Thornton, who stars as the title landman, played an alcoholic mall Santa in the 2003 dark comedy Bad Santa. That character was a match for what Sheridan wanted for Landman’s protagonist, he shared on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast in late June.
“I want to take your character from Bad Santa and put him in West Texas and run an oil company,” Sheridan said he told Thornton.
According to Sheridan, Thornton said the idea sounded “[expletive] awesome.”
Thornton’s portrayal of the rugged oil executive paid off: He received a Golden Globe nomination for his Landman performance in 2025. The actor previously won Golden Globes for Goliath and Fargo and was nominated for Bad Santa.
Landman Season 2’s premiere in November 2025 gained more than 9.2 million views within two days of its release. Season 3‘s release date is currently unknown, but filming is expected to start in late August, Thornton revealed. The show filmed its first two seasons in North Texas and is slated to return for Season 3.
As audiences await the third season, they can stream seasons 1 and 2 on Paramount +.