Taylor Sheridan hasn’t missed on TV yet, especially as far as streaming numbers go. Granted, he might lose Matthew McConaughey from one of many Yellowstone spinoffs, but plenty of other household names are clamoring to be on his shows. That includes Sylvester Stallone, who braved the sweltering Oklahoma heat to star in Tulsa King, in which he portrays a loyal mafia capo who leaves prison after 25 years and ends up in mob Purgatory — his own personal 6666 so to speak — after leaving formal incarceration.
Stallone’s character, Dwight “The General” Manfredi, shook up a nice little cannabis dispensary and generally came to run that town throughout the first season. In the process, the man who portrayed Rocky Balboa for decades seemed to have a blast in the role, even descending into some emotional turmoil in one of the few episodes filmed in Tulsa. Sheridan even wrote the pilot episode in record time while thinking of Stallone, and the viewers showed up to such a degree that a second season was swiftly greenlit by Paramount+. What comes next? Let’s get down to business.
Plot
The second season will arrive with a few significant changes, given that showrunner Terence Winter (of Boardwalk Empire fame) has left the building, officially due to “creative differences” yet in what could amount to a surprising shakeup. Paramount+ hasn’t yet announced who is replacing Winter (surely, Sheridan is far too busy to pick up these duties), but the wheels must be in motion because the Hollywood turmoil of 2023 has cooled, and production will soon start rolling.
Additionally, the show will reportedly stop filming altogether in Oklahoma, which might have something to do with Stallone not loving the “hell”-ish weather in the state. He will, however, continue to be the star of this show for at least a second season, although how that will take place remains a mystery.
After all, the season finale saw Manfredi arrested and possibly headed back to where he came from when the show began. It was an unexpected end to the season that was shockingly full of emotional depth and wry humor with far less of the typical meat-and-potatoes fare that we’re used to seeing from Stallone’s projects. Perhaps that’s why the legend decided to sign onto such a seemingly atypical project, which actually went further into left field than anyone could have reasonably expected.
What will happen in Season 2? Prolific screenwriting whiz Sheridan will have had to decide whether Manfredi is really going back inside, and perhaps he will have some fun poking fun at a certain Sons of Anarchy arc in the process. Or maybe he’ll surprise everyone again with the script, and Manfredi will wiggle out of his conundrum. Stallone has to be the backbone of this series no matter what, and we have to find out how his character’s reacquaintance with his daughter will go. Whatever the case, loyal Sheridan viewers will be tuning in, and hopefully, a synopsis will become public soon.
Cast
Stallone will return as Dwight Manfredi. The ensemble cast includes Andrea Savage, Garrett Hedlund, Jay Will, Martin Starr, and many others, including the random stray horse that walked through downtown Tulsa.
Release Date
Since the production will be filming elsewhere other than too-hot Tulsa in the summer, Tulsa King will likely be able to surface by late 2024 or early 2025.
Trailer
We are not that lucky yet. However, there’s no time like the present to rewatch Stallone pretending to smoke a joint.
