When it comes to doing interviews, I admit: Im selfish.
So hes perfectly cast as the lead inJustified, a drama based on the books of Elmore Leonard.
Thats a good question.
How does Raylan deal with it?
Raylans not really dealing with it.
Youre an executive producer onJustifiednow.
Well, first of all it means a great deal to me.
How involved I am?
You know, in my mind Im doing everything and but in reality Im doing very, very little.
And my job basically is to, you know, just keep poking at it and keep asking questions.
How much Kentucky-centric research do you do?
Theres a lot of colourful corruption there thats not fiction.
Do you guys ever get inspired by stories from the bluegrass state?
Why do you think the show has retained its popularity?
I like it because its really entertaining.
Beyond that, I dont have any answers for you.
A lot of the characters on the show have a strict code of honour.
Do you think that setsJustifiedapart from other shows on television right now?
So, you know, were always looking for that.
Do you contribute to that at all?
How much fun is it for you to deliver these kinds of lines?
And its not lost on me and what an opportunity it is and Im enjoying every second of it.
But, my contribution to that… you know, very little.
Im not sure its my greatest strength.
Well, thats a good question.
The answer is I dont know.
But so far, so good, you know.
And Raylan refuses to allow himself to get pinned like that.
Thats kind of a fun character to play.
Will we see Raylan becoming a father this season?
Given his relationship with his own father, how will he handle that?
I think that depends of a couple things.
And if theyre not, their parents are.
But I like the idea, as far as storytellings concerned, of Raylan being a father.
And those kinds of things, I think, are kind of what makes Elmore Leonard tick.
Watching the show, several characters have strong southern accents, but Raylans isnt anywhere near so pronounced.
Why did you choose to portray him in that way?
[joking] Well, personally I think everyone else is probably doing it wrong.
And Im doing it right.
But sometimes I think they just inadvertently make me look bad by their own shortcomings.
Otherwise, as far as the accents concerned, I mean, there is one there.
We made a choice from the jump to keep it kind of subtle.
The character was from Harlan County but left there at a fairly young age.
Which Western characters inspire you to play Raylan?
Oh, none specifically but I do like a good Western.
Which ones would you recommend?
Theres so many great Western films.
Lets see, Red River, any of those Henry Fonda movies are fantastic.
Any of those John Ford movies are fantastic.
I love all the Eastwood Man With No Name movies, John Wayne,True Grit.
What do you want?
I mean, theyre all great.
But I dont go to work thinking were making a Western.
Youve mentioned before that you enjoy the comedy elements ofJustified, that kind of lightness of tone.
How do you balance that tone with some of the more serious subject matter on the show?
Thats kind of the game we play.
My goodness, what have I learned.
Im sure theres a serous answer in here somewhere.
But beyond you know, I like my job, you know, thats become very clear to me.
I know how to pretend to do things that I otherwise didnt know how to do.
I know a few facts and things about law enforcement and whatnot that I was unaware of.
I have a better sense of the U.S.
Marshals and what kind of people sign up for that job.
And as I said before, I have a very healthy understanding of how good a gig this is.
You know, I wasnt that funny onDeadwood.
That character was really serious; you know, he woke up every morning in a bad place.
Raylan seems much more easygoing seems to enjoy his job kind of guy.
Is that easier to play?
Id like to think Im a little more easygoing than the character onDeadwood,without question.
And the tone on this show is much different than the tone onDeadwood.
And every now and then the violence or the seriousness of it rises up.
Would you ever want to direct an episode ofJustified?
No, I dont see that happening.
The show has had so many great villains.
What can we expect in season four?
Are there any new villains coming to the fore?
Ron Eldard plays a guy name Colt who comes in and works with Boyd.
Thoroughly, thoroughly entertaining.
What a wonderful actor.
We got more of Jere Burns; we had so many people that we had at our disposal.
We made a decision not to bring in too many new people.
But at the same time theres just a lot of great new guest stars and great new characters.
Are there any guest stars in particular that youre especially excited about?
As I said, I really feel that Eldards work is top notch.
And Patton [Oswalt] is fantastic on the show.
But hes not playing a bad guy, hes playing a Constable.
Who else we got…
I mean, you know, Jenn Lyon who played the bartender is just fantastic.
Youve been playing Raylan for a while now.
Does that make it easier to get a scene down perfectly?
Timothy Olyphant (and the other twenty people on the call), thank you very much.
Readwhy you should be watching Justified, here.
