If you ever listened to Christian Wallace narrate wild tales on the Boomtown podcast, buckle up. This ride gets even crazier. Picture this: a guy who wrangled pumpjacks as a roughneck now wrangles cameras, actors, and scripts in Hollywood. Wallace’s oilfield boots might be covered in Permian dust, but he just tracked that authentic West Texas spirit all the way into TV land. This is how he transformed Boomtown from a binge-worthy audio hit into Landman, the latest Taylor Sheridan-backed TV juggernaut on Paramount+. Spoiler: there’s more Texas in here than anywhere short of a Buc-ee’s.
From Dusty Beginnings to Digital Gold
Let’s rewind to December 2019. Podcasts were surging, true crime ruled, and suddenly Boomtown exploded into the scene. Texas Monthly and Imperative Entertainment produced it, but Wallace’s voice — equal parts laid-back and laser sharp — made this show sing. Why did people tune in? Real stories, real grit. No glitz — just oilfield honesty. And audiences loved it. Search data shows Boomtown climbed to the top of iTunes and Spotify’s doc charts super fast, wedging itself in the top twenty.
Here’s why listeners kept coming back:
- Wallace grew up boots-on-the-ground West Texan. He wasn’t swooping in to “research the locals.” He was one of them.
- He spun outrageous yarns: funny, tragic, strange, and always from someone’s firsthand experience.
- And — importantly — he called out the environmental, economic, and personal costs. This wasn’t an industry puff piece.
Boomtown found such a rabid audience that, by early 2020, Hollywood producers started sniffing around. Among them? Taylor Sheridan, the screenwriter and showrunner behind Yellowstone and Sicario. Sheridan knows his cowboys and lawmen, but he wanted more Texas realism. Why chase authenticity when you can just partner with the real deal?
Trading Podcast Mics for TV Cameras
So how does a podcast about oil booms become a full-blown drama series? Wallace didn’t just cash in his story rights and split. Nope. He got in the trenches.
- Wallace teamed up directly with Sheridan. Instead of handing off the story, he pulled up a chair in the writers’ room and got to work.
- He didn’t just want “Hollywood oilfields.” He wanted camera rigs slathered with real dirt, extras breathing the right brand of diesel fumes, and language with genuine Texas twang.
- And here’s the kicker: Wallace joined the set. Not as a visitor. As a tech advisor, collaborator, and (often) designated “That’s not how you swing a wrench!” guy.
This hands-on spirit led to some hilarious moments. Rumor has it Wallace coached actors on how to tap a pipe correctly and even adjusted crew wardrobe to keep things accurate. When Billy Bob Thornton strolled on set as Tommy Norris, Wallace was the one making sure his boots weren’t “too clean to be true.”
Meet Tommy Norris — and Why Billy Bob Nails It
The casting, of course, makes or breaks a show like this. Assigning Billy Bob Thornton the role of Tommy Norris, a crisis-wrangling oilman, felt inspired. Thornton runs on a strange but electric energy. Wallace admits in interviews that Thornton brought unexpected layers to Norris — a dash of swagger, loads of vulnerability, and that specific type of Texas stubbornness.
Ali Larter as Angela (“the ex-wife you can’t shake”) brings sparks, while costars like Jon Bass anchor the show with brotherly banter. The chemistry? It’s real — sometimes messy, often hilarious, and just as layered as the industry it dramatizes.
Let’s not forget the wildcards:
- “Landman” isn’t about one oilman’s rags-to-riches glory. It’s the story of families, bosses, laborers, schemers, dreamers, and survivors. If there’s drama in a mud-soaked field anywhere near Midland, it’s in this show.
- Characters curse, scrap, make up, and lean on one another. You feel the West Texas wind blowing through every scene, partly because Wallace refuses to let Hollywood gloss over the details.
A Record-Smashing Debut on Paramount+
So what happened when the series finally dropped? On November 17, 2024, Landman premiered on Paramount+. Anticipation buzzed on social media and industry sites. Early numbers looked wild: in just the first week, over 35 million people watched the premiere episode. Paramount+ scrambled to confirm, then boasted it as their most-watched global launch ever.
Now, calling Landman a gritty oil soap undersells it. Sure, there’s big money, bigger egos, and explosive family squabbles. But Wallace’s touch gives the TV series added punch:
- It shows the broader impact of oil: economics, local communities, geopolitics, and even climate shifts.
- Wallace pulls viewers in with characters who struggle — sometimes falling hard, occasionally striking it rich, but always wrestling with costs.
- This is not a promo for the oil business. It’s an unflinching look at the industry’s double-edged sword.
Rotten Tomatoes threw a 78% approval rating at the show, with critics calling it “highly watchable.” Some compared the vibe to Yellowstone, but many noted: Thornton’s performance, guided by Wallace’s real-world details, sets Landman apart.
Fans and Critics Weigh In
Once the show landed, fans took to Reddit, X, and everywhere else. Permian locals called out tiny details — like which brand of boots extras wore in bar scenes — as proof of Wallace’s obsession with getting it right.
- “I worked that same patch. That’s my cousin’s truck!” one Twitter user joked.
- Critics nodded at the show’s diverse cast and themes — this wasn’t just dudes talking about barrels and profits. Family loyalty rubbed elbows with big oil politics. And West Texas, frankly, looked stunning.
Wallace spent time on set, sure, but he kept his ear to the digital ground. When viewers griped about realism, he’d post behind-the-scenes info showing how seriously the crew took his notes. By midsummer 2025, Landman merchandise popped up everywhere from Texas gift shops to Hollywood boutiques.
Rolling Into Season 2 — What’s Next?
Given the red-hot debut, Paramount+ renewed Landman for a second season in March 2025. New faces keep leaping aboard. Biggest get? Sam Elliott announced as a series regular. That’s pure Texas gold.
- Production kicked off in April, with a lot of the filming lucky enough to happen right in Texas. Expect another ten episodes, each with storylines driven by even crazier true tales (courtesy of Wallace’s deep research stash).
- Early teasers hint at deeper dives: environmental regulators shaking things up, wind vs oil territory wars, and family secrets bubbling up even faster than sweet crude.
Behind the scenes, Wallace maintains his dual roles. He still consults, occasionally scripts scenes, and — more often than not — still points out when props need dustier grime. On socials, he teases that some of the wildest season 2 moments come straight from stories podcast fans might recognize.
The Boom Just Keeps Rolling
So where does all this leave Christian Wallace? Not coasting, that’s for sure. He still hangs his hat in Texas, still digs for big stories, and doesn’t shy away from hard truths about the industry that paid his bills and nearly broke him. He told UPI in a spring 2025 interview that seeing Landman become the talk of TV “still feels as wild as anything that happened in the patch.”
Some people see oilfields — and only picture rigs and profits. Wallace sees a thousand human dramas, both epic and everyday. He took a podcast that could’ve faded quietly after charting high and poured it into a show that’s sparking tough conversations across dinner tables (and, let’s be honest, raucous group chats).
If you want a TV series that stands out for its realism, dives into the true messiness of West Texas, and gives big-hearted props to the blue-collar legends who built boomtowns, stay tuned. Christian Wallace’s wild ride from the dusty flats to the red carpet looks set to pump out stories for seasons to come. And you better believe we’ll be here covering every twist, turn, and thunderstorm along the way.
