David Ellison was in a cheerful mood.

Paramount’s new owner was on a private jet with his senior executive team, including chairman Jeff Schell and Paramount Pictures vice presidents Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein, and met with Taylor Sheridan, the centerpiece of Paramount’s TV content strategy.

Shortly after the merger between Skydance Media and Paramount Global was finalized in August, studio executives flew to Texas to woo Sheridan to his sprawling ranch. Their goal was clear: to make Taylor feel like he was a good fit for the new leadership group. They believed the meeting went well. A source who spoke to an executive at the meeting joked that Paramount officials “weren’t keeping up with him,” as Sheridan opened bottles and the drinks flowed.

On Sunday, news broke that Sheridan would be transferred to NBCUniversal for a five-year deal starting in 2029, worth up to $1 billion, depending on his creative output. He would also have the opportunity to make films “of any size” with NBCU next year.

The grim search has forced the industry to answer a simple question: How could Paramount, the richest studio in the industry — which has signed huge, long-term deals with South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone and the Duffer brothers, and a film and TV deal with the Duffer brothers — not acquire one of the industry’s top talents who undoubtedly has a stellar track record? But perhaps the better question is: How long did Paramount actually want to keep him?

From Sheridan’s perspective, the partnership was rocky even before the merger. The writer-producer-director was frustrated after Paramount’s film division rejected his script for his feature film, Capture the Flag. When Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav offered Sheridan a remake of his action-thriller script, F.A.S.T., this year, he ran into trouble when Paramount refused to let the rival studio make the film. Sources say Paramount requested a 50/50 split and was denied. However, the film was ultimately allowed to go ahead (1923 star Brandon Schlenner was starring, which somewhat annoyed Paramount).

After the studio changed hands, Paramount did not inform Sheridan that Nicole Kidman had signed on for a new series, which could theoretically have conflicted with Lioness’s filming schedule. Yellowstone is said to have been pushed back because star Kevin Costner had started another project and Sheridan was reportedly facing significant talent scheduling conflicts. A source familiar with the situation said Paramount had planned to meet with Sheridan about the Kidman announcement, but Sheridan found out about it during a dinner with the actress. Even that argument suggests the studio is not prioritizing its relationship with Sheridan.

Sheridan is also upset by criticism of his spending, especially on Lionsgate, which has been delayed for weeks and now appears to be a last-ditch effort to salvage the relationship.

And then there was a meeting between Sheridan and a group of Paramount executives, a sort of bragging trick that seemed burdensome to the creative team. “It wasn’t a bad meeting,” says a source close to Sheridan. “They should have brought in Ellison and two others and then sat down and tried to reach out to Taylor. It would have meant a lot.”

An insider disputes the idea that the executive team’s work was Paramount’s idea, noting that 101 Studios CEO David Glasser chose the guest list. (Paramount, NBCUniversal, 101 Studios and Sheridan declined to comment for this report.)

In both cases, Sheridan was being received more graciously by someone else: Donna Langley, NBCUniversal’s savvy entertainment and studio boss, who had numerous meetings with the hitmaker over the summer and has become Sheridan’s “whisperer.” Langley initially offered Sheridan a film deal, but when it became clear in August that she had serious doubts about renewing her television contract with the new Paramount, the discussions shifted to include television and broadcasting.

When a deal is worth $1 billion, it might seem foolish to think that Sheridan’s decision could be more personal than financial. But Sheridan values ​​his independence (The Hollywood Reporter’s cover story about Sheridan two years ago was headlined “Taylor Sheridan does what he wants,” and that statement is pretty outdated). So Sheridan’s discomfort with the Paramount team’s approach seems to be a significant factor.

For Paramount, Ellison is used to getting his way (after all, he is the son of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, the world’s second-richest person, with a net worth of $342 billion). A source said Sheridan’s controlling nature…