“Landman” is here. Taylor Sheridan’s latest series, based on the Texas Monthly podcast “Boomtown,” has started streaming on Paramount+, and it’s already a sensation. It’s the biggest global series premiere on Paramount+ in two years, with more than 5.2 million views on the streaming service and the Paramount Network, where it aired following the second episode of “Yellowstone” 5B.
Set in the oil fields of Texas, “Landman” is full of colorful characters essayed by some of our very best actors. Let’s get into it, shall we? Can we get a yee-haw?
Billy Bob Thornton as Tommy Norris
Tommy Norris is a crisis executive (basically a fixer) at a fictional oil company M-Tex Oil. In the opening scenes of the series, he is kidnapped by a Mexican cartel and forced to deal with a situation where an oil tanker has collided with one of the cartel’s private planes. And it only gets more complicated than that.
Norris is a weather-beaten, alcoholic, chain-smoking roughneck who is up to his eyeballs in debt and dealing with frequently aggravating family issues (more on that in a minute). Still – he knows the business inside and out and knows how to handle a sticky situation.
Billy Bob Thornton, of course, is the Oscar-winning writer of “Sling Blade,” who has appeared in so many wonderful movies, in so many wonderful roles, including in “One False Move” (a film he co-wrote), “Tombstone,” “Armageddon” and “The Man Who Wasn’t There.” On the small screen, he has starred in every thing from CBS sitcom “Hearts Afire” (from 1992 to 1995), in the first cycle of “Fargo” and more recently in the Amazon legal drama “Goliath.”
Jon Hamm as Monty Miller
Monty Miller is a shadowy oil executive and longtime associate of Norris’. That’s really all we know at this point.
Jon Hamm, of course, starred in the most recent cycle of “Fargo” and is perhaps best known for his role as cutthroat ad man Don Draper on AMC’s “Mad Men.” On the big screen he has appeared in “Bridesmaids,” “Bad Times at the El Royale” and “Top Gun: Maverick,” among many others.
Ali Larter as Angela
Angela Norris is Tommy’s ex-wife and the father of his two children – Cooper and Ainsley. She is extremely flirty and newly remarried to a much richer husband.
Ali Larter recently had a recurring role on “The Rookie” from 2019 to 2020 and was one of the main characters on “Heroes” from 2006 to 2010. (She did not return for the series reboot.) Larter has also been in a number of features, including several of the “Resident Evil” movies and the first two “Final Destination” outings.
Jacob Lofland as Cooper Norris
Cooper Norris is Tommy’s hardheaded son. As the season begins, he is setting off on his path to become a landman himself, first as a roughneck on the patches. (If you’ve watched the first episode, you know how dangerous that can be.) As he expresses to his father, who is not happy with his chosen line of work, he wishes to work his way up to become a true baron. But will he live long enough to get there?
Jacob Lofland appeared in two of the “Maze Runner” movies (“The Scorch Trials” and “The Death Cure”) and earlier this year had a small role in “Joker: Folie à Deux.” On television, he had a 10-episode arc on “Justified,” starred in the miniseries “Texas Rising” and had a recurring role on “The Son” (from 2017 to 2019).
Demi Moore as Cami Miller
Cami Miller is Monty’s wife and Tommy’s friend. That’s about all we know so far – her appearances have been fleeting. But we suspect there’s something beneath the surface.
Demi Moore is a true legend. Earlier this year she starred in the buzzy Cannes title “The Substance” that went on to be a sleeper hit. She also appeared earlier this year in the Brat Pack documentary “Brats.” She started her career back in the 1980s, making an impression in projects like “St. Elmo’s Fire” and “One Crazy Summer,” before breaking through with more adult roles in the 1990s with “Ghost,” “A Few Good Men,” “Indecent Proposal” and “Disclosure.” She was also the voice of Esmeralda in Disney’s “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.”
Kayla Wallace as Rebecca Falcone
Rebecca Falcone is an outside attorney working for the oil company. She soon gets embroiled in the various setbacks the company is facing at the beginning of the season, like the fire and the plane/truck collision. She seems very out of her element in the small, blue-collar town. She’s a cutthroat urban lawyer!
Kayla Wallace appeared in 43 episodes of Hallmark’s long-running drama “When Calls the Heart.” She has also been in several Christmas-themed TV movies like “My Grown-Up Christmas List” and “Snowed in for Christmas.”
Mark Collie as Sheriff Walt Joeberg
Sheriff Walt Joeberg is the law in the West Texas town where “Landman” takes place. He is always juggling the interests of his community with the demands of the oil company. Which should he weigh more heavily? And which has the most power to keep him where he is?
Mark Collie is a musician, actor and activist who previously starred for 12 episodes on “Nashville” and had smaller appearances in the 1990s on shows like “Walker, Texas Ranger” and “Doctor Quinn, Medicine Woman: The Movie” (yes, there was a movie). On the big screen, he has starred in 1997’s “Fire Down Below” and 2004’s version of “The Punisher.”
Michelle Randolph as Ainsley Norris
Ainsley Norris is Tommy’s free-spirited and sometimes quite difficult teenage daughter.
There’s already a snippet of dialogue between her and Tommy that has become quite a sensation on social media. We’ll let you find it for yourself. Michelle Randolph is a relative newcomer who also stars in Sheridan’s “Yellowstone” prequel series “1923,” dressed considerably more conservative
Colm Feore as Nathan
Nathan is an oil company attorney and administrator and Tommy’s roommate in his crummy house.
Feore is an unstoppable character actor, who we first remember as the big bad in Stephen King’s 1999 miniseries “Storm of the Century.” Since then, he’s done a number of TV projects, including being a part of the main cast of “The Umbrella Academy” and appearing on “For All Mankind” as controversial rocket scientist Wernher von Braun. He has also been in a staggering amount of movies, including Jon Woo’s “Face/Off,” Michael Mann’s “The Insider,” Rob Marshall’s “Chicago” and “The Amazing Spider-Man 2.”
James Jordan as Dale
Dale is a petroleum engineer and Tommy’s roommate in his crummy house.
James Jordan is one of our greatest character actors and no stranger to the Taylor Sheridan universe, having appeared in recurring roles on “Yellowstone,” “Mayor of Kingstown” and “1883” and having a main role on “Lioness” (also currently streaming on Paramount+). He also appeared in “Wind River” and “Those Who Wish Me Dead,” feature films that were written and directed by Sheridan.
