Taylor Sheridan has become synonymous with telling stories of powerful, roughnecking men, be they cowboys inYellowstone, mafiosos inTulsa King, and power brokers inMayor of Kingstown. He’s struck gold again with his hit showLandman, which premiered in 2024. StarringBilly Bob Thorntonin the lead role of Tommy Norris, the show features a very specific subset of the population: the Texas oil industry. Rather than follow the boardroom antics of a billionaire tycoon (although we get glimpses of one, aptly played by Jon Hamm), it instead focuses on the everyday boots-on-the-ground work required to keep the industry running.
Tommy is a landman for a company called M-TEX Oil. In other words, he negotiates leases with landowners, acts as the go-between for the working men and the big boss, and is basically a “fixer” for whatever emergency might come up. His day might consist of convincing his boss to make a multi-million-dollar deal, seeing one of his workers get crushed to death by steel pipes, and then facing off with Mexican drug cartels. He’s a hard-talking, no-bulls***ing guy who is just trying to make it to the end of each day.
When he smashes a finger with a sledgehammer and the emergency department is dragging their feet, Tommy says, “It’s just a tiny piece of a pinky. I ain’t ding around with 12 surgeries for a fing year. Just cut it off and sew up the f***ing top.” At the ER doc’s disbeliving look, he whips out a knife and chops the digit off himself. He doesn’t have time for silly things like hospital visits and family dinners — he’s got work to do. And he would rather eat Vienna sausages cold out of the can, anyway.
The pinky scene is just the, well, tip of the iceberg. Nearly every line out of Tommy’s mouth will have you cracking a smile or gasping in disbelief, but what makes his character so great are some of the lengthy diatribes Billy Bob Thornton gets to deliver. They’re often sarcastic, rude, and littered with cusses, but there’s always an important point that he’s trying to deliver that’s usually both poignant and informative — and sometimes seems directed at the audience.
10"I quit drinking. I’ll stick with beer."
One of the first personal details the audience learns about Tommy Norris is that he’s a recovering alcoholic, which he brings up several times over the series. However, he lives by his own definition of sobriety — which includes beer. When questioned by those around him, he’s not interested in a lecture on alcohol content; he just wants his pitcher of Ultra, thank you very much.
BARTENDER:You sticking with beer or you want something stronger?
TOMMY:I quit drinking. I’ll stick with beer.
BARTENDER:You know, there’s alcohol in that, right?
TOMMY:It’s a Michelob Ultra. There’s more alcohol in orange juice."
It’s clear Tommy didn’t give up hard liquor for his health (he’s a two-pack-a-day smoker), and though we don’t ever see him drunk, it’s not hard to picture. He’d likely be just as vulgar and angry but probably much worse at his job. Heavy machinery and blackouts don’t mix. However, Tommy’s alcoholism garners respect for his character, having proved that he’s overcome hardships in the past (including an oil bust where he lost nearly everything). He doesn’t complain. He just puts one foot in front of the other. And his dedication to staying away from the whiskey is commendable, considering his high-stakes and overwhelming job.
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Kayla Wallace stars as Rebecca Falcone, a spitfire causation lawyer sent to Midland to investigate an oil pump explosion that resulted in the death of three M-TEX workers. She and Tommy don’t see eye-to-eye (she’s pro-green energy, anti-fossil fuels), but she proves to be formidable at her job. At the end of the series, she is hired by M-TEX as a negotiator, though she’s concerned about her lack of knowledge about the industry and the morality of working for an oil company — but Tommy is more than happy to point out the flaws in her point of view.
REBECCA:I have a really hard time advocating for something I believe is wrong.
TOMMY:Good and bad don’t factor into this, Rebecca. Our great-grandparents built a world that runs on this s*** right here. Until it starts running on something else, we got to feed it, or the world stops. There is an alternative. you may throw your phone away and trade that Mercedes in for a bicycle or a horse and start hunting your own food and living in a tent, but you’ll be the only one and it won’t make a damn bit of difference. Plus, I hear the moral high ground gets real windy at night.
