Billy Bob Thornton Says Taylor Sheridan Fills the Need for ‘Human Stories’ with Shows Like ‘Landman’

Thornton cited Sheridan's other work, including "Yellowstone" and "Mayor of Kingstown," as material that reflects the authentic humanity of America.

Billy Bob Thornton is getting on the Taylor Sheridan train and ready to ride it all the way to the bank.

This Sunday marks the premiere of Sheridan’s latest everyman drama, “Landman,” which follows Thornton as Tommy Norris, a crisis executive working in the West Texas oil fields brought in to handle fires and other catastrophes. While speaking to The Hollywood Reporter recently at the show’s Los Angeles premiere, Thornton told the publication that Sheridan’s grounded storytelling was his main reason for getting involved in the project.

“People are hungry for human stories,” said Thornton. “These days in the theaters, it’s mainly event movies and superhero things and animated stuff and all that; there are a few human stories to come through. But these things are like a 10-hour movie that explore human beings. And I think people are hungry for that and I think that’s why they relate to Taylor’s stuff.”

To sweeten the deal for Thornton, Sheridan also told the actor/filmmaker/musician that he’d written the series specifically around his style and voice.

“I went to the [‘1883’] premiere in Las Vegas, and after that we had a dinner and Taylor sat next to me and he said, ‘Listen, I’ve got a thing I’m going to write around you. It’s called ‘Landman,’ it takes place in the oil business, and I’m going to write it in your voice because I think I’ve known you long enough now to write in your voice,’” Thornton said to THR. “And when I read the first script I was like, ‘Wow, you did, didn’t you?’ Because I read it and was like, ‘Yeah, that’s kind of me if I were a landman.’ So, it was pretty awesome.”

As reported by IndieWire, during a Q&A following a recent screening, Thornton also compared the show with the 1956 Western epic “Giant,” starring Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, and James Dean in his final role.

“Great movie about oil in West Texas,” said Thornton of the film. “And when I first heard about this from Taylor, I thought: ‘Giant.’ This is a more intense, more dangerous, and more humorous version of ‘Giant.’ It goes 10 episodes. It just gets more and more of each of those things. But what you get to look at is seeing how the oil gets out of the ground, how it affects the people who are involved in it.”

Though Thornton showed great confidence in the material and a willingness to get his hands dirty for the part, he does hope he doesn’t screw up Sheridan’s golden streak as of late. He said to THR, “Please don’t let me be the one that makes it turn to pewter!”

The first two episodes of “Landman” premiere on Paramount+ on Sunday, November 17.