Within the first scene of Taylor Sheridan’s newest drama collection “Landman,” Tommy Norris sits in an empty hangar with a bag over his head. We do not see his face, and we solely hear his voice. In that second, he is making an attempt to speak his approach out of getting killed by a Mexican cartel member. After all, we all know that Tommy is performed by veteran actor Billy Bob Thornton, however even earlier than we get to check out his rugged visage, we sense (via his voice) that this function — of an alcoholic, chain-smoking, and no-BS landman — was tailored for him. It is as if Thornton immediately had modified careers and determined to trip his last years out within the scorching warmth of West Texas, bossing roughnecks round, and fixing points for billionaire oil males who run the business.
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Half of that’s true. In response to the interview that Thornton gave for The Every day Beast’s Obsessed, Sheridan wrote the main function particularly with him in thoughts earlier than he even requested the actor whether or not he’d be involved in taking part in it. For the reason that two had labored collectively briefly on the western miniseries “1883” prior, the writer-producer knew precisely form the character to make him sound like Thornton.
So when Sheridan shared all this with the actor throughout a dinner in Vegas, Thornton was instantly intrigued by the half and the premise of the present, and likened it to George Stevens’s traditional 1956 western-drama, “Big”:
“You do not see the interior workings of the oil enterprise a lot in a film or a TV present. I like ‘Big,’ the film was Rock Hudson, James Dean and Elizabeth Taylor, so I believed it had the potential to be that … Then once I learn it, it is like, yeah, it sort of is ‘Big,’ solely extra harmful and extra edgy.”
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Big was an epic saga led by a trio of Hollywood legends
Thornton liked the resemblance to Stevens’ drama a lot that he stated sure to taking part in Norris even earlier than studying the script. Though “Landman” would possibly take after “Big” in sure facets, the film is unquestionably the product of a bygone period with its personal distinctive dynamics and variations. The function follows the well-to-do household of Texas ranger Jordan ‘Bick’ Benedict (Rock Hudson), his newly-found love and spouse, Leslie Lynnton (Elizabeth Taylor), and the teen ranch hand, Jett Rink (James Dean), who works on the Benedicts’ property. Sprawling over a number of a long time, “Big” delves into sophisticated household relationships, ranching, the oil enterprise, turbulent amorous affairs, and the complicated legacies one can go away behind.
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In 1957, “Big” was nominated for 10 Academy Awards, however solely Stevens had the possibility to elevate up the golden trophy he acquired for Greatest Director. The movie was additionally James Dean’s final function main function (he was nominated for an Oscar, too), however on account of his tragic, premature loss of life in 1955, he by no means noticed the film launched. No matter what number of awards it received, “Big” acquired one of many largest honours in 2005 from the Library of Congress to be preserved within the Nationwide Movie Registry for its “cultural, historic, and aesthetic significance.”