“Landman” star Andy Garcia says audiences are drawn to Taylor Sheridan’s TV universe for its refreshing realism.
Garcia, who plays cartel boss Gallino in the second season of the Paramount+ show, praised Sheridan as one of Hollywood’s true mavericks.
“I think Taylor is a maverick, and in the traditional sense of the word, you know? He’s an auteur, and he has a particular gift for dialogue and for character, and a particular point of view on the world that is translated through his characters, and people find that refreshing,” Garcia told Fox News Digital. “I think that’s what it is, it’s refreshing.”
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Garcia said Sheridan comes from a generation “inspired by a sense of truth in the work,” along with a “sense of independence” in an industry that once “supported and embraced maverick work.”
“And I think his shows have that, you know, sensibility, coming from the kind of things that inspired him, inspired all of us,” the Cuban American actor further explained. “And now you have to kind of find it more in the independent world, even though making an independent film is extremely difficult these days.”
Sheridan’s “Landman” is based on the podcast “Boomtown.” The show chronicles the Permian Basin oil boom in West Texas that took place in the early 2010s, fueled by advances in oil drilling technology.
At the center of the show is Billy Bob Thornton’s character — Tommy Norris. Thornton portrays a “landman,” a crisis manager working for an oil company called M-Tex.
The show also stars Demi Moore, Ali Larter, Jon Hamm, Jacob Lofland and Michelle Randolph.
Season 2 premiered Nov. 16 on Paramount+.
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Garcia also praised Sheridan’s work ethic and the series’ director, Stephen Kay.
“It’s very, extremely high level in this show,” the “Ocean’s 11” star explained.
“Obviously, [Kay] started also as an actor, so that’s a great benefit to us, the actors, because he has a sensibility about our process,” Garcia said. “And also running three cameras on every setup, so things are moving very efficiently around you … which makes the show very visually stimulating.”
“There’s always interesting angles and cuts and things that are swirling in a way,” the TV star said. “So it’s very exciting. It’s a really privileged situation to work at.”
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Sheridan kept the series authentic by filming in Texas. Garcia said working in the Lone Star State felt much like a classic Hollywood set.
“The only thing is the heat, you know, the level — the 105 degree heat sometimes,” he said. “I grew up in South Florida, so I’m kind of used to heat and humidity, but it never really gets to, like, 105 in South Florida. It’s a different kind of thing. You’ll get into the 80s and maybe close to 90, but the humidity is so intense.”
Thornton previously told Fox News Digital what he learned about real-life oil workers from filming “Landman” in Texas and living in the show’s world for two seasons.
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“I think the thing that I learned that I wasn’t quite aware of before — because I knew some about the oil business — but I knew people more on the sort of suit side of it, you know, in Texas. One of the things that surprised me was how many people who had had broken lives are working in the oil fields,” he explained. “Got ex-cons and all kinds of things working out there because they can make from $120,000 to $180,000 a year to take care of their families when they try to straighten their lives out.”
“And they couldn’t make that much money anywhere else,” Thornton added. “So they’re willing to risk life and limb to support their family.”
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Sheridan emerged as a top screenwriter in the late 2010s with “Sicario,” “Hell or High Water” and “Wind River.”
The screenwriter saw mainstream success with “Yellowstone” after partnering with Paramount on a massive creative contract.
He’s since debuted six additional TV shows within the “Taylor Sheridan Universe.” Those include, “1883,” “1923,” “Mayor of Kingstown,” “Tulsa King,” “Special Ops: Lioness” and “Landman.”
Sheridan has been involved with ranching his entire life, and currently resides on a ranch in Texas.
“That was my dream and I already had it,” Sheridan told The Hollywood Reporter in 2023. “It was a great escape from the fact I was a failing actor living in West Hollywood. The plan was always to become a big movie star, then move back to a ranch and just do movies with Martin Scorsese when I felt like it.”
“But that wasn’t my path,” he said as he laughed.
“I was a fair actor, but that’s all I was ever going to be,” Sheridan added. “Hollywood will tell you what you’re supposed to do if you listen. If you’re banging your head against the wall for 20 years trying to be an actor, maybe you shouldn’t be an actor. But the first thing I ever wrote [the pilot for ‘Mayor of Kingstown’ in 2011] got me meetings at every major network, at every agency. I had multiple people trying to buy it.”
