Taylor Sheridan didn’t have to look far for Landman’s lead because he already knew Bad Santa’s Willie Soke would step into the role of Tommy Norris. The Bill Simmons Podcast reportedly confirmed that Taylor drew direct inspiration from Billy Bob’s outrageous turn in the 2003 dark comedy Bad Santa.
Sheridan explained on the podcast that Thornton’s foul-mouthed energy can become the foundation of the tough oil-industry fixer in Landman. He further shares that he wanted to make a drama with Bad Santa’s Willie running an oil company. According to Deadline, Sheridan recalled in the podcast and shared:
“I said, ‘I want to make a drama with Bad Santa running an oil company.”
By hearing that, Thornton became excited and agreed to play the show’s lead.
Thornton is popular for his TV performance in the CBS sitcom Hearts Afire. In 2014, he played Lorne Malvo in the first season of the FX anthology series, Fargo. The actor often speaks about his dislike of celebrity culture and chooses to stay out of the spotlight.
Continue reading more about how Taylor Sheridan fixed Billy Bob Thornton for Landman’s role.
Taylor Sheridan finds his perfect lead for Landman
The creator of the series, Taylor Sheridan, explained that he looked back at Thornton’s portrayal of Willie T. Stokes in Bad Santa when developing the pitch for the Paramount+ TV show. Sheridan further explained that he didn’t have to put much effort into convincing the actor for the show.
As per Deadline, when Taylor approached Billy with the pitch, Billy replied with excitement.
“That’s the greatest f*cking thing I’ve ever heard in my life……….. Yeah, let’s do it!”
Sheridan revealed that the character was created with Thornton’s voice as the foundation. He developed the show around him by focusing on the oil industry and shaping the dialogue to match Thornton’s natural style.
Landman: Sheridan opens up about his decision-making process to fix Thornton as Tommy Norris
According to Taylor, Billy’s role as Willie helped him guide the tone and edge for the Landman role. The new character feels familiar because he shares traits with Willie Soke. Willie once prowled the streets and robbed stores while dressed as Santa. Similarly, in the Paramount+ series, Tommy shoulders the burden of sustaining an oil empire in the unforgiving landscape of West Texas.
Tommy’s life is a relentless struggle, pressed on all sides by cartel violence, torn apart by family conflict, and complicated by corporate battles. Each of these forces demands his attention when he fights to hold everything together.
Sheridan said he once called a friend to check if Thornton was safe. Instead of sounding worried, the friend laughed and explained that violence in “The Patch” was common. He began sharing stories, and that gave the creator the idea for the show.
Sheridan shares about hiring Wallace as co-creator
The firsthand stories pushed Sheridan to secure the rights to Boomtown and bring podcast creator Christian Wallace in as co-creator. Wallace’s role was not to write scripts but to keep the oil-field world authentic.
The creator clarified that he didn’t rely on Wallace for writing itself, but for guidance on the details and to ensure the story stayed true to the reality of that environment.
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Edited by Debashri Roy