Blood & Oil

Production

The script for what would become "Blood & Oil" was originally written by Josh Pate and Rodes Fishburne, with Tony Krantz serving as executive producer. ABC first acquired the project in September 2011 under the working title "The Bakken," alongside several other Krantz projects, but chose not to order a pilot for the 2012–13 season. In October 2014, the project shifted to the USA Network, retitled "Boom," with ABC still attached as producer, yet it never went into production.

On January 30, 2015, the project returned to ABC, which picked it up as a pilot. Filming took place in Northern Utah under director Jonas Pate. ABC ordered the pilot to series on May 7, 2015, though it remained untitled at that point. By May 27, the series was called "Oil."

On June 1, Cynthia Cidre was brought on as executive producer and co-showrunner, with the project now named "Blood & Oil." However, on August 5, Jon Harmon Feldman replaced Cidre as showrunner after production encountered difficulties due to the project's large scale.

Casting calls went out in February 2015. Scott Michael Foster was cast as Wick, a wealthy young character. Rebecca Rittenhouse and India de Beaufort secured the main female roles. On March 9, Don Johnson was announced as the lead, playing the town's most powerful man and family patriarch; he also became an executive producer on the series. Delroy Lindo was set to co-star as the sheriff. Chace Crawford joined on March 11 as a main protagonist, with Yani Gellman and Caitlin Carver cast as series regulars. The following day, Amber Valletta was cast as Hap's new wife.

After the pilot was picked up, ABC began adjusting the cast. On May 26, 2015, it was revealed that Caitlin Carver and Yani Gellman, originally playing Lacey Briggs and A.J. Menendez, would leave the show, and their roles would be recast. Adan Canto replaced Gellman as A.J. Menendez on July 6. On July 20, Aurora Perrineau took over the role of Lacey from Carver; the character was rewritten as biracial, reflecting that Hap had fathered her out of wedlock. Less than two weeks later, on August 4, Miranda Rae Mayo replaced Perrineau as Lacey, as the character was reconceived to be slightly older.

Reception

Critics gave the series middling marks, with many drawing comparisons to the original Dallas and its 2012 reboot. On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds a 62 percent approval rating from 42 reviews, averaging 5.9 out of 10. The site’s consensus describes the show as tolerable thanks to its high stakes and bawdy plots, which help offset a plain premise and flat characters. Over on Metacritic, the season scored 49 out of 100 based on 23 critic reviews, landing in the “mixed or average” category.

Willa Paskin of Slate called the show an outright soap opera rather than a realistic drama. David Wiegland of the San Francisco Chronicle offered a mixed take, noting that viewers can see where the story is headed but that the series isn’t trying to surprise anyone. He acknowledged it works the same territory as Dallas, even if it may not last as long. Maureen Ryan of The Huffington Post was critical, arguing that aside from Don Johnson’s shrewd oil baron, one savvy older character can’t carry an entire show, especially when the rest feels so mechanical.

Hank Stuever of The Washington Post panned it outright, calling it dreadfully conceived and horribly acted. On the other hand, Gail Pennington of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch was slightly more positive, praising the fresh setting of the North Dakota oil boom while noting the tone is very Dallas and the storytelling is as melodramatic as the title suggests.