Dwight Yoakam Reunites With Billy Bob Thornton in New Drama ‘Goliath’
Twenty years after their Oscar-winning Sling Blade, Dwight Yoakam and Billy Bob Thornton are pairing on screen again. The country icon is the newest addition to the cast of Goliath, a straight-to-series drama for Amazon Prime with Thornton in one of its lead roles.
Yoakam will play the leader of a huge aerospace company defended by the law firm at the center of Goliath. Thornton and fellow Hollywood legend William Hurt play two of the firm’s partners in what’s described as “the ultimate David vs. Goliath battle fought in the 21st century American legal system.” Other actors in the cast include Maria Bello (A History of Violence), Olivia Thirlby (Juno), Molly Parker (House of Cards) and Sarah Wynter (24). David E. Kelley, the mastermind behind such shows as Ally McBeal, The Practice and Boston Legal, wrote Goliath with Jonathan Shapiro (The Practice, The Blacklist). Goliath is directed by David Semel, who also worked with Kelley on Ally McBeal and Boston Public.
This is far from Yoakam’s first acting rodeo. He has appeared in shows including Under the Dome and Wilfred, as well as in films including Panic Room, Wedding Crashers and Four Christmases. And in addition to co-starring in Sling Blade, Yoakam and Thornton have also teamed for a long list of TV and movie projects: the 2000 Western film, South of Heaven, West of Hell (also directed by Yoakam); a 2002 documentary, Dirty Life and Times, about the late Warren Zevon; an episode of the cartoon comedy King of the Hill; the made-for-TV movie Don’t Look Back; and both made cameos on the groundbreaking episode of Ellen DeGeneres’ sitcom, Ellen, in which she finally comes out as gay.
Goliath is the second TV project on Yoakam’s 2016 plate. He is also working alongside comedian Jack Black to produce a Nashville-based sitcom called Belles and Whistles. The half-hour Fox show is about a father who uproots his dysfunctional family from Silicon Valley to Music City in pursuit of a country music career.
There is no official word yet on when Belles and Whistles or Goliath will premiere.