Rebecca is the only character onLandmanwho is not completely on the side of big oil, and as such, she often acts as a substitute for viewers who might have opposing views on the industry. Tommy often counteracts her points by explaining why oil is necessary, and though he’s clapping back at her, it also comes across as a lesson for the audience to help us understand the perspective of the real people who live in these communities. With Taylor Sheridan writing the show and his proven dedication to accurately portraying the American South, that’s probably the goal.
8"Trying to get money from a billionaire is like pulling teeth."
Jon Hamm plays Monty Miller onLandman, the billionaire owner of M-TEX and Tommy’s longtime employer and friend. The brief glimpses we get into his life highlight the massive differences in his lifestyle compared to the rest of the characters, such as the massive mansion he lives in with his wife Cami (Demi Moore, who we’ll be seeing more of) and two teenage daughters, who he largely ignores. He spends his time glad-handing Senators, chastising green energy lobbyists in boardrooms, and screaming into his cell phone in the back of his limo — or, you know, in the hospital after his fifth heart attack. No one said being the boss was easy.
My god. Tell you what, trying to get money from a billionaire is like pulling teeth. I mean, you would’ve thought I just asked the f***ing guy for a kidney.
Though Tommy considers Monty a friend, he gets understandably annoyed when his boss insists on pinching pennies instead of spending money where it’s needed. He’s much more likely to throw funds at repairing broken wells (because they will bring in more profit later, not because he cares about OSHA regulations or worker safety) than to properly compensate the families of men who were killed on the job — even if it’s only a drop in the bucket of his bank account. Tommy is the only character who straddles both worlds and has a clear view of the class disparity between the oil tycoons and the rest of the industry.
7"Don’t get syphilis."
Angela Norris is introduced toLandmanviewers as Tommy’s crass, blonde, big-breasted ex-wife whom he has an equally contentious and passionate relationship with. They’re just as likely to cuss each other out as they are to jump into bed — both before and after they reconcile. When Angela tells Tommy she’s going on vacation with her new husband (a millionaire she left Tommy for after the oil bust) and tries to lecture him about their daughter, he responds with the following quip:
You know, one of the great joys of being divorced is I don’t have to listen to this s***. Enjoy the beach. Your tits look great. Don’t get syphilis.
As ridiculous as this interaction is, it perfectly encapsulates the dynamic between Tommy and Angela. It’s vulgar and biting, but there’s an underlying feeling of camaraderie and care in the words. They remain just as harsh toward each other after deciding to give it another go, but their mutual love for their children is clear, and it’s easy to picture the younger versions of them that first fell in love. It’s certainly not a fairy tale, but they’re content to live in the mess they made.
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6"Fathers and daughters need to live by a code."
Tommy’s 17-year-old daughter, Aynsley, is the least developed main character inLandmanSeason 1, and her entire personality seems to revolve around sex and her life goal of becoming the perfect trophy wife. She’s clearly her mother’s daughter, but it’s her relationship with her dad that really highlights their differences. Tommy is the picture of the angry dad ready to rough up any footballer that dares touch his little girl. However, when Aynsley comes to live with him, he is forced to accept that she’s grown up and is mortified when her sexuality is continually tossed in his face.
TOMMY:In case you haven’t figured it out, you’re grounded.
AYNSLEY:What? you may’t do that, Daddy. The age of consent in Texas is 17. So grounding me violates my constitutional rights.
TOMMY:Listen, fathers and daughters need to live by a code, so you tell me you’re a virgin until the day you die, and if you ever have kids, tell me you’re artificially inseminated. And if you can do that for me, I’ll pay for college and your little BMW and the apartment and all that s***. But, please, give me the illusion.
AYNSLEY:So, you want me to lie?
TOMMY:With your whole heart.
