Landmanis full of genuinely shocking moments to match Taylor Sheridan’s explosive oil drama. The Paramount+ serie, starring Billy Bob Thornton was an immediate popular replacement forYellowstone,andLandmancan be even more shocking and captivating than its predecessor.Landmanseason 1premiered in November 2024 alongsideYellowstoneseason 5, part 2, the final chapter of Sheridan’s flagship work.
Landman’s explosive moments typically happen in the oil fields. However, sometimes Tommy’s family is the one igniting the drama. The Norris clan fills outLandman’s cast, with Ali Larter and Michelle Randolph playing Tommy’s wife and daughter, Angela and Ainsley, respectively, and Jacob Lofland as his son, Cooper. With Tommy’s whole clan in Midland,the entire Norris family experiences its fair share of shocking moments.
10Tommy Is Tortured In Landman’s Premiere
Landman season 1, episode 1, “Landman”
Tommy experiences some torture inLandman’s premiere. The M-TEX Oil fixer has a bag over his head and has been tied to a chair, which we soon figure out is the work of the cartel. The shocking moment isLandman’s opening scene, andLandman’s introduction immediately engages audiencesin the high-stakes work that Tommy Norris undertakes as the titular character.
When the fixer asked to go to the bathroom, a cartel member punched Tommy in the face. It was shocking how quickly the situation escalated, especially since the audience didn’t yet have the context of Norris’ daily life. AsLandmangoes on, we become accustomed to Tommy’s high-stakes work, butthe danger of the landman’s world is truly shockingwhen the series kicks off.
9M-TEX’s Truck Crashes Into A Cartel Plane
When Tommy negotiates a surface lease with Jiminez (Alex Meraz), he discusses the logistics of his business with the cartel underling. Jimiez explains that he doesn’t want the oil business on their land, but Tommy explains that M-TEX has the mineral rights, which allow them to drill for oil.Tommy tells Jiminez they’ll build a road on the landand pay them for the damages, which sets Tommy up for more danger.
Tommy gets a call that a TTP oil tanker has crashed into M-TEX’s planeon the new road. The cartel landed M-TEX’s aircraft, which they had stolen, on the road, and the driver crashed into the plane, not seeing it in time. Not only was watching the plane crash shocking, but it also revealed to the audience just how lawless Tommy’s daily operations are.
8Cooper Falls From An Oil Tower
Taking after his father, Cooper Norris also works in the oil patch whenLandmanseason 1 kicks off and Tommy’s son experiences his share of shocking moments there. On his first day in the patch,Cooper is tricked by the other members of his work crew. They convince him to climb a high tower as a means to initiate him into the rough work they do.
… Norris learns on his first day on the job just how harrowing and dangerous working in an oil patch can be.
However, Cooper isn’t amused by the prank. Moreover,Cooper falls from the tower, causing quite a shock despite the proper safety gear saving Norris’ life. Later in the episode, Cooper’s entire crew dies when an oil rig explodes, so Norris learns on his first day on the job just how harrowing and dangerous working in an oil patch can be.
7Ainsley Reveals Her Sex Rule
After a day full of shocking moments, perhaps the biggest jolt that Tommy gets inLandman’s premiere is from his daughter, Ainsley. At a football game that night,Ainsley tells Tommy about the rule that she and her boyfriend followto practice safe sex. This sets up an ongoing gag for Tommy, who later requests that his daughter no longer share with him.
When Tommy asks Ainsley about her and Dakota Loving’s (Drake Rogers) rule, she tells him,“As long as he doesn’t come in me, he can come anywhere on me.”Naturally, the rule was shocking for Tommy, who moments earlier didn’t know his daughter was sexually active.Randolph’sLandmancharactersparked backlash, and this was one of Ainsley’s many controversial moments.
6Tommy Cuts Off His Pinky
Landman season 1, episode 2, “Dreamers and Losers”
InLandmanepisode 2, we see the fallout of Cooper’s work incident. Tommy shows up on the scene as M-TEX’s go-to man, and he turns a valve on the oil rig with a wrench and a hammer to ensure that the fire doesn’t become a bigger explosion. However, in the heat of the moment,Tommy hits his hand with the hammer, smashing his pinky.
