Behind the Scenes of ‘Fargo’ with Billy Bob Thornton

FX’s Fargo ends its first season run on Tuesday, June 17, 2014 at 10pm ET/PT with an extended episode that promises to send the series out with an explosive finish. Molly (Allison Tolman) is finally having her murder investigation taken seriously while Gus (Colin Hanks) is on alert for the return of Lorne Malvo (Billy Bob Thornton). Meanwhile, Lester Nygaard (Martin Freeman) continues to attempt to cover up his participation in multiple murders. There’s so much ground to cover with the season finale that FX has stretched this final episode from 60 minutes to 90.

As the critically acclaimed Fargo season one draws to a close, Billy Bob Thornton took part in a conference call to discuss his character, the series in general, and his co-stars. But don’t worry…not a single finale spoiler is included in this Q&A.

Billy Bob Thornton Fargo Interview

We haven’t learned anything about Malvo’s backstory. Do you understand what his motivation is and did you give him a backstory?

Billy Bob Thornton: “I think it’s probably the only character I’ve ever played, frankly, that hasn’t [got] a conscious, but he has no backstory in the story. I chose to not think about that because Malvo, he’s an animal and animals are eating machines. I thought if I come up with a backstory and it’s like his father locked him in a shed when he was little or something, that might cause too much emotion for the character. It might give me too many reasons to do things and I didn’t want to do that, so it’s the first time I’ve ever