‘Landman’ Star Michelle Randolph Breaks Silence on Harsh Criticism

Michelle Randolph has had a busy year under the Taylor Sheridan umbrella. After delivering a dramatic exit as Elizabeth Dutton in the 1923 Season 2 finale, the rising star has officially returned to the oil fields of Landman Season 2 — and she’s not looking back. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Randolph addressed some of the audience feedback she received following Landman’s breakout first season, and made it clear she isn’t letting internet noise cloud her work.

“I’m trying my very, very best to just completely tune it out. It worked, whatever I did, so I’m trying to get in the headspace I was in for the first season. Whatever the audience thinks, that’s not something I should pay attention to. It’s irrelevant to my process with Ainsley.”

Randolph has just wrapped her role in Sheridan’s other series — well, one of his many — 1923, and the actress admitted the worlds couldn’t be much more different when it came to getting into the mindset to play Ainsley. Landman Season 2 is back underway in Fort Worth, Texas, and Randolph has already been shooting her scenes.

“I felt like we just started where we left off,” she said. “I think I found the character last season and we all are so comfortable together. I’m on my second week of filming, and it’s fun to be back. They are are such different worlds. I can’t even compare them.”

And despite that noted criticism of Ainsley’s character — and her mother, played by Ali Larter — the fans of the show believe that her presence is a beacon of positivity in a world of brutality, backstabbing and high stakes oil deals. Randolph agrees completely.

She is always going to bring the light. It’s a lot of family. A lot of family.

Who is Michelle Randolph’s ‘Landman’ Character?

In the show, Ainsley Norris is the daughter of Billy Bob Thornton’s character, Tommy Norris, a rough-around-the-edges oil industry fixer. Ainsley is a college student who returns home and finds herself caught between her family’s complicated past and future, and her desire to simply enjoy her life.

Despite being surrounded by darkness, Ainsley is a ray of light in the series and brings heart to the show. Her storyline in Season 1 revolves around reconnecting with her father, grappling with the fallout from her parents’ divorce, and slowly learning more about the world Tommy operates in, while moving through life in her own happy-go-lucky sort of way.

Landman Season 2 is in production now.