At this point, we all just have to assume that Taylor Sheridan knows what he's doing.
You don't just create hit shows like Yellowstone and Tulsa King on accident. The writer and director has figured out a winning formula for creating striking, compelling television - and he's on a roll. He might've just wrapped up Yellowstone, but he's got another hit hot off the press called Landman.
The ten-part series tackles the ins-and-outs of the various components making up the oil industry boasts an impressive cast, with the likes of Billy Bob Thornton, Jon Hamm and Demi Moore all playing major roles. Think of it as Yellowstone… just with oil.
And for some viewers, it’s pulling back the curtain on the oil industry for the very first time. Sheridan loves to take a topic that people might not be all that familiar with and shape narratives around it. That was certainly the motivation for Landman, which just set a streaming record for Paramount+. More than 14.9 million people have tuned in during the show’s first four weeks to watch the drama surrounding Texas’ oil boom.
Jon Hamm plays Monty Miller in the show, a Texas oil tycoon that has a lot of history with Billy Bob Thornton's Tommy Norris. When the actor sat down on The Rich Eisen Show recently, he talked about how he came to be a part of the cast, and how easy it was of a decision to attach himself to yet another Taylor Sheridan hit:
"I've literally lost count of how many shows he has on the air. The list goes on and on and they're all good. Lioness is great. Tulsa King is great. All of the Yellowstone (shows). How many Yellowstones can you have? It's fantastic. He's a great guy to work for and with. I'm stoked to be in this version of the next iteration of his universe."
That "great to work for and with" comment sparked interviewer Rich Eisen to ask how the casting process for a Taylor Sheridan project works. Hamm was happy to share the details, and the respected actor described it as the best audition process he's ever been a part of:
"He has this massive ranch down in West Texas in Weatherford - just west of Fort Worth. You go down there and he goes, 'This is what I'm thinking, this is what I want to do. What do you think?' And you go, 'Great, yeah, I want to do that.' That's it. It's the greatest audition process ever. You don't have to sit in a room and wait somewhere in Studio City and look at nine guys that look like you. He just goes, 'I want you, come down here, let's talk about it and then we'll do the show.'"
I don't know if Weatherford is technically "West Texas" but not important...
Taylor Sheridan dreams up a show and envisions certain actors and actresses for certain parts. With his successful track record, it usually isn't too hard to get the big time names to sign on. Sheridan even wrote a part in Yellowstone specifically for Ryan Bingham.
And as Jon Hamm explained, the writer and director usually presents a rather agreeable opportunity to the actors and actresses he has in mind:
"You go, 'Okay, I'm doing this. I'm doing it.' I get to say that to Billy Bob Thornton? I go, 'Yeah, I'm signing on.' Honestly, to get a chance to work with Billy Bob Thornton, who I've loved, he's a homeboy for me... he's just amazing. He's a wonderful guy and a great actor and to get to share the screen with him is fantastic. Demi Moore plays my wife. This is... yes, I just said, 'Yes. Sure. I'm in.'"
You can hear more from Jon Hamm about his role in Landman and how he landed the part in the interview below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5MM6PIgo4U
