Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan rips into Bud Light in latest episode of new show
Taylor Sheridan’s new hit series, Landman, featured a sharp dig at Bud Light in Sunday’s episode, as the beer giant continues to deal with the fallout from their partnership with trans activist Dylan Mulvaney.
In March 2023, the company drew ire after influencer Mulvaney, 27, posted an Instagram video featuring a personalized Bud Light can with her image on it.
The negative response from conservative consumers culminated in a boycott that led to a significant drop in sales for the brand.
The problem was noted in the seventh episode of Sheridan’s latest Paramount+ series, when Billy Bob Thornton’s character, Tommy Norris, spoke to a waitress at a bar.
He is greeted by the waitress, who announces that the bar has a special on Bud Light.
“I bet it is,” Tommy replies as his friend Dale (played by James Jordan) then asks, “How does that work for you?”
Taylor Sheridan’s new hit series, Landman, featured a sharp dig at Bud Light in Sunday’s episode
The lager brand continues to struggle with the consequences of their collaboration with trans activist Dylan Mulvaney
The waitress replied candidly, “Like a popcorn fart in church.”
After decades of being the undisputed best-selling lager in American stores, the brand regularly finds itself the butt of jokes due to the lingering fallout from their failed campaign.
In the Instagram video, Mulvaney was dressed as the character Holly Golightly from the 1961 film Breakfast at Tiffany’s, and she announced that she was celebrating “day 365 of womanhood” after her transition.
In the clip, she teamed up with the company to promote their ‘Easy Carry Contest’, but it had the opposite effect of what the brand had hoped for.
People took to social media to express their bewilderment at the sponsorship. Some filmed themselves shoving boxes of Bud Light into the trash or pouring cans of beer down the drain.
Rock star Kidd Rock even posted a video of himself mowing down a pile of Bud Light cases with an assault rifle and then said, “F**k Bud Light, and f**k Anheuser-Busch.”
An indication of the lasting damage to the brand was revealed in March when Budweiser bosses announced their earnings for last year.
They told investors that the Bud Light boycott had led to a $1.4 billion drop in sales in America.
Bud Light saw sales drop last year after a boycott began following the beer giant’s collaboration with influencer Mulvaney in March 2023
The company’s problem was highlighted with a scathing joke in the seventh episode of Sheridan’s latest Paramount+ series
The world’s largest brewer said sales fell 15.3 percent after Mulvaney’s post.
Since the Bud Light controversy, Mulvaney has been included on Forbes’ annual “30 Under 30” list, with the magazine praising her for weathering the fallout from the disastrous campaign.
Forbes said the California native “found himself at the center of an unexpected political crossfire” after the beer ad.
She earned $2 million this year from promotional work and signed deals with Nike and Mac.
Elsewhere, Landman follows “a modern-day tale of seeking fortune in the world of West Texas oil rigs,” according to a IMDB summary.
The new Paramount+ show received positive reviews from X users after the first two episodes debuted on the streamer last month.
Many social media users couldn’t resist comparing Landman and the popular western series Yellowstone.
Both shows were co-created by Sheridan, and he also directed the first two episodes of Landman and co-wrote the series.
Billy Bob Thornton’s character is told by a waitress that the bar has a Bud Light special, but it’s as successful as “a popcorn fart in church.”
In March, it was revealed to investors that the Bud Light boycott had led to a $1.4 billion drop in sales in America
‘I just saw the Landman pilot. Taylor Sheridan may have another stunner on her hands, I’m afraid,” one X user wrote.
Landman revolves around Tommy Norris (Thornton) – a rough executive of the M-Tex Oil company in Texas.
The series premiere opens with a tied-up Tommy wearing a bag over his head as he discusses a lease with a cartel member.
He survives the intense exchange and continues to work under businessman Monty Miller (Jon Hamm), while balancing relationships with his ex-wife Angela (Ali Larter) and his children Ainsley (Michelle Randolph) and oil field worker Cooper (Jacob Lofland).
The cast also includes Kayla Wallace, James Jordan, Demi Moore and Paulina Chavez.
Since its release on Paramount+, Landman has become the streaming site’s number one series of all time.
More than one critic mentioned Landman’s connections to Yellowstone.
“Landman has the manly bravado and conservative milieu of Yellowstone, Sheridan’s flagship red state soap, but also builds a compelling, detailed world in the sun-dappled Permian Basin that anchors the show in perceived reality,” wrote a critic for Variety.
Landman revolves around Tommy Norris (Thornton) – a rough executive of the M-Tex Oil company in Texas
Social media users couldn’t stop comparing Landman and Sheridan’s other popular western series Yellowstone when the series premiered
A reviewer from the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review claimed that it was Sheridan’s “best series yet” and that it was “even more fun‘ then Yellowstone.
“I’ve enjoyed most of Taylor Sheridan’s series so far, but Landman is the best work he’s done since the first season of Yellowstone,” wrote a critic from JoBlo’s Movie Network.
Still, some argue that the series leaves a lot to be desired.
“Landman runs at the pace of an oil derrick, slowly trudging from one branching storyline to the next,” wrote a RogerEbert.com reviewer.
“None of the men in ‘Landman’ are saints. They are broken, sexist, sloppy, selfish, greedy, patronizing, ignorant and more,” wrote a critic for Entertainment Weekly.
‘But Tommy and his male colleagues are three-dimensional disasters; women, on the other hand, are completely defined by their gender.”