Landman's Billy Bob Thornton Replacement Is Exactly What Season 3 Needs

Published Oct 25, 2026, 8:30 PM EDT

Ben Sherlock is a Tomatometer-approved film and TV critic who runs the massively underrated YouTube channel I Got Touched at the Cinema. Before working at Screen Rant, Ben wrote for Game Rant, Taste of Cinema, Comic Book Resources, and BabbleTop. He's also an indie filmmaker, a standup comedian, and an alumnus of the School of Rock.

Landman’s season 2 finale drastically changed the status quo of the series. Up to this point, the biggest source of tension in Tommy Norris’ life has been his corporate puppet-masters. He had a good relationship with his original money guy, Monty, but after Monty died of a heart attack and his widow Cami took over his company, things got a lot more contentious. At the end of Landman season 2, Tommy cut his own puppet-strings, secured some funding from Gallino, and started his own independent, family-run business.

The season ended with Tommy naming all his closest friends and loved ones as the staff and board of directors for this new venture. He made Nate his treasurer, he made Rebecca his chief legal counsel, he gave Ariana a job in the office, he brought his dad T.L. out of retirement to oversee the drilling operations, and he made his son Cooper the president.

Tommy’s new venture will essentially be the Bob’s Burgers of the Texas oil fields: it’s a family affair. But, unlike Bob Belcher, Tommy will be taking on a more hands-off, elder-statesman approach from now on. He’s entrusted his own job to Cooper; Cooper is the landman now, not Tommy.

Landman Season 3 Will Shift To A Family Operation

Landman’s first two seasons kept Tommy’s work life separate from his family life. He had money troubles with Gallino at work, and marital troubles with Angela at home. He gets targeted by Mexican cartels at work, and has to deal with his teenage daughter’s boyfriends at home (and seems to hate the latter more than the former). But in its third season, Landman is bringing the two together with a family business. Tommy’s personal and professional lives are no longer separate; he’s mixing business with pleasure, and hiring all his favorite people to help launch his new business venture.

Over the first two seasons, Cooper was trying to launch an oil-drilling operation of his own. But now, his dad has entrusted him with the keys to the castle. This estranged father and son are joining forces in an ambitious business partnership, combining their ideas and expertise to reach the best possible outcome. Of course, that’s pretty optimistic; it’s far more likely that it’ll just make the rift between Tommy and Cooper even wider.

Cooper's Bigger Role In Landman Season 3 Risks More Family Tension With Tommy

When we first met Tommy, his son barely wanted to speak to him. It’s always been clear that Tommy and Angela have a favorite child, and it’s not him. Cooper resents his entire family for this favoritism; he resents his parents for favoring one kid over the other, and he resents his sister for cluelessly indulging it and allowing him to go neglected for so many years. But over the past two seasons, Tommy and Angela have made strides to repair their relationship with their son.

Tommy, in particular, has done everything in his power to do right by Cooper, giving him all the career opportunities he’s asked for (Cooper is a classic nepo baby) and even hiring him as the president of his new company. All the pieces are in place for Tommy to fully repair his relationship with Cooper. But these two characters don’t always see eye to eye, and they rarely get along, so what happens when they disagree on how to handle a drill or a deal or something else?

I’d like to think they can calmly compromise any issue that arises, but let’s face it: that’s not Tommy’s style, or Cooper’s style. It would be lovely if Landman season 3 was a heartwarming family reunion, but it’s much more likely that we’ll see some There Will Be Blood-style friction between the Norris boys when Landman returns in 2027.

Landman