Sam Elliott Makes Tearful Landman Debut as Billy Bob Thornton’s Grieving Dad in Season 2 Premiere: ‘Dying a Little Bit Every Day’

Landman season 2 kicked off with drama at work, drama at home and the promise of more drama to come for Tommy Norris (Billy Bob Thornton) as the one and only Sam Elliott joined the fray.

Elliott, 81, joins the series as T.L, father to Tommy. In the premiere episode, which dropped Nov. 16 on Paramount+, fans got their first taste of what the legendary actor will bring to the Taylor Sheridan hit series.

T.L.’s first scene saw him sitting in a wheelchair outside an assisted living facility in Texas, where he watched in rapture as the sun set. When one of the facility’s workers tried to get him to come inside for dinner before the sun had set, he was up in arms, and then another employee, Hank, got involved, but he arrived bearing bad news.

Hank told T.L. that the facility “got a call from memory care in Amarillo” that Dorothy died. “She took her afternoon nap, just didn’t wake up,” Hank explained.

The news brought T.L. to tears, and he remarked on the pain of “dying a little bit every day.” He told Hank, “I recommend you find a way to die quick.”

“I’m sorry. She’s in a better place. I’m sure you’ll see her again,” Hank told him, but that comment brought out yet another revelation from T.L., who said, “If I do, that means I’m in hell, too.”

There was no clarification about who exactly Dorothy was to T.L., but more information on who she was came in the episode’s final scene, as Tommy told Angela (Ali Larter) that he’d gotten a call — which interrupted their kissing — about somebody who died.

“Baby, who died?” Angela asked, and Tommy replied, “My mother.”

Elliott’s casting in season 2 of the hit series about the oil boom in West Texas was confirmed in April, but it was months before it was revealed that he would be playing Thornton’s dad. The role marks Elliott’s second time working with Sheridan, who helmed 1883, the one-season Yellowstone prequel series Elliott starred in alongside Tim McGraw and Faith Hill.

He won a SAG Award for his role as Shea Brennan. In his acceptance speech, he called the award “the most meaningful acknowledgement of my 55-year career.”

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While little has been confirmed about what T.L. will bring to season 2, it’s clear from the first episode that he’ll be reconnecting with his son in the midst of their loss. Given Tommy’s cavalier attitude after hearing the news that his mom died, it’s likely that his relationship with T.L., too, is strained.

New episodes of Landman premiere Sundays on Paramount+