Where this was said
Landman, Oil Dependency, and Billy Bob Thornton
At 39:42 · chapter starts 38:30
The discussion of Sheridan's creative process focuses on Landman, which Sheridan pitched to Billy Bob Thornton before writing a single scene: take the guy from Bad Santa, put him in West Texas, and have him run an oil company. Thornton's immediate response was 'that sounds fucking awesome,' and that was that. Rogan notes the educational dimension — most people have no idea how the oil business actually operates, and Landman demystifies it. Sheridan seizes on this to make a broader point: the entire modern world — every product, every process, every form of transportation — runs on petroleum. We can debate whether that's desirable, but the debate doesn't change the facts. No engineer or climatologist will tell you there's a replacement available today. Cold fusion, the best candidate, is 30–40 years from viability. Small modular nuclear reactors show promise but can't be trusted with the general public yet. We are where we are. The practical implication, Sheridan argues, is that much of US foreign policy — including the military presence around Iran and the Strait of Hormuz — ultimately traces back to oil dependency.
When Sheridan's ex-convict friend Tom Nelson called him broke and dying from a suspected cancer diagnosis, Sheridan didn't give him money — he gave him a book deal. Modeled on Lonely Planet guides, How Not to Die in Prison walks first-timers through day one processing, gang navigation, commissary, riots, and how to make a shiv — formatted as a literal travel guide to incarceration.
Approximately 40% of the world's oil supply passes through the Strait of Hormuz, making it one of the most strategically critical waterways on Earth.
Tom Nelson, the co-author of Sheridan's prison book, served 17 years for drug dealing, armed robbery, and running over a DEA agent before becoming a personal trainer.
