One ‘Landman’ Episode 4 Twist is So Nonsensical, It Proves Taylor Sheridan Will Do Anything For Plot Convenience
- Fans are not on board with Tommy Norris and Angela Russo's rekindled romance on Landman.
- Billy Bob Thornton says he was intrigued by the script of Landman.
- Christian Wallace feels grateful to be working alongside Taylor Sheridan.
Created by Taylor Sheridan and Christian Wallace, Landman premiered on Paramount+ and has reportedly taken the streaming channel by storm. The show starring Billy Bob Thornton, Ali Larter, Kayla Wallace, Demi Moore, and more takes the audience into the heart of the historic oil boom playing out in West Texas.
The series is based on Boomtown, a podcast hosted by Christian Wallace, who grew up in West Texas and had spent a year after college working as a roughneck. The 10-episode-long first season that has received generally favorable reviews is going to conclude in January 2025. Despite being so popular and receiving a positive response, fans pointed out one nonsensical twist in episode 4.
Fans call out the makers of Landman for nonsensical Episode 4 Twist
Episode 4 of Landman, starring Billy Bob Thornton as Tommy Norris and Ali Larter as Angela Russo, premiered on December 1, 2024. Titled The Sting of Second Chances, it clearly states that the lead actor is going to revisit some of his painful memories and maybe give a former relationship a second chance.
Actress Ali Larter, who has been billed as a series regular, plays the character of Thornton’s ex-wife Angela Russo, and the audience saw the former couple rekindling their romance in the episode. This sequence has been labeled as a ‘nonsensical twist’, especially after Tommy Norris brings up how terrible the two of them are for one another.
A user on Reddit pointed out that they do not understand how a middle-aged hot woman is ready to leave her millionaire husband, who lets her spend her time doing whatever she likes, and eventually goes back to her aging ex-husband.
Another user wrote, ‘The writers on the show seem to have so much trouble figuring out women and what makes them ick. I feel like writers need to talk to some actual women.’ A third user reminded the fans that it’s classic Taylor Sheridan style, noting that this is how the creator writes his women.
Where the episode gives the audience further insight into why the relationship between the two ended, the viewers might need a little more than that to care about the former couple. CBR mentioned that the makers are using Angela and Ainsley as comic relief characters, but they need to do more with them for the audience to care about them.
A lot of fans are convinced that Sheridan does not know how to write female characters despite creating Beth Dutton on Yellowstone as one of the most intriguing characters on the show. Not a lot of fans are on board with the former couple getting back together. They mentioned that one could remove the wife and the daughter from the show, and nothing about the show would change.
Billy Bob Thornton on saying yes to Taylor Sheridan’s Tommy Norris for Landman
In an interview with the LA Times, veteran actor Billy Bob Thornton shared why he said yes to playing Tommy Norris on Landman. He recalled that he had done a cameo in Taylor Sheridan’s 1883, and the two of them started talking, with Thornton ending up liking Sheridan’s direction style. He shared,
We seem to have a good working relationship. So when they had the premiere for 1883 in Las Vegas, afterward at the dinner, I was sitting next to him, and he said, ‘I’m writing a series for you called Landman, and I’m going to write it in your voice.
Thornton recalled that he was intrigued by Sheridan’s explanation of Landman, and when he read the script, he was convinced that it was indeed his voice. He also noted that he thought he could play the character on-screen, adding that it made sense to him to play Norris. He further mentioned that he had known a couple of things about the oil business, but then he started learning more about it.
The actor shared with the publication that Wallace, who was on set, helped him whenever Thornton needed technical information because he wanted to know what exactly he was even speaking about.
Christian Wallace also shared with the publication that he is very grateful for the opportunity he got thanks to Taylor Sheridan. He mentioned that after Sheridan bought the rights to his podcast, their partnership could have ended, but Sheridan brought him on the journey as well.
We had conversations for two years about story and character and where we wanted to take this thing. And at one point, he asked me to write a spec script based on our conversation.
And thus Wallace got on board as a co-creator and executive producer of Landman. He noted that he was involved in the process throughout, for which he is very grateful.
Landman is streaming on Paramount+.
