Finished ‘The Madison’? These western dramas are next
Finished ‘The Madison’? These western dramas are next
From more Taylor Sheridan dramas to small-town crime stories, here’s what hits the same emotional note.
If you’ve been watching Taylor Sheridan’s show, “The Madison,” you probably noticed pretty quickly this isn’t your typical Western. It’s not really about shootouts or land wars; it’s about a family trying to put itself back together after losing the family patriarch in a sudden plane crash, set against those massive Montana landscapes that somehow make everything feel both bigger and more personal at the same time. The vibe is slow, quiet, and really character-first, driven by Michelle Pfeiffer’s Stacy as she holds the family together while her daughters process the loss in completely different ways.
Once you get into the rhythm of the show, it’s hard to jump straight into something loud and plot-heavy. But I’ve put together a list of a few shows that should give you a similar feeling, just from slightly different angles. Here’s what to watch next if you loved “The Madison.”
The Madison
The Clyburns uproot their comfortable New York City lives to the wild, untamed beauty of Montana’s Madison River Valley on a search for connection.
Loved ‘The Madison’? Watch: ‘1923’
If what really pulled you into “The Madison” was the family side of it, the idea that everything comes back to legacy, survival, and holding onto something in a place that doesn’t make it easy, then “1923” is the closest match. This one’s also set in Montana and also comes from Sheridan, so right away you’re getting that same sense of place and that same focus on family under pressure, with Helen Mirren and Harrison Ford leading the Dutton family through one of its toughest eras. You watch them deal with drought, economic collapse, and everything else the early 20th century throws at them.
Where it feels different is scale. “The Madison” is intimate and quiet, very much about internal struggles and emotional healing. “1923” blows that out into something way bigger. You’ve got cattle drives, historical events, and much more external conflict. But underneath all of that, it’s still about the same thing: people trying to protect their family and their land when everything is stacked against them. If you liked the emotional core of “The Madison,” this gives you that same core, just on a much larger canvas.
1923
Follow a new generation of the Dutton family during the early twentieth century when pandemics, historic drought, the end of Prohibition and the Great Depression all plague the mountain west, and the Duttons who call it home.
Check out: ‘Landman’
One of the big reasons “The Madison” works is the tone. It has that very specific Taylor Sheridan feel where the landscape matters just as much as the characters, and every conversation feels like it’s carrying a little more weight than usual. “Landman” taps into that exact same style, which makes sense because Sheridan co-created this one, too. Instead of Montana ranch life, though, you’re dropped into the West Texas oil boom, following Billy Bob Thornton as a landman navigating deals, conflicts, and a whole lot of money on the line.
The difference is what those conflicts look like. “The Madison” is dealing with grief and rebuilding a family, while “Landman” is more about power, wealth, and the ripple effects of the oil industry. It’s louder, a little sharper, and more outwardly tense. But the DNA is the same — big skies, complicated people, and moral choices that don’t have clean answers. If you liked how “The Madison” let its world breathe and gave its characters room to simmer, this hits that same groove, just with a very different kind of pressure.
Landman
Set in the proverbial boomtowns of West-Texas and a modern-day tale of fortune-seeking in the world of oil rigs, the series is an upstairs/downstairs story of roughnecks and wildcat billionaires that are fueling a boom so big it’s reshaping our climate, our economy and our geopolitics.
Watch next: ‘Yellowstone’
It’s impossible to talk about shows like “The Madison” without bringing up “Yellowstone,” because this is the one that basically defined the modern Western TV wave. Also from Sheridan, it follows the Dutton family as they fight to hold onto their massive Montana ranch while dealing with developers, politicians, and pretty much anyone else who wants a piece of it. Same setting. Same creator. Same obsession with land, legacy, and family.
The big shift here is intensity. “The Madison” is more inward and reflective, while “Yellowstone” is all conflict, all the time. Land wars, betrayals, violence, power plays across multiple seasons. It’s like taking the themes of “The Madison” and turning the volume all the way up. But if what you connected with was that idea of family tied to land and the weight that comes with it, this is the most expansive version of that story you can get.
Yellowstone
Follow the violent world of the Dutton family, who controls the largest contiguous ranch in the United States. Led by their patriarch John Dutton, the family defends their property against constant attack by land developers, an Indian reservation, and America’s first National Park.
Wildcard pick: ‘Sheriff Country’
Okay, this one’s a little different, but stay with me. “Sheriff Country” isn’t a Taylor Sheridan show, and it’s not really a traditional Western either. It’s more of a crime drama, specifically a spinoff of “Fire Country.” It follows Morena Baccarin as Sheriff Mickey Fox in a rural Northern California community, handling local cases while dealing with her own family issues. On paper, it sounds like a completely different lane.
But the overlap is in the setting and the relationships. Like “The Madison,” it’s rooted in a remote, rugged place where everyone knows each other and the environment shapes how people live. And just like in “The Madison,” the family dynamics matter just as much as the external story. The difference is that instead of processing grief and rebuilding, you’re watching her juggle law enforcement and her personal life at the same time. If what you liked most was the sense of place and the small-town, character-driven feel, this scratches that itch, just with a more procedural framework.
Sheriff Country
Mickey Fox investigates criminal activity and patrols the streets of small-town Edgewater while contending with her ex-con father and a mysterious incident involving her wayward daughter.
More to watch after finishing ‘The Madison’:
‘1883’ | Paramount+
1883
Follow the Dutton family as they embark on a journey west through the Great Plains toward the last bastion of untamed America. A stark retelling of Western expansion, and an intense study of one family fleeing poverty to seek a better future in America’s promised land — Montana.
‘Lawmen: Bass Reeves’ | Paramount+
Lawmen: Bass Reeves
The story of Bass Reeves, the legendary lawman of the wild West, is brought to life. Reeves worked in the post-Reconstruction era as a federal peace officer in the Indian Territory, capturing over 3,000 of the most dangerous criminals without ever being wounded—and is believed to be the inspiration for The Lone Ranger.
‘Longmire’ | Paramount+
Longmire
A Wyoming sheriff rebuilds his life and career following the death of his wife. Based on the “Walt Longmire” series of mystery novels written by best-selling author Craig Johnson.
‘The Abandons’ | Netflix
The Abandons
In 1850s Washington, two families led by powerful matriarchs — one wealthy, one poor but deeply loyal — battle for supremacy on the lawless frontier.