MAJOR SPOILERS ahead for the Landman Season 2 finale, “Tragedy and Flies,” now streaming on Paramount+.

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In the pulse-pounding close to Landman Season 2, Billy Bob Thornton’s Tommy Norris doesn’t just walk away from his high-powered gig at M-Tex Oil—he dives headfirst into a pact that could cost him everything.

After being unceremoniously fired by Cami Miller (Demi Moore), Tommy strikes a desperate deal with cartel boss Danny “Gallino” Morrell (Andy Garcia) to fund his new family-run venture, CTT Oil Exploration and Cattle.

Gallino agrees to the $44 million infusion, but not without a chilling caveat: if the partnership sours, he’ll “take what [Tommy] loves most in this world.”

It’s classic Taylor Sheridan territory—high-stakes gambles where the house always has an edge—and co-creator Christian Wallace confirmed in a recent Hollywood Reporter interview that the move is intentionally “nerve-racking.”

Tommy, the ultimate survivor who once endured a nail driven through his thigh and doused in gasoline in Season 1, knows these aren’t empty words.

The cartel’s violence has already scarred his world, and Gallino’s threat explicitly targets Tommy’s rebuilt family: ex-wife Angela (Ali Larter), daughter Ainsley (Michelle Randolph), son Cooper (Jacob Lofland), and even the extended “crazy” clan that’s finally coming together under one banner.

The episode’s final scene crystallizes the dread. After a tender backyard conversation with Angela about life, love, and not letting it pass by, Tommy spots a coyote—the same recurring symbol of death and entrapment that haunted the Season 1 finale.

Back then, he shooed it away with a warning that “coyotes get shot around here,” embodying his trapped, prey-like state under corporate pressures and cartel threats. This time, Thornton’s Tommy stands his ground, staring it down and declaring, “No. You can’t have today, bud. Today is mine.”

The shift is loaded with meaning. As Thornton explained in a separate Hollywood Reporter interview, the moment blends defiance and uneasiness. “I love the metaphor of the coyote,” he said.

“In that final scene, Tommy was thinking, ‘I know you’re there.’ … Is Gallino the coyote, and I better beware? Or is my own family the coyote? You just don’t know.” He added that Tommy, who rarely trusts happiness, allows himself a fleeting win—but the coyote’s presence reminds viewers (and Tommy) that danger is always circling.

Wallace echoed this in his post-finale chat, noting Tommy’s growth from a self-described failure who settled for M-Tex to a man betting on himself and his loved ones. Yet he stressed the Sheridan-verse rarely grants consecutive happy endings.

Tommy’s “victory”—launching CTT with Cooper, grandfather T.L. (Sam Elliott), and loyal M-Tex defectors—comes laced with peril. The condensed timeline (the entire series so far spans mere months) means Season 3 won’t waste time: the company launches fast, cartel fallout arrives quicker, and any misstep could trigger Gallino’s revenge.

Fan theories already swirl about how Gallino’s shadow will loom. Will he reveal his true nature to Cami, fracturing alliances?

Could the threat hit Angela, Ainsley, or even Ariana (Paulina Chávez) amid the family’s newfound closeness?

Thornton’s performance sells the internal conflict—Tommy as both predator and potential prey, absorbing T.L.’s hard-won wisdom about cherishing the “insane” people who love you while navigating blowouts in the patch.

Production resumes around May 2026, with the brutal West Texas heat underscoring the show’s gritty realism. Whatever Taylor Sheridan has planned, the Season 2 finale ensures Tommy’s reset won’t be peaceful. The coyote is still out there, waiting. And in the unforgiving world of Landman, today might be Tommy’s—but tomorrow is anyone’s guess.

What do you think Gallino’s first move will be in Season 3? Sound off in the comments below. Landman Season 3 is expected to premiere on Paramount+ in late 2026 or early 2027.