While the fixer delays going to the hospital to drink a Dr. Pepper and smoke a cigarette, he thereafter drives himself to the emergency room. There,Tommy cuts off his pinky instead of waiting for the hand specialist. The disregard with which Tommy dismembered himself was doubtlessly one ofLandmanseason 1’s most shocking moments.
5Cooper Wrestles Elvio’s Cousins
Landman season 2, episode 3, “Hell Has a Front Yard”
Cooper Norris is portrayed as a pushover in the first couple ofLandmanepisodes. That said,it was shocking to see Cooper wrestle with Elvio’s (Alejandro Akara) cousinswhen they attacked him outside his home. Cooper grabs one of the cousins and slams him to the ground, then gets him into a choke hold.
Cooper has a gun pointed at his head, but he is just as fierce. We learn that Cooper wrestled in college, which is where he learned the moves.It was a subversive moment for the younger Norris, making the scene all the more shocking. Hopefully, Cooper will continue to surprise us.
4Rebecca Falcone Shuts Down Tommy’s Deposition
Landman season 1, episode 4, “The Sting of Second Chances”
Since the young lawyer is out to pin M-TEX’s most recent controversies on Tommy, it was shocking whenRebecca Falcone (Kayla Wallace)expertly handled Norris’ deposition. During her handling of the deposition, Falcone is so fierce that they ask her to pause the recording so they can negotiate. Then,Rebecca comes in for the win.
Her opponents make demeaning remarks that Falcone threatens to use against them, scaring the senior lawyers into compliance with her terms.Rebecca demonstrated her intellect and quick thinking at the moment, which was shockingly effective. Falcone will be valuable for M-TEX moving forward if she and Tommy can learn to work together effectively.
3Oil Pipes Crush An M-TEX Employee
Landman season 1, episode 5, “Where is Home”
We know the oil patch is a risky place to work, but it was still shocking whenan M-TEX employee got smashed by a load of pipes. The accident killed the employee, who died while making a phone call to his wife. The maintenance worker knew he didn’t have much time to live.
Tommy’s wife and the audience learn how much Norris has to compartmentalize the horrors of his work just to get through his days.
The moment shows justhow real the dangers of Tommy’s work are. Lending his phone to the crushed employee, Tommy borrows Angela’s phone to call 9-11, telling them he can’t perform CPR. Tommy’s wife and the audience learn how much Norris has to compartmentalize the horrors of his work just to get through his days.
2Arianna Pushes Cooper Onto The Couch
Landman season 1, episode 9, “WolfCamp”
There’s a bit of shock value whenAriana (Paulina Chavez) pushes Cooper to the couch, embracing him in a moment of passion, for two reasons. Mostly, Cooper is recovering from a collapsed lung after being attacked by Elvio’s cousins. Ariana is the one reminding Cooper of his injury, so it’s shocking to watch her push her battered lover onto the couch.
The romantic moment is also Ariana and Cooper’s first moment of finally allowing their feelings to blossom. That was a bit shocking, too. However,the moment was mostly surprising because Cooper is so injured, and we are fully aware of how much pain he’s in.
1The Cartel Hits Tommy With A Hammer
Landman season 1, episode 10, “The Crumbs of Hope”
Even though we know they have it out for Tommy, it’s riveting to watch the cartel kidnap and torture Norris inLandmanseason 1’s finale. Jiminez wanted Tommy to pay for the product they lost when an M-TEX truck crashed into their plane. When Norris refused to pay,Jiminez made up his mind to kill Tommy.
Landmanseason 2 premieres in November on Paramount+.
There’s some intrinsic shock to the cartel hitting Tommy in the head and hand with a hammer or driving a nail into his thigh. Jiminez also poured gas on Tommy, planning to set him on fire. It’s equally shocking when Andy Garcia’s Gallino shows up, killing Jimenez and offering Tommy a cigarette, setting up the relations between the men inLandmanseason 2.
Landman
Cast
Set in West Texas, this series explores the world of oil rigs and the fortunes they create. It portrays a modern upstairs/downstairs narrative of roughnecks and billionaires, highlighting the profound impact on the climate, economy, and geopolitics in these boomtowns.
