MIDLAND TEXAS, TEXAS - 2026
For most people outside Texas, Taylor Sheridan’s Landman series has been a crash course in life in the Permian oil basin. It is unfamiliar territory and yet the assets underground play a vital role in everyday life for Americans.
Average daily oil production in the Permian is 7 million barrels - half of the total oil production in America (and America is the world’s largest oil producer). That makes West Texas an important cog in the energy wheel and Texans know it.
Midland / Odessa may not be on everyone’s dance card as a destination; it is a wall of trucks, tankers and piles of everything needed for horizontal drilling and fracking. It would not win awards for serenity and calm, but it has money​ -restaurants in town do over $22m of turnover a year.
Landman has not been shy in exploring the alchemy where a basic resource like oil can be turned into something more golden - throw in parody, glamorous women and Billy Bob Thornton - and life on the patch can look fairly sexy. It is a tough man’s job, but it does seem to come with some decent perks.
Taylor Sheridan must be one of the hardest working men I know. He is a formidable storyteller and his team in and around Fort Worth has taught us the importance of total commitment to their creative craft. We understand that there are no short cuts along the extra mile and when shooting this series, we had a big and experienced crew and I think it showed.
We would like to thank Cody Campbell and his alumni friends from Texas Tech for their help in the Permian basin. They are good landmen.