Ahead of the season 2 premiere of Landmanit was announced that Sam Elliott would be heading to Texas to join the cast of the neo-western series. The report sparked great excitement from fans of both Landman and Elliott, as the actor has a prolific filmography as an actor in numerous films and television shows. More than anything, the anticipation came from the fact that Elliott is a veteran actor in the world of Taylor Sheridan’s works, having starred in the famous film Yellow stone prequel series 1883 as Shea Brennan in a leading role.

Being his second collaboration with Sheridan, there was a lot of speculation about who he would play in the second season of Landman. With Jon Hamm’s departure following Monty Miller’s death in the season 1 finale, theories that Elliott’s character would take his place or threaten Cami Miller’s succession began to arise. Turns out Cami may have nothing to worry about. As teased in a previous trailer and officially confirmed in the Season 2 premiere, Elliott takes on a role in the more personal aspect of LandmanTommy’s Story, as Tommy’s father, TL As Tommy begins to understand the new dynamics, from rekindling his romance with ex-wife Angela to mentoring his son Cooper in the oil industry, TL could be a blast from the past to connect Tommy’s childhood to his future.

Sam Elliott’s Character on Landman, Explained

Image via Paramount+

Elliott doesn’t have an overwhelming presence in the season 2 premiere of Landmanprobably to the dismay of his fans. This is just a teaser for what is presumably a bigger role once he actually teams up with Billy Bob Thornton’s Tommy on screen in what will be a pretty unstoppable duo on television. About 30 minutes into the premiere, Elliott finally makes his appearance as TL in a scene that says everything the audience already needs to know about the character, without even saying much. TL resides in an assisted living facility in Texas and the staff requires him to remain seated in a wheelchair at all times, although this does not prevent him from getting out from time to time.

TL watches the sunset (giving the episode half of its title, “Death and Sunset”), refusing to go in for dinner until the sun sets completely. An employee named Denise comments that the sun had already set at this time the day before, to which TL sarcastically remarks in a not-so-subtle way that she wouldn’t understand the summer solstice. Denise doesn’t take too kindly to him insulting her intelligence, as one shouldn’t, showing how TL could be an unfiltered barrier in season two.

Soon after, TL receives bad news about his family: his wife (or possibly ex-wife), Dorothy, has died in her sleep at a memory care center. He is devastated by the news, but finds humor in the situation by joking that the only way to see her again is to go to hell too. He clearly had some hatred for her when they were together, which might explain Tommy’s emotionless reaction to his mother’s death.

How will TL fit into Landman season 2?

Image via Paramount+

Dorothy’s death is an unfortunate but clever bridge to bringing Tommy and his father together again. Not much is known about Tommy’s upbringing, so this is an opportunity to learn more about him and give context to why he is the way he is, his issues and his values. This could notably explain his dependence on alcohol, the difficult relationship he has with his wife and the way in which he raises his children. Since audiences didn’t meet either TL or Dorothy in the first season, it can be implied that Tommy didn’t have a good relationship with either of them.

With Cooper poised to make a name for himself in the same industry as his father, Tommy will have to figure out how to be both a parent and a business mentor. This is where TL could step in to shed some light on Tommy’s relationship with his own father, what led to their separation, and how their mother plays a role in it. Perhaps it’s fair to say that TL’s tendency to denigrate women has flowed like poison to Tommy, who enjoys having a “crazy woman” around to make himself seem smart.

The fact that fathers influence their sons is not beyond Sheridan’s purview; it is in fact often the center of his most popular stories. Finally, the audience will be able to see what drove a man like Tommy to become a crisis manager in his professional and personal life. It’s safe to say he was born into a crisis and spent his entire life trying to get out of it.

New episodes of Landman air every Sunday on Paramount+.

Image via Paramount+

Release date

November 17, 2024

Writers

Taylor Sheridan, Christian Wallace

• 

  Billy Bob Thornton

  Tommy Norris

•