This conversation is sponsored by Paramount+.
Growing up, one of Billy Bob Thornton’s favorite movies was “Giant,” the epic Western starring Rock Hudson, James Dean, and Elizabeth Taylor. Now, Thornton gets to lead his own sprawling Texas-set drama with “Landman,” the latest Paramount+ series from “Yellowstone” mastermind Taylor Sheridan, co-created with “Boomtown” podcast host Christian Wallace.
“This is kind of like ‘Giant’ if David Lynch were producing it,” Thornton tells Backstage about “Landman,” before thinking of an even more succinct comparison: “It’s like ‘Giant’ with cursing.”
Thornton’s portrayal of grizzled oil company fixer Tommy Norris has earned him his seventh Golden Globe nomination (he’s won twice at the Globes before, for his roles on “Fargo” and “Goliath”). But even with the continued attention and accolades he receives, Thornton, 69, hasn’t let himself get complacent.
“You have to keep dreaming. If you stop dreaming, you die as an artist, I believe,” he says. “So even at my age, I still dream. Every time I do a project, I act like it’s my first one. I have the same excitement that I did when I got my first role.”
In this conversation, Backstage’s experts editor Madeline Roth chats with Thornton about what drew him to “Landman” and why he loves playing “complex” characters like Tommy. He also discusses how failure has “fueled” his career, shares his most valuable advice for actors, and reflects on his holiday movie oeuvre that includes both “Love Actually” and “Bad Santa.”
