Landman: Taylor Sheridan Seemingly Using a ‘West Wing’ Trick With Demi Moore Could Be the Smartest Decision Yellowstone Skipped on

Created by Taylor Sheridan and Christian Wallace, Landman stars Billy Bob Thornton, Ali Larter, Jacob Lofland, Demi Moore, and more. The creator of Yellowstone, Sheridan, teamed up with Wallace, whose podcast Boomtown bases the show. The series goes on to dramatize the oil boom in the heart of West Texas.

Upon release, the show received a positive response from the critics as well as the audience. The show reportedly debuted as the most-watched series premiere for Paramount+ as it brought in reportedly 5.2 million viewers. The ten-episode-long first season will be available weekly on Sundays through 12th January 2025. Sheridan reportedly used a trick from another show for Landman, which he did not use for Yellowstone.

Taylor Sheridan’s Landman starring Demi Moore ‘borrowed’ a trick from The West Wing

Actress Demi Moore stars as Cami Miller in Taylor Sheridan’s recently released Landman, starring Billy Bob Thornton as the lead. The series has opened to a great response from the audience, especially for the storyline, direction, and performances of the actors. Moore’s performance has also been appreciated, as fans would love to see her more in the coming episodes.

The series premiered with two episodes, which sets the foundation for the upcoming episodes that would likely go into detail with the plotline. A user on Reddit, however, got curious to know if Moore and her on-screen husband, Jon Hamm, would appear in the coming episodes or not. Another user replying to the post said,

It feels like West Wing when they barely used Martin Sheen before realizing he was the best thing on the show.

Martin Sheen played President Josiah Bartlet in Aaron Sorkin’s political drama The West Wing and garnered attention for growing to be one of the most beloved characters on the show. Slash Film noted that Sorkin made sure to not overuse the character/actor on the show.

The publication reminded the audience that Sheen’s Bartlet had a consistent presence throughout the show, but it was laid down in the first episode that he was simply one part of the bigger machine. In an interview with Empire Magazine, the creator shared with the publication that he was concerned with overusing President Bartlet.

I’d been concerned all along that the character of the president would throw the ensemble out of whack, that the character would take up all the oxygen in a room. I wanted to hold off bringing this character in until the last possible moment.

So, the Reddit user noted that there is a high possibility of Demi Moore appearing in the coming episodes of the show but not being overused like Kevin Costner’s John Dutton on Yellowstone.

It can be very well stated that her limited appearance in the first two episodes could be a great strategy to build up her character for the coming episodes and then showcase her as a powerful character just like Martin Sheen.

Yellowstone star Luke Grimes reveals John Dutton was supposed to die much earlier

The second part of the fifth and final season of Yellowstone is currently on air. Actor Luke Grimes, who plays Kayce Dutton on the show, has addressed the negative response to Kevin Costner’s John Dutton’s death. He shared during his conversation with People,

There have been some negative reactions. I think they feel sort of cheated. And what I would say to that is, I think we were all lucky to have Kevin on the show as long as we did.

Grimes mentioned that it was always the plan for John Dutton to go away for the story to ramp up, and that was the story: Will the kids be able to survive on their own?

He also noted that Costner’s character was supposed to die much earlier, so in a way, they got way more of John Dutton than they were going to get originally.

It happened in such a shocking, quick way. That’s how life works, right? I mean, when you lose people, it’s sometimes not how you planned and not when you think it will be.

Luke Grimes’ statements clarify that Yellowstone used Costner’s star power and strong on-screen presence for the show as much as they could. It should also be noted that John Dutton’s character was the glue of the Dutton family, and his being till the very end brings his character to a complete arc.

Yellowstone and Landman are streaming on Paramount Network.