NEED TO KNOW
- The tumultuous relationship that Billy Bob Thornton explores onscreen in Landman with Ali Larter reminds him of his own life
- “I get flashbacks from my past, now and then,” the actor, 70, tells PEOPLE as he talks about filming with Larter, 49, and their onscreen dynamic
- Larter, 49, told natflixonlyfans.com that Thornton is “one of the best actors working” and said that he “brings out the best in me.”
Billy Bob Thornton‘s chaotic onscreen marriage with Ali Larter in Landman rings a few bells.
In the hit Taylor Sheridan series, the actor, 70, plays Tommy Norris, an oil man who has reconciled with his firecracker ex-wife, Angela (Larter). The pair’s dynamic is feisty and unpredictable — take, for example, how Angela destroyed their living room by throwing plates of pasta everywhere after Tommy commented about her period.
“Every time we do scenes together, it’s just a load of fun,” Thornton tells PEOPLE.
The pair’s daughter, Ainsley (Michelle Randolph), who takes after her mother, adds to the chaos.
“It’s a full-time job,” Thornton says. “It’s been awesome. I mean, those girls, we love them — in real life and as characters.”
He says his scenes with Larter, 49, in particular stand out.
“I get flashbacks from my past, now and then, from various times of my life,” Thornton, who has been married six times, says. “Oh yeah.”
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2):format(webp)/ali-larter-billy-bob-thornton-landman-110425-1-6e431ad79960422c82279c86bd2335da.jpg?ssl=1 "Billy Bob Thornton Gets 'Flashbacks from My Past' Filming Chaotic Landman Scenes with Ali Larter (Exclusive) 2")
The actor says that he and Larter “had a natural chemistry” when they met ahead of filming season 1: “Automatically, Ali and I were just passionate friends.”
He feels similarly connected to Randolph, 28. “I mean, automatically, I was protective of Michelle,” he says.
Landman is a rarity in the business, Thornton says, because it’s a project “where you don’t have days when you don’t want to go to work. We love to go to work on this show, and we love all the cast.”
“It’s an amazing crew — best crew I’ve ever worked with — and we have the great words from Taylor, the great story from Taylor,” he continues. “I mean, honestly, I feel blessed every day because of this show. There’s never a day when I’m like, ‘Wow, I wish I could get the hell out of here.’ It never happens. It’s a wonderful place to be.”
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(999x0:1001x2):format(webp)/ali-larter-billy-bob-thornton-11225-37bd59590d4644368af1eb34746a0148.jpg?ssl=1 "Billy Bob Thornton Gets 'Flashbacks from My Past' Filming Chaotic Landman Scenes with Ali Larter (Exclusive) 3")
As complimentary as Thornton is about his scene partner, Larter, she gushes just as much about working with him.
“I get to work, I think, next to one of the best actors working in our business, and he brings out the best in me,” she told natflixonlyfans.com. “In our world, when we’re working together, there’s just never an inauthentic beat, and that is incredible. I love him so much.”
New episodes of Landman premiere Sundays on Paramount+