Billy Bob Thornton, Sam Elliott on Taylor Sheridan’s Exit, Landman’s Future

Landman stars are opening up about Taylor Sheridan‘s future departure.

Last month, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Sheridan, the co-creator and writer, would be leaving the show’s home at Paramount for NBCUniversal, with a film deal set to begin next year. However, his TV deal with Paramount doesn’t start until the end of 2028, and then, he will go to NBCUniversal.

While premiering the second season of the hit Paramount+ series Landman, Billy Bob Thornton, who plays oil crisis manager Tommy Norris, shared his thoughts on Sheridan’s move. “I think the shows that are at Paramount, stay at Paramount, so I don’t think those are affected,” Thornton told THR on the red carpet. “His deal is for the future. And who knows what that holds. Taylor is a brilliant guy, and I’m sure wherever he goes, whatever he does is, gonna be successful, at least I know it’ll be real.”

Landman newcomer for this season, Sam Elliot, who plays T.L. and is Tommy’s (Thornton) father, offered a similar take to Thornton. “It’s not gonna impact the future of this series because everything that Taylor had at Paramount is gonna stay at Paramount. It’s not like he’s taking it there,” Elliot told THR. “The Universal thing, as I understand, it’s a whole new deal, so it’s just great for Taylor’s world. I think it’s fantastic.”

When Landman season one premiered in November of last year, it drew 5.2 million viewers, the top Paramount+ series debut in two years since Sheridan’s additional series, Yellowstone prequel 1923, drew 7.4 million cross-platform viewers in December 2022. Thornton went on to describe the pressure to have the second season live up to its predecessor.

“Anytime you have a success and it’s gonna continue, there’s always pressure to make sure that it continues. “If you’re making movies you do a sequel, always pressure,” he told THR. “So, we felt it, but once you start, you just have to forget that and go out there and do your job.”

Thornton’s TV daughter, Michelle Randolph, who plays Ainsley Norris, thinks Landman won’t be stopping anytime soon. “There’s so many stories to tell. There’s so many really distinct characters, I feel like we could go on and on and on because what I always have to remind myself — the first season was 10 days in the show so I’m like, we could film the show for so long because it’s not like it’s one season, taking place over a year or anything,” she told THR. “There’s so much room for growth in every single character; they’re all deeply flawed in their own ways, which is what makes them really enticing to watch because it’s very human.”

Randolph also described what it was like to welcome Demi Moore back to the ensemble, this time with a larger role. “I love working with Demi. And also, Pilaf was on set, her cute little dog,” she said. “Horoscope-wise, it was the luckiest day of the year, everyone kept telling me, and I was on set with Demi, Sam Elliott, Andy Garcia, Billy Bob, Ali Larter — I just had to pinch myself.”

Landman season two debuts on Paramount+ Nov. 16.