Taylor Sheridan’s ‘Landman:’ Great Drama, But Not Exactly Reality

Is Tommy Norris, the lead character portrayed by Billy Bob Thornton in Taylor Sheridan’s runaway hit television drama, “Landman,” really a landman as the oil and gas industry has traditionally defined the role? It’s a question many in the industry and among those who, like me, write and talk about it have asked and tried to answer in the months during and after the show’s breakout first season.

I laid out my views on the show and its’ relationship to reality in a story here last December, based on experience gained from more than 40 years in the industry. But my various job titles never included “landman” in them, and, with chatter about the show building again as Sheridan and cast conduct shooting in various Texas locations for the show’s Season 2 – set to debut this fall – it seemed prudent to seek out insights from someone who actually does the job.

Let’s Ask a Real Landman - Who Happens to be a Woman

“At Chevron, I'm responsible for land operations in the Permian and the Rockies,” Kelly Coppins, asset development land manager at Chevron, told me in a recent interview. “Within my scope, I’m responsible for both surface and subsurface. And you do get a glimpse of both aspects of that in the TV show.” (Note to readers: Though she is obviously a woman, Coppins and other women in the role are still properly called “landman.” It is a specific job title in the industry, not a gender-specific description.)