If you’re confused about the cost of oil and gas right now, you’re not alone. Many Americans are struggling to understand why oil is so expensive and how that increased price can impact other necessary goods and services. Several of them are turning to an unlikely source to help them understand it—Taylor Sheridan’s hit show Landman, which actually has a scene in Season 1 that explains the cost of oil per barrel in a very easy to understand way. Below, we break down the now viral scene and explain why people are using it to help them understand the current price of oil.
‘What is Landman?’
For those of you that are unfamiliar with Landman, it’s a modern-day Texas drama created by Sheridan. It follows the Norris family as they deal with the highs and lows of living in an oil town. Landman stars Billy Bob Thornton, Ali Larter, Sam Elliott, Michelle Randolph, Demi Moore and more, and was one of the most watched shows in 2025.
‘Landman’ explains oil
A barrel of oil is equivalent to 42 gallons, and within that about half of it becomes fuel for cars, some of it becomes fuel for big trucks and buses, some goes to planes and the rest goes to factories to help produce everyday items. To get a barrel of oil, one must drill a well and use natural pressure or artificial pumps to bring crude oil to the surface—this is showcased a lot on Landman, specifically with Cooper Norris’ (Jacob Lofland) up-and-coming oil company. Currently, the United States mainly gets its oil from Canada, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Colombia. Locally, Texas, New Mexico, North Colorado and Alaska have rigs, but they aren’t nearly as viable as the ones abroad.
Globally, the Strait of Hormuz is used to transfer thousands of oil barrels, but due to current conflicts in the Middle East, the Strait has become dangerous and hard to navigate, limiting the quantity getting through it and resulting in oil prices skyrocketing over the past few weeks. Currently, a barrel of oil costs around $100, meaning that gas costs around $3.60 to $3.70 a gallon—a number that can vary depending on which state you live in.
“You want oil to live above $60, but below $90. And don’t get me wrong, we’re still printing money at $90, but gas gets up over $3.50 a gallon, it starts to pinch,” Tommy Norris, played by Thornton, explains in Landman. “If it’s $100, every product in America has to readjust its price. Seventy-eight dollars a barrel, that’s about perfect. It brings enough profit to keep exploring, but doesn’t sting as much at the pump, unless, of course, you’re in California. I mean, they tax the s-it out of it out there. It could be $45 a barrel and it’s still $4 a pump. I don’t know how those sons-of-b-tch-s do it.”
With oil above $90, this clip from Landman hits different.
“We’re still printing money at 90, but gas gets up over $3.50 a gallon it starts to pinch. It hits $4.00, every product in America has to readjust its price.”
“$78 a barrel, that’s about perfect. Brings enough profit to… pic.twitter.com/haElRhpIif— WOLF (@WOLF_Financial) March 7, 2026
What’s a bust?
After oil prices skyrocket, there’s this thing called “a bust.” During that time, prices decline but it causes companies to go bankrupt, resulting in a lot of personal economic problems. The most recent example of this was in 2020, when a barrel was less than $37.
“In 2020, a barrel of oil was worthless,” Tommy explained in Landman. “Nobody’s immune. Kids have to quit college. Trucks get sold or repoed. Houses, too. People quit going to the doctor because they lost their insurance… The smart ones, they pay cash for everything, and then cycle way enough to ride out to troughs. But there ain’t that many smart ones.” To further explain a bust, Tommy’s ex-wife Angela (Larter) said, “The markets crashed and we lost everything. And I do mean everything.”
As of publication, there is no word on if/when oil prices will go back down. You can watch Season 1 and 2 of Landman now on Paramount+.
