Lioness' Potential Crossovers With Other Taylor Sheridan Series Addressed By Star

Published Aug 12, 2026, 10:00 AM EDT As Lioness season 3 unfolds on Paramount+, one of the cast members admitted he wants to see the spy thriller cross over with some of Taylor Sheridan's other shows. While several of Sheridan's shows take place in the same universe, Lioness does not. The series stars Zoe Saldaña as senior CIA officer Joe McNamara, who leads the agency's secret Lioness program, which sees female operatives get close to terrorist targets in the Middle East. The eight-episode third season recently premiered and is scheduled to end on September 20. In an interview with ScreenRant's Liam Crowley for his horror-thriller Time of Death, Michael Kelly, who plays Byron Westfield on Lioness, admitted that he's open to appearing in any of Sheridan's TV shows, whether it's a crossover as Byron or in a completely different role. He even told Sheridan, "Anything you ever want me to do, I'll do. I love being in Texas. I love saying your words." Kelly went on to praise Sheridan as a "standalone talent" and claimed that no one else is creating the type of content that he is. "He's just one of the smartest dudes you'll ever meet," the actor added. "He's fricking brilliant...and just one of the greatest storytellers." Kelly noted that Sheridan has been able to amass a "pool of talented people" to work for him because "everyone wants to say those words. He's that good." I've never thought about how the shows could cross over, but I have told Taylor, I'm like, 'Bro, anything you ever want me to do, I'll do. I love being in Texas. I love saying your words.' I think he's truly a standalone talent. There's nobody who's doing or has ever done what he's doing. It's incredible what he does. And he's just one of the smartest dudes you'll ever meet. He's fricking brilliant, man. Brilliant. And just one of the greatest storytellers. Anything, dude. You can put me in. Put me in, coach. Wherever you want to put me, I'll go. I love him that much, man. I think he's that talented. Heck yeah. Look at just the pool of talented people he gets to come work for him because everyone wants to say those words. He's that good. At the moment, there are no crossovers planned between Lioness and other shows by Sheridan, who created the hit Western Yellowstone. 1883, 1923, Marshals and Dutton Ranch all take place in the same universe as Yellowstone. Sheridan also created Mayor of Kingstown, Tulsa King, Lioness, Landman, The Madison and the upcoming Tulsa King spinoff Frisco King. Unless Sheridan reveals a crossover that would allow Kelly to reprise Byron elsewhere, fans can see the actor star in Lioness season 3, which is currently releasing new episodes every week on Paramount+. Kelly explained that Sheridan "comes out of the gate swinging" in season 3. He also teased what fans can expect in the coming weeks, calling the new installment "batsh*t crazy" and "so epic." He even went so far as to say season 3 "has a chance to be better" than the first two seasons. Lioness is a show that centers female characters, which is rare in the spy thriller genre. Kelly admitted that he's "so thrilled" to be working on a show in which women play central roles in an environment men typically dominate. "It's an honor to be a part of that thing," he added. It's batsh*t crazy, dude. Taylor comes out of the gate swinging with this one. It's so big. It's so epic. I can't even. I'm so thrilled for him, for the show, for those women especially. It's really cool to be a part of a show that has women playing central characters that you predominantly see men play. It's an honor to be a part of that thing. I think season 2 was better than 1, and I think 3 has a chance to be better than both. It's really good. When I read the scripts, I was just like, 'Holy sh*t.' It's crazy. It's really crazy. Before joining the cast of Lioness, Kelly had starred in several other shows like Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior, House of Cards and Jack Ryan. On the big screen, he's appeared in Now You See Me, Man of Steel and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. Kelly's two most recent projects outside of Lioness were Jack Ryan: Ghost War (a feature-length continuation of the Prime Video series) and the thriller Time of Death, which received a limited run in theaters and is available on digital and Video On Demand platforms. Lioness season 3 streams new episodes every Sunday on Paramount+. Release Date July 23, 2023 Network Paramount+ Showrunner Taylor Sheridan Cast Laysla De Oliveira Cruz Manuelos Young Marine Joe McNamara is recruited into a covert CIA program intent on infiltrating a terrorist network. Directors John Hillcoat, Anthony Byrne, Paul Cameron, Stephen Kay, Taylor Sheridan Writers Taylor Sheridan, Jill Wagner Main Genre Drama Creator(s) Taylor Sheridan Executive Producer(s) Bob Yari, David Glasser, David Hutkin, David Lemanowicz, Geyer Kosinski, Jill Wagner, John Hillcoat, Michael Friedman, Nicole Kidman, Ron Burkle, Stephen Kay, Taylor Sheridan, Zoe Saldana, Michael J. Malone Producers Rajeev Malhotra Seasons 3 Story By Taylor Sheridan, Jill Wagner Streaming Service(s) Paramount Plus