“I think it’s a very symbolic moment of Tommy trying to figure out who he is here.”
Spoilers ahead for the season finale of Landman.
The first season of Landman wrapped up with a satisfying conclusion—but an ominous final line from Tommy Norris (played by Billy Bob Thornton).
After surviving a brutal beating from the cartel, Tommy returns home. He walks outside to smoke, and sees a coyote. He tells the coyote, “You better run buddy. They kill coyotes around here.”
In a new interview with the Hollywood Reporter, Billy Bob Thornton spoke about the significance of that final line.
“The symbolism of the coyote to me, and I’ve talked to Taylor [Sheridan] about this quite a bit, there was more dialogue in both of the coyote scenes originally,” Thornton revealed.
“We talked it over and said, ‘You know what, I think these are essentially silent scenes because this is Tommy locking eyes with this wild coyote.’ I think Tommy looks at that coyote and at the end, it’s like, ‘Here they come. They are coming for me.’ Or, ‘Are they coming for me? Am I the coyote, am I looking myself in the eye? Am I this lone wolf out here, just running across these plains trying to keep from getting killed? Or is the coyote the cartel?’ I think it’s a very symbolic moment of Tommy trying to figure out who he is here. And I think he’s kind of staring himself, and possibly death, in the eye.”
While as of this writing Landman has yet to be renewed for a second season, it is promising. “Usually shows that are this successful, they’d do it again; so, I can only imagine that they would, but I don’t know for sure,” he said.
