Tulsa King Season 4 Is An Entertaining New Entry Marred By Frustrating Old Problems | Review

Tulsa King season 4 delivers the laughs, action, and emotions fans expect of Sylvester Stallone's gangster show, but it doesn't fix existing issues.

Published Oct 15, 2026, 1:00 PM EDT

Sean is a senior writer for ScreenRant and has been writing about new TV releases since December 2023. He has received multiple advance screenings of popular shows and ideated his own coverage read by hundreds of thousands of readers.

Sean is a self-published author of a Western novel. Sean has also written award-winning opinion pieces related to local politics while getting his Bachelor's degree in journalism.

Sylvester Stallone and Taylor Sheridan's Tulsa King season 4 is an entertaining new chapter in the story of Dwight "The General" Manfredi, but it's bogged down by some of the gangster thriller's oldest and most infuriating problems. Less than a year after the ending of Tulsa King season 3, Dwight Manfredi (Stallone) is back for the next stage in his criminal empire. Joined by several returning actors from the cast of Tulsa King, Dwight looks to "go legit" this season.

Of course, it wouldn't be a new season of Tulsa King if Dwight didn't make new enemies looking to stop him from conquering Oklahoma's underworld. Dwight has to juggle pressure from New York mobsters, corrupt politicians in Oklahoma and the federal government, and a "crushing personal loss." The stage is set for Tulsa King season 4 to be just as big, action-packed, and emotional as ever before.

As with all of Sylvester Stallone's projects and Taylor Sheridan's shows, though he no longer works as a writer for this series, Tulsa King season 4 has some high expectations ahead of it. Tulsa King season 4 doesn't do much to reinvent the series or its characters, but it is keenly aware of how to tell an exciting and entertaining season of television. Unfortunately, in sticking to its established formula, Tulsa King season 4 also failed to solve some of the problems it has had for years now.

Tulsa King Season 4 Is Entertaining On Its Own

The single most important thing to know about Tulsa King season 4 is that it is nothing if not entertaining. If you look at season 4 as its own standalone story, which is the way it should be considered, it's great. I firmly believe that's the most important consideration in any television show. As long as you know what kind of series Tulsa King is and what kind of story to expect from Stallone and Sheridan — in other words, temper your expectations — you're going to have fun watching it.

As a gangster show, Tulsa King has some stiff competition. It doesn't offer the sophisticated character study and black comedy of The Sopranos, nor does it have the whip-smart writing and complicated family dynamics of Peaky Blinders. Tulsa King isn't exactly prestige television, but that doesn't mean it's worthless. Quite the contrary, in fact. Tulsa King season 4 knows exactly what it is and delivers exactly what viewers are expecting out of this show: cool moments from Dwight, some heartfelt emotions, and a lot of laugh-out-loud humor.

The humor is the real gem of Tulsa King season 4, and it's the show's funniest installment to date. Stallone has some great exasperated banter with the rest of the cast, and Tyson actor Jay Will plays the role of a buffoon with expert talent. Goodie (Chris Caldovino) and Vince (Vincent Piazza) adopt a buddy comedy routine this season that is downright hilarious at times.

Tulsa King season 4 knows exactly what it is and delivers exactly what viewers are expecting out of this show: cool moments from Dwight, some heartfelt emotions, and a lot of laugh-out-loud humor.

Tulsa King season 4 is also packed to the gills with great gangster moments. Dwight is always good for a not-so-subtle threat, a brutal execution, or a bit of schmoozing. Bigfoot (Mike "Cash Flo" Walden) is just as physically intimidating as ever, though he doesn't get as many chances to throw his weight around in hand-to-hand combat anymore, unfortunately. Dwight also has plenty of new moneymaking schemes ranging from casinos to fixing horse races that let Tulsa King try its hand at very welcome gangster fare.

The overall story of Tulsa King season 4 is also one of the show's strongest to date. Dwight and his crew are beset on all sides by unexpected changes and threats both new and old. The season does a tremendous job of maintaining tension and suspense, as well as laying the groundwork for some plot twists that feel logical while maintaining an element of surprise. Once some hidden elements are revealed, it's easy to look back and see how Tulsa King put the pieces in motion from the start.

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Stallone also deserves some flowers for a few inspired moments this season. The synopsis for Tulsa King season 4 teased a "major personal loss" for Dwight that allows Stallone a moment to get in touch with his sensitive side and grapple with grief in a way he hasn't since season 1. Stallone also manages to salvage a few scenes involving generative AI. Those scenes initially came across as being in bad taste, but Stallone's acting won me over and managed to transform them into intimate character moments.

