INTERVIEW: CJ Cutter talks ‘Blood and Oil,’ a new show on Discovery Channel

CJ Cutter has a lot on his plate. The Ohio oilman is charged with keeping his family working together both personally and professionally. The Cutter Oil Company, subject of Discovery Channel’s new reality series Blood and Oil, has many obstacles for CJ to navigate. After the untimely death of his father, Chuck, CJ and his family have been left with difficult choices surrounding the family business. It’s up to them to make it out with more oil than blood.

Adjusting to having a camera crew filming his action has been fairly easy for CJ. “It’s different, but when I’m doing my job, I’m pretty intense into my work,” CJ said recently during a phone interview. “And really, to be honest with you, you really don’t know they’re there.”

The show highlights the family’s travails, but it also sheds light on the booming oil business in Ohio. “There’s a lot of work,” CJ said. “A lot of it is going to a lot of the out-of-state companies that they bring in their own people. But I mean for the local guys, it’s tough.”

Cutter Oil Company has been drilling wells for more than 30 years thanks to CJ’s father, Chuck, whose unexpected death threw the family into crisis mode. Today, CJ tries to focus on the lessons his father left him. “I grew up in the business. I mean my dad’s had me working since I was 8, and I’ve been on machinery since I was 9. … All summers your job was with dad in the oil field doing something.”

Professionally, CJ has a strategy to get Cutter Oil back on track. Personally, it may take a little longer. “Anybody that goes through [the loss of a loved one], I mean, when it’s that sudden, I don’t care who you are, I mean it takes a little while to get used to and adjust,” he said. “I mean there’s times when you got to deal with the grieving part.”

When talking about the company and his father, CJ used the word “legacy,” which can be seen as both an honor and a burden. For this family business, keeping everything “strong” and “as lively as you can” can be difficult, but it’s necessary.

Of course, CJ has the unique challenge of leading family members not just colleagues, but he said the positive days far outnumber the negative ones. “Everybody has their bad days, and you know it comes out,” he said. “And it’s hard when you work as a family and you have a business as a family. So I mean you can’t just walk away from it. I mean when you’re gone, you’re still involved in it. But honestly I wouldn’t have it any different. Anybody that is a family business owner will know exactly what I’m saying. I mean you have your moments, but when stuff gets deep and there’s something that has to be done, or anything like that, your family jumps right in there and you get it done.”

One of those examples of “getting it done” involved a controversial decision to drill on the Cutter family land. CJ wanted to keep the action “close to home” and offer a carrot for the workers. He needed something new to rebound from the difficulty of his father’s death. “That was my main motivation on getting the family back involved because it is a heavy blow losing dad like that, that fast. You know you’re not ready for it, you know, and the last thing anybody wants to hear about is, ‘Hey, let’s go drill some wells right now.’ So I’ve always been the pusher. … The last few years, I’ve drilled Cutter Oil to be one of the top well producers in the state, all because I hate to lose. I mean it’s a I-hate-to-lose attitude.”

CJ said viewers should identify with the family values displayed on Blood and Oil, which airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. on Discovery. He knows his mother and father’s message of working hard and believing in one’s labor will shine through to the audience. “And if you do gamble and you hit it big, that’s one thing about this industry, you could be rewarded with production and stuff like that,” CJ said. “I learn stuff every day even now, and I’ve been doing it my whole life. So I mean it’s not an industry you can just walk in and start up.”

And here’s a bit of advice for anyone looking to strike gold in Ohio: “For someone just to start up, I mean it’s America. If they want to, you know, it’s a very tough business to get involved in and stay on top of your game. … You just don’t do it one generation. You hope the second generation, third generation keep the legacy of your family alive.”

CJ needed to start at the bottom of the totem pole as well. “[My dad] kind of threw me to the wolves and said, ‘Start at the bottom.’ So I started. … My dad would answer questions for me here or there, but he wanted me to do it on my own and learn it on my own.”

Looking back, CJ said his family has grown closer despite the obstacles and tough business developments. They’re still drilling, still surviving. “I would say we’re a close family, closer now than when my dad was here and not in a bad way. But that’s what he wanted. He wanted us to be close. Our family, my brothers and sisters, they’re my friends, too. So I mean that’s what’s nice.”

By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com

• Blood and Oil airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. on Discovery Channel.