Taylor Sheridan, Hillwood Open 450K SF Campus To Bring Tinseltown To Cowtown
A television titan and the real estate arm of the Perot Cos. are teaming up to turn Fort Worth into a major Hollywood player.
The partnership between Yellowstone co-creator Taylor Sheridan and Ross Perot Jr.'s Hillwood plans to establish the state’s largest film and television production studios in the AllianceTexas master-planned development.
Sheridan's SGS Studios, in collaboration with Paramount Television, opened a 450K SF studio campus that can accommodate up to four major motion picture or television projects filming simultaneously. Hillwood is also developing another area in Alliance that would add 300K SF for eight more soundstages, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported.
Filming on the second season of Sheridan's Landman is underway at SGS’ two-building campus.
“SGS Studios isn’t just about sound stages or incentives — it’s about reclaiming the independence and grit that built this industry in the first place,” Sheridan said in a statement. “Texas offers something rare: the space to dream big, the freedom to build fast, and a community that still believes storytelling matters.”
In a bid to spark the expansion of production facilities like this, the Texas Legislature increased funding for the Texas Moving Image Industry Incentive Program with the passage of Senate Bill 22 earlier this year. The law guarantees $300M worth of program funding every two years for the next decade. That’s a huge upgrade from the irregular funding amounts that offered no renewal guarantees in past sessions, according to industry advocates.
Fort Worth City Council nominated the SGS project at 2601 Spirit Drive for state incentives earlier this month, the Dallas Business Journal reported. Fort Worth estimated the newly opened studios could generate more than $14M in regional economic activity, $4.6M in labor income and over $1M in tax revenue for the state, as well as almost $183K in city tax revenue.
“We are at a pivotal moment where Texas can become a global force in the film industry, and North Texas offers the location and resources to play a central role in this development,” Hillwood President Mike Berry said in a statement.
The newly opened SGS 1 and 2 studios were converted from industrial buildings at a cost of around $65M, according to the DBJ. The process includes building a large acoustically treated sound wall and installing insulation, power and HVAC, Berry said. Production companies also make a sizable investment inside the building with equipment and soundstages.
Phil McGraw’s production company, Merit Street Media, also films episodes of his show, Dr. Phil, at a building in Alliance. However, Merit Street Media filed for bankruptcy earlier this year and is suing Trinity Broadcast Network over allegations of breach of contract, according to Community Impact.