Tulsa King season 4's new villains are far from the strongest part of the season, but they get their job done. Dwight goes up against returning antagonist Quiet Ray (James Russo) and his new attack dog, who ups the stakes and provides a tangible threat to the group. On the business side, Dwight also has to contend with an AI tech bro, giving the season a timely issue to dissect.

All of these great elements work together, mostly in harmony, to help make Tulsa King season 4 another great entry in the series. Tulsa King season 4's big swings, writing off a few main characters, end up working well. Mostly, however, the value of this season is in what didn't change. Tulsa King season 4 is just as funny, exciting, and entertaining as ever, and you can take comfort in knowing that The General is still at the top of his game.

Tulsa King Still Hasn't Solved Any Of Its Problems Four Seasons In

Unfortunately, the worst part of Tulsa King season 4 is also the things that didn't change. Tulsa King season 4 is proof that the show has not bothered to solve a single one of the problems that have been plaguing it since 2022. Perhaps it's because Tulsa King has had three showrunners in four seasons, and not one of them has stuck around for more than a season at a time, with current showrunner Terence Winter returning after leaving due to creative differences in season 1.

Tulsa King season 4's biggest issue is the same one it has had for years now: it almost completely disregards the most important things that happened in the previous season. From character departures to dropping entire storylines and undoing all the progress of seasons past, Tulsa King is starting to feel like an anthology show. Past events, like the death of Jackie Ming in season 2, are referenced, but they're not used to an extent that would make this season feel like part of a larger, ongoing story.

Tulsa King seasons 2, 3, and 4 all lack cohesion with one another. Everything Dwight and the gang work for in one season is wiped away the next. The all-important Montague distillery from season 3 is hardly a footnote in season 4. It's fine, on the whole. Tulsa King season 4 is still very entertaining, as previously mentioned. Still, I can't help but feel Tulsa King is leaving a lot of potential unfulfilled by essentially restarting its story with each season and choosing to rehash the exact same underdog format instead of meaningfully building upon its own history.

The constant changes and resets are starting to get grating by the time of Tulsa King season 4. Every time a character is written off the show and completely ignored, like Tina Manfredi or Cleo Montague, the show is sending a signal that it wasn't worth caring about them in the first place. It also raises a natural question: why should we care about any new characters this season, if they can be entirely forgotten come next year? The same goes for plot points: why does it matter if Dwight gets his hands on a new industry if there's a pretty good chance it will be entirely inconsequential next season?

Tulsa King Season 4 Release Schedule
Episode #	Release Date (Fridays @ 3 a.m. ET on Paramount+)
1	October 16
2	October 23
3	October 30
4	November 6
5	November 13
6	November 20
7	November 27
8	December 4
9	December 11
10	December 18

Tulsa King season 4 is also still suffering from the same issues that critics and viewers smartly pointed out back in season 1. Dwight and his gang benefit from a deus ex machina and the sheer stupidity of supposedly smart antagonists in nearly every season. Dwight's rapid success is as much attributable to luck as it is to his own competence, which undermines all the wins he achieves this season. It would have been far more satisfying to watch Dwight win thanks to some grand plan, like Tommy Shelby in Peaky Blinders, but that just isn't in the cards this season.

The side characters and subplots of Tulsa King season 4 are also just as weak as they have ever been. Tyson and Mitch (Garrett Hedlund) are far and away the worst offenders in this category. After four years, Tyson has not gotten even marginally smarter than he was in season 1, and he's still not facing any consequences for his frequent blunders. Mitch also gets a new love interest this season, after both Tina and Cleo amounted to nothing. This year, however, Mitch's romance subplot has an additional problematic (18-year) age gap that never gets properly addressed.

At this point, it's frustrating that Tulsa King is seemingly willingly refusing to be a better show than it is. A lot of these problems could easily be fixed, and hopefully will be fixed come Tulsa King season 5. Setting aside the problems plaguing the series as a whole, however, Tulsa King season 4 is very good. It's more of what viewers have already come to love about Tulsa King, and that's never a bad thing.

Pros & Cons

• Tulsa King season 4 is funny, action-packed, and full of emotional character moments.
• Sylvester Stallone delivers another great performance as Dwight Manfredi.

• Tulsa King season 4 rewrites previous characters and plot points in frustratingly inconsistent fashion.
• Characters like Tyson and Mitch lead annoying and repetitive subplots.