Samuel L. Jackson Set to Star in Taylor Sheridan’s New Paramount+ Series, NOLA King
In a significant development in the world of television, Oscar-nominated actor Samuel L. Jackson is poised to lead his own Paramount+ series, NOLA King, created by the prolific Taylor Sheridan. According to sources, Jackson will appear in multiple episodes of the upcoming third season of Tulsa King before headlining and executive producing the new series, which is being developed by 101 Studios and MTV Entertainment Studios.
Details of the plot are currently sketchy, but sources close to the project indicate that Jackson will be playing Russell Lee Washington Jr., a character from the crime world who will go up against Sylvester Stallone’s Dwight "The General" Manfredi in Tulsa King before heading to New Orleans to take over. The series is being written by Dave Erickson, who is also showrunner on the current season of Tulsa King and Mayor of Kingstown. As reported by Deadline, Erickson will serve as writer, executive producer, and showrunner of NOLA King.
Production on Season 3 of Tulsa King has been underway in Atlanta and Oklahoma for several months, with Jackson expected to film his episodes in July. Production on NOLA King is slated to begin in February, sources said. Under his overall deal with MTV Entertainment Studios, Erickson is expected to transition from Tulsa King to the new series while continuing to work on Mayor of Kingstown. NOLA King will also be executive produced by Sheridan and 101 Studios’ David C. Glasser, as confirmed by Deadline.
According to sources, the idea for NOLA King stems from an idea by Chris McCarthy, President and CEO of Showtime and MTV Entertainment Studios, to expand the world of Tulsa King in a similar way to how Sheridan’s Yellowstone has spawned multiple offshoots. As reported by Deadline, reps for MTV Entertainment Studios declined to comment on the story.
Tulsa King follows New York mafia capo Dwight, played by Stallone, as he is released from prison after 25 years and exiled to Tulsa, Oklahoma. The show has been a major success for Paramount+, with the Season 2 opener setting a record for most-watched global premiere at the time with 21.1 million global streaming viewers. The show, alongside other Sheridan series Landman and Lioness, ranked in the Top 10 of U.S. streaming original series for Q4, marking only the second time since Nielsen began tracking SVOD platforms in 2017 that a service other than Netflix has had three of the top 10 series.
Jackson, known for his iconic role as Nick Fury in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, has recently starred in the Peacock limited series Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist. An Academy Award nominee for Pulp Fiction, Jackson received an Honorary Oscar in 2021. He joins a growing list of A-list stars in the Sheridan universe, including Kevin Costner (Yellowstone), Jeremy Renner (Mayor of Kingstown), Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren (1923), Stallone (Tulsa King), Nicole Kidman and Zoe Saldaña (Lioness), Billy Bob Thornton (Landman), and David Oyelowo (Bass Reeves). As noted by Deadline, this marks another significant addition to the Taylor Sheridan universe.
The addition of Jackson to the Taylor Sheridan universe is a significant coup for Paramount+, which has been rapidly expanding its slate of original content in recent years. With NOLA King and other series in development, the streamer is poised to continue its growth and offer audiences a wide range of compelling and diverse storytelling. According to Deadline, this is just one of many exciting projects in the works from Taylor Sheridan and his team.
