Landman‘s Michelle Randolph she had her work cut out for her when they knowingly play “super nasty” roles. in several Taylor Sheridan shows
Randolph, 28, was asked about the cost Demi Moore in a joint Interview magazine profile published late last month about her experience with “a mix of feminist negativity” and praise for her characters in 1923 i Landman.
“It’s all of the above. I had to stop being defensive about my character because when you spend so much time in someone else’s headspace, you start to understand their logic,” she explained. “For Ainsley (in Landman), I couldn’t be more different than her, but I also adore her. I like to say that she’s not stupid, she just has limited life experience and we’re seeing her in her formative years.”
Randolph appreciated the challenge, adding, “What a blessing to play a character that’s constantly evolving. It’s challenged me in so many ways—what’s on the page is so different than what you see on screen. I’ve tried to add how genuine and sincere she is so that there are more redeeming qualities.”
Michelle Randolph is aware of how polarizing her Landman character Ainsley is. The Paramount+ series from creator Taylor Sheridan premiered in November 2024 and featured Billy Bob Thornton as a corporate fixer for an oil titan (Jon Hamm). The West Texas-set drama had life-or-death stakes, but it was Thornton’s scenes with Randolph, 27, who plays his 17-year-old son (…)
while discussing their division Landman characterRandolph explained how he built the paper.
“I think her mom kept her in a bubble for a reason, and that’s not necessarily her fault. If that continues into her 20s, then that starts to be her fault. But right now, she hasn’t had any independence,” she noted. “I didn’t realize this about myself, but two of the characters I’ve played in Taylor’s shows, 1923 and Landman, have been very unpleasant on the page. Maybe that’s just my perception.”
He continued: “I thought, ‘Oh my God, people are going to look down on these characters. What can I do to make them likable and so people can see them from my perspective?’ And so I worked really hard on it. That’s why I think with Ainsley, her being sweet is so important, or she’s just this spoiled teenager with no redeeming qualities.
Moore, 63, who plays Cami on Landman, asked Randolph if she felt like people were “finally getting” her perspective, to which Randolph replied, “It’s very varied. People either love or hate the female characters on Taylor’s shows.”
Despite the backlash, Moore defended Sheridan’s approach.
“But that’s the juicy thing about the fact that they’re so nuanced. They’re not just one thing,” he noted. “Like you, I feel like (Cami is) evolving. We’re just getting to know her, and we only know her as a grieving widow who’s forced to bail out a potentially dying company. But we don’t know everything about who she is yet. And that’s one of the brilliant things about Taylor’s writing: the building of this house is always unexpected.”
Randolph acknowledged that it may be “hard to have a character” and “I have no idea what will happen” to them.
Landman, which premiered in November 2024, introduced Randolph, whose teenage character went viral for moments like her talking to her father about sex while walking around her home, which she shares with two men the same age, in a bikini and underwear.
Taylor Sheridan’s hit series Landman has been renewed for Season 3, but which stars are returning and not? Inspired by the “Boomtown” podcast series, Landman focuses on the West Texas oil industry with a specific focus on struggling executive Tommy Norris and his family. The Paramount+ show, which premiered in 2024, featured Billy Bob (…)
“I worked with a dialect coach, a movement coach and an acting coach and just studied like crazy. I had almost a year to prepare,” Randolph told The Hollywood Reporter in December 2024 about his approach to Ainsley. “It was incredibly helpful to sit down with this character. I worked really hard to find ways to justify his behavior and make him a person who is full of something that doesn’t always sound like what a 17-year-old would say, but people like that do exist.”
Randolph urged viewers to give Ainsley room to grow, saying, “She’s 17 years old and she’s growing. I think she gets more than the audience can see. There are moments where you realize she can be, not manipulative, but she knows how to play her father, and also her mother. She knows how to get what she wants in her family.”
At the time, Randolph recognized it Landman spectators they were confused by Ainsley’s behavior.
“It’s hard not to be aware of it,” he explained. “But I digress and the thing is, I have the script. I read it. I had my moments, my thoughts.”
Randolph, however, did not disagree that Ainsley’s actions could be confusing. “Some of the things that Ainsley has to say are shocking and there were times when I thought, ‘I don’t know how I’m going to pull this off,'” she admitted. “I want to find the most human version of this character that I can, and I work really hard to do that.”
New episodes of Landman premieres Sundays on Paramount+.