B12 & NAD+: Landman’s Longevity Secret

A Texas lineman wearing a cowboy hat, standing in front hills and a powerline as he looks towards the ground, resting in the sunset.

Here’s what we’ll cover in this blog post:

  • What is Billy Bob Thornton injecting in Landman?
  • What NAD+ and B12 are
  • The longevity benefits of NAD+ and B12
  • Why are NAD+ and B12 in Landman?

If you’ve seen Paramount’s new hit show, Landman, you may have noticed NAD+ and B12 make a brief cameo in the first 15 minutes of the pilot.

The lead character of Landman, played by Billy Bob Thornton, is a budding executive for a Texas oil company—a down-to-earth working man grappling with work and family life.

In the first 15 minutes of the show, Billy Bob’s character is shown starting his day with a quick injection of NAD+ and B12. Observant viewers may wonder, why NAD+? Why B12? Others less familiar with the medications may speculate, why is he even injecting himself in the first place?

NAD+ and B12 have diverse health benefits for anyone, even those coming face-to-face with international oil conflicts. Here, we’ll discuss how these medications fit into the life of a landman, and how you can use them to take control of your health.

What is Billy Bob Thornton injecting in Landman?

Early in the pilot episode of Landman, Billy Bob Thornton’s character—Tommy Norris—takes a brief morning respite from the exceptional stress of his job as a Texas landman. The viewer is allowed a brief glimpse into his morning routine as Norris shaves, brushes his teeth—and takes several injections. 

The labels of his medication bottle pass over the screen, revealing that Thornton’s character is taking B12 shots, NAD+ injections, and testosterone. 

While testosterone is familiar enough to most, many viewers wondered—why B12, and what exactly is NAD+?

What are NAD+ and B12?

NAD+ and B12 are both vital nutrients that our body needs to function daily. That includes everything from waking up and starting work to striking deals with the competition.

NAD+ is in every living cell, a key coenzyme for energy metabolism, DNA repair, and mitochondrial health. Without NAD+, life would cease to exist, and though our bodies naturally produce NAD+, these levels decline with age.

B12 is also a vital nutrient like NAD+. The difference is our bodies don’t produce B12 naturally. In other words, we can’t produce our own supply of B12 like we can NAD+—we must get our B12 from the food we eat or other supplements.

That means we have to regularly supplement our B12 and NAD+ levels to keep up with aging—and to keep up with our day.

Why NAD+ and B12?

Most take NAD+ and B12 for energy, which is the most immediate benefit of both therapies. Both are vital for energy production and metabolism, which gives us the fuel we need to tackle our day-to-day, no matter how big our day is.

But NAD+ and B12 do more than just give us energy—they can also protect us from environmental stressors like cigarette smoke, stress, or toxic chemicals, all of which can lead to inflammation, oxidative stress, and age-related disease. As these damages accumulate, our bodies become more susceptible to disease like cancer, and other age-related conditions like frailty. Clearly, Tommy Norris has no time for these kinds of distractions.

While the first season never reveals exactly why Tommy takes B12 and NAD+, the show implies that he turns to these solutions as a quick fix to get him through the demands of his job. It’s possible that Tommy knows something that many viewers don’t—that these interventions may also have healthy aging benefits. Perhaps his character is B12 or NAD+ deficient, but let’s be honest: Tommy always has a solution ready.

At the end of the day, Thornton’s character can have his cake and eat it too, even though he’d prefer a cold can of raviolis. He gets the short-term energy benefits he needs to conquer his day, plus the healthy aging benefits of protecting his cells from environmental stressors. In a world as demanding as Tommy’s, it’s clear that staying ahead means more than just getting through the day—it’s about building resilience for the long haul, and NAD+ and B12 seem to be his secret weapons for both.


Note: The above statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.