Bob Odenkirk, Oliver Platt, Kate Walsh and Glenn Howerton are among the stars joining Billy Bob Thornton, Martin Freeman and Colin Hanks in the FX limited series Fargo, an original adaptation of the classic Academy Award(R)-winning feature film. The announcement was made today by Eric Schrier, President, Original Programming, FX Networks and FX Productions and Steve Stark, President, Television Production, MGM Television. Production begins in November in Calgary, Canada and the series is slated to premiere next spring on FX.
FX's Fargo will feature an all-new "true crime" story, following a new case and new characters, all entrenched in the trademark humor, murder and "Minnesota nice" that has made the film an enduring classic. As previously announced, Oscar(R) winner Billy Bob Thornton stars as "Lorne Malvo," a rootless, manipulative man who meets and forever changes the life of small town insurance salesman "Lester Nygaard," played by BAFTA Award(R) winner and Emmy(R)-nominated Martin Freeman. Colin Hanks plays Duluth Police Deputy Gus Grimly, a single dad who must choose between his own personal safety when he comes face-to-face with a killer.
Rounding out Fargo's colorful cast of recurring characters will be Emmy winner Bob Odenkirk (Breaking Bad), as "Deputy Bill Olson," a Bemidji deputy with seniority over his younger, smarter and more ambitious fellow deputy, "Molly Solverson," played by Allison Tolman (Sordid Lives), who will be a series regular. Golden Globe(TM) and Emmy-nominated Oliver Platt (The Big C, and the upcoming features Lucky Them, Chef and Kill the Messenger), will play "Stavros Milos," the Supermarket King of Minnesota. Screen Actors Guild Award(R) winner Kate Walsh (Private Practice) will star as "Gina Hess," a former stripper and mother of teenaged twin boys. Glenn Howerton, star of FXX's It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, will play "Don Chumph," an ambitious personal trainer. Joey King (The Conjuring, Oz: The Great and Powerful) will play Gus's daughter, "Greta Grimly" and Peter Breitmayer (The Middle, A Serious Man) will play "Lieutenant Schmidt," Gus's superior officer. Tom Musgrave (Beethoven's 5th) will portray "Bo Munk," Lester's boss at the Bo Munk Insurance Shop, and Josh Close (The Master) will play "Ron Nygaard," Lester's younger and more successful brother. Russell Harvard (There Will Be Blood) and Adam Goldberg (The Unusuals) will play members of the Fargo Crime Syndicate, "Mr. Wrench" and "Mr. Numbers," respectively - Mr. Wrench is the muscle. Mr. Numbers is the mouth.
A 10-episode limited series, Fargo is written by Noah Hawley. Emmy Award-winning director Adam Bernstein (30 Rock) will direct the premiere hour. Executive Producers are Hawley, Warren Littlefield, Joel & Ethan Coen, and Geyer Kosinski. Fargo is produced by
FX Productions and MGM Television.
MGM Television will be the lead studio and will handle worldwide distribution of the series outside of the U.S. and Canada.
Fargo, released in 1996, was nominated for seven Academy Awards and won for Best Original Screenplay for Joel & Ethan Coen and Best Actress for Frances McDormand. It was named as one of the 100 Greatest American Movies by the American Film Institute.
Last year,
FX announced that it would be producing miniseries and limited series through
FX Productions. The network has had tremendous success with traditional drama series, with most of its dramas running seven seasons. By entering the limited series business,
FX can produce dramatic programs that have shorter runs - one, two or three seasons - and offer talented filmmakers more freedom.
FX Productions is also in production on the limited series Wayward Pines for FOX. A limited series from M. Night Shyamalan, Wayward Pines stars Matt Dillon and Carla Gugino. It is slated to premiere in summer of 2014.
About FX
FX is the flagship general entertainment basic cable channel of
FX Networks, a business unit of 21st Century Fox.
FX Networks is comprised of FX,
FXX and FXM. Launched in June of 1994,
FX is carried in more than 98 million homes. The diverse schedule features a growing roster of critically acclaimed and award-winning hit dramas series, including Sons of Anarchy, Justified, The Americans and The Bridge; the miniseries American Horror Story: Coven; and the acclaimed hit comedy series Louie, Archer and Wilfred. The network's library of acquired box-office hit movies is unmatched by any ad-supported television network. FX's roster of acquired hit series includes Two and a Half Men,
Anger Management and, coming in 2014, Mike & Molly.
About Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc.
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is a leading entertainment company focused on the production and distribution of film and television content globally. The company owns one of the world's deepest libraries of premium film and television content. In addition, MGM has investments in domestic and international television channels. For more information, visit www.mgm.com.
About
FX Productions
FX Productions produces the critically acclaimed hit comedy series It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, The League, Louie, Archer, Wilfred, and Legit, and the late night series Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell. FXP co-produces the award-winning hit drama series
Sons of Anarchy and Justified, the critically acclaimed drama The Americans, and the critically acclaimed new drama series The Bridge. FXP currently has production output deals in place with RCG Productions, the production company of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia Executive Producer/Showrunners Rob McElhenney, Charlie Day and Glenn Howerton, and Floyd County Productions, the production company of Archer Executive Producer/Showrunners Adam Reed and Matt Thompson. FXP recently announced a cable exclusive, first-look pact with Nina Jacobson, Brad Simpson and their Color Force production company, producers of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid feature franchise and The Hunger Games. It was the first POD deal for
FX Productions that was not established through a prior existing relationship with the studio. FXP has a first-look cable deal with Paul Giamatti, Dan Carey and their production company, Touchy Feely Films. FXP is also producing limited series and miniseries for
FX and FOX.
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