Billy Bob Thornton’s Action Star Dream Turned Nightmarish on ‘On Deadly Ground’

by

The protagonist of the show “Landman” by Taylor Sheridan endures a fair amount of damage in Season 1’s finale. Yet, this pales in comparison to the fractured bones he suffered during production on Steven Seagal’s unnamed project. Interestingly, these injuries weren’t inflicted through any rough handling from Seagal himself.

In a recent development, Thornton has secured a new significant role as Tommy Norris in the Paramount+ series titled “Landman.” During an engaging interview with The Guardian, he opened up about various topics, including a harrowing account of a stunt gone awry that occurred while working on Seagal’s 1994 action film. As Thornton recounted, the incident took place when his agent at the time was keen on molding him into an action star. He explained:

Initially, when I started working with an agent, there was a concept he had of transforming me into a leading action figure. Consequently, I portrayed a character destined to be killed by Seagal. During one scene, they positioned me on a horse atop a mountain, a setting familiar to me, but I’m hardly comparable to the likes of Roy Rogers or Lash LaRue. It was just me and seven stuntmen pursuing Seagal through the forest. The shot was wide, captured from another mountain, making it difficult for viewers to distinguish me, even if I had been dressed as Bozo the clown.

After attempting to descend the hill three times, I found myself exclaiming something like, “Whoa, I’m Roy Rogers!” On the fourth try, the last thing I recall is my right hand gripping the saddle horn. Next, my feet were up in the air, and I awoke covered in dirt on my face and inside my mouth. I couldn’t breathe properly or feel sensations from the right side of my body.

The event led to quite severe injuries for Thornton, yet this doesn’t prevent him from finding a bit of amusement in one particular aspect of the mishap. He remarked:

I sustained multiple injuries including fractured ribs, collarbone, a severely injured pelvis, and a concussion. I was confined to a hotel room for several days with some painkillers, a cooler filled with convenience store sandwiches and sports drinks, and a physician assistant would occasionally visit to monitor my progress. This experience reminded me of the movie ‘On Deadly Ground.’ However, it wasn’t as thrilling as I had expected.

Billy Bob Thornton Is Now Part of Taylor Sheridan’s Universe

The series “Landman” has been a remarkable triumph on Paramount+, providing another lucrative venture for creator Taylor Sheridan and ensuring that Timothy Olyphant continues in a potentially long-lasting role. Although Season 2 of “Landman” hasn’t been officially announced yet, it would be highly unexpected if the show doesn’t come back, given that it has consistently held the top spot on the Paramount+ chart since the premiere episode was released in mid-November.

It appears that Thornton himself isn’t any more informed than others regarding the show’s potential future. In an interview with Deadline post-Season 1 finale, he admitted to knowing very little about a potential series continuation from Sheridan.

Taylor doesn’t reveal much until he’s ready. When he’s ready, though, I’ll certainly know. It’s similar to making sure everything is in its proper place before the family arrives home when cleaning a house – Taylor likes to have things sorted out completely before we hear about it.

Read More

2025-01-21 01:31