Tommy’s relationship with Aynsley is the only timeLandmanviewers see him deliberately ignoring the facts in front of him. Though he usually sees everything for what it is, his desire to keep his daughter innocent (at least in his mind) showcases a softer side of him. It’s also in harsh contrast to how he treats his son, Cooper, whom he clearly loves but has no problem throwing harsh words at to get his point across.
5"We have a 120-year petroleum-based infrastructure. Our whole lives depend on it."
This interaction between Tommy and Rebecca occurs shortly after she arrives in town. After she makes her opinions clear on the oil industry, pointing out wind turbines in the distance as an alternative, Tommy drives her up to one to make a point. As she stares up at the massive structure, he explains why her vision is flawed.
Do you have any idea how much diesel they have to burn to mix that much concrete? Or make that steel and haul this s*** out here and put it together with a 450-foot crane? You want to guess how much oil it takes to lubricate that f***ing thing? Or winterize it? In its 20-year lifespan, it won’t offset the carbon footprint of making it.
And don’t get me started on solar panels and the lithium in your Tesla battery. And nevermind the fact that if the whole world decided to go electric tomorrow, we don’t have the transmission lines to get the electricity to the cities. It’d take 30 years if we started tomorrow. And, unfortunately, for your grandkids, we have a 120-year petroleum-based infrastructure. Our whole lives depend on it.
And, hell, it’s in everything. That road we came in on. The wheels on every car ever made, including yours. It’s in tennis rackets and lipstick and refrigerators and antihistamines. Pretty much anything plastic. Your cell phone case, artificial heart valves. Any kind of clothing that’s not made with animal or plant fibers. Soap, fing hand lotion, garbage bags, fishing boats. You name it. Every fing thing. And you know what the kicker is? We’re gonna run out of it before we find its replacement.
Tommy’s lecture here is one of the most obvious attempts to educate the audience, through Rebecca’s character. It’s clearly meant to be educational but, as viewers, you’re able to’t even be that annoyed about it because he is so convincing (likely becauseTaylor Sheridan specifically wrote the role of Tommy for Billy Bob Thornton). It also lends more respect to his character — he’s allowed to be as much of a hard-ass as he wants because he knows what he’s talking about and has the experience to back it up.
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4"Getting oil out of the ground’s the most dangerous job in the world."
This is yet another instance of Tommy educating Rebecca about the oil industry, but it serves a bigger purpose. It encompasses the entire message of the show in a few simple sentences, reinforcing how these companies are forced to adapt and grow to keep up with a world run almost entirely on an energy source they love to condemn but would likely despair without — and it’s not easy to do.
Getting oil out of the ground’s the most dangerous job in the world. We don’t do it ‘cause we like it. We do it cause we run out of options. And you’re out here trying to find something to blame for the danger besides your boss. There ain’t nobody to blame but the demand that we keep pumping it.
The point that Tommy makes about the danger of the work is proven repeatedly throughout the season. One second, someone’s chatting with a friend while opening a valve with a pipe wrench. The next second, the pump explodes, and three people are dead, and countless lives are altered. Or a guy complains about a wrong order as he stands on top of a truckbed full of steel pipes and makes one wrong move; 10 seconds later, he’s being crushed to death by the load and desperately trying to call his wife before he bleeds out.Landmandoesn’t shy away from the harsh realities of these jobs and happily puts them right in the viewer’s face.
3"You f***ed with the wrong hillbilly."
Despite the tension between father and son, Tommy immediately comes to Cooper’s defense when he’s nearly beaten to death by members of his crew, who blame him for the explosion that killed their family members. After checking on Cooper in the hospital and checking in with the Sheriff to ensure a headstart, Tommy rounds up Dale and goes to confront the perpetrators — both as a boss and a dad.
Have a seat, Manuel. Here’s how this is gonna go. Needless to say, you’re fired. By noon tomorrow, you’ll be on a “no hire” list for every fing oil company in the Permian Basin. Sheriff’s gonna be here in about five minutes, and he’s gonna toss this fing place. And I’m just guessing he’ll add felon in possession of a firearm, possession of a controlled substance, and maybe possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute.
Any goddamn one of those violates your parole. And then you add on top of that s***, aggravated assault charge, and kidnapping, ‘cause when you shut the door on him, that’s kidnapping. I ain’t a goddamn mathematician, but that’s, like, 30 years. That’s what I do to people who hurt my family. You f***ed with the wrong hillbilly. I’m gonna take 30 years of your life away from you. And if you ever come back to this place, I’m gonna take the rest of it.
While most of Tommy’s more aggressive diatribes are aimed at the cartel, this is an excellent example of how he’s willing to get his hands dirty when he or someone he loves has been betrayed, even by one of their own. (He split Manuel’s head open with a pistol whip before sitting him down for this little chat.) This leaves no question that Tommy is in charge and sends a message to everyone else that his family isn’t to be trifled with.
2"Dreamers and losers."
When Aynsley finds out that her brother Cooper dropped out of college to work in the Patch for Tommy, she calls him a loser, inadvertently insulting her father and the massive number of men who do the dirty work in the oil fields. She’s a spoiled teenager who hasn’t yet grasped all the lessons that Tommy tries to teach Rebecca, but in this instance, instead of lecturing his daughter on energy sources, he’s more concerned with the humanity aspect of the equation. Why are these fields filled with workers in the first place?
TOMMY: Let me tell you something, honey. There’s two types of people that work in the Patch — dreamers and losers. Used to be that way in the whole nation. Failures headed out West to either die or succeed. All the way to California. But there’s not any dreamers out there anymore, just thieves and fools. This is where dreamers come now. And losers come here to win. Which one are you gonna be?
AYNSLEY: A dreamer.
TOMMY: First attempt’s always a failure, so it means you’re gonna be a loser. Wonder what you’ll do then.
This quote is an answer to the question of why anybody would put up with the dangers of these jobs and why each man out there is eager to succeed. For many of the men, it’s the only alternative to gangs or prison and a way to make a good living. For others, like Cooper, it’s a stepping stone to becoming the Montys of the world, owning the companies and having all the power. Tommy explains oil as a modern-day gold rush — people have been chasing fortune since the beginning of time. It’s only the form of the treasure that changes.
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1"A wish in one hand is s*** in the other."
One of the best parts ofLandmanis Tommy’s tirades, and none are quite as good as when he’s facing off with the cartel (especially opposite his friend Andy Garcia, who appears in the finale). The significance of this quote is more than the sum of its parts. It’s the very first scene of the show, which establishes exactly what kind of character Tommy is right out of the gate — and we haven’t even seen his face yet. The entire interaction occurs with Tommy tied to a chair with a bag over his head, and a gun pointed at him.
CARTEL:We don’t want your oil here.
TOMMY:Well, a wish in one hand, is s*** in the other. See which fills up first.
CARTEL:Maybe I slice you from your huevos to your throat and hang you from a bridge. Huh? See if oil companies come then.
TOMMY:Well, first they’ll hire Halliburton to build files on you fking aholes that the FBI only dreams about having. Then they’ll send 30 Tier 1 operators from Triple Canopy, and they’ll bust you like a fing piñata. And if any of you dipss make it back to Mexico, they’ll blow your fing house up with a drone. With your family in it. It cost six million to put in a new well. They’re putting in 800 right fing here. That’s $4.8 billion in pumpjacks. They’ll put in another billion on water and housing and trucking. At $78 a barrel, that’s $6.4 million a day. For the next 50 f**ing years. So, yeah, the oil company’s coming.
Someone who has the balls to argue back to the cartel so viciously while at their mercy either has balls of steel or a damn good argument — or both. Not to mention, it takes some serious acting to pull off such a vitriolic speech without facial expressions to help. Luckily, Billy Bob Thornton gets his point across quite nicely with only the use of his voice. In fact, his cadence and intonations are often more telling than the words themselves. This opening scene shows the audience exactly what they’re in for and ensures they want to come back for more. Luckily,LandmanSeason 2is on the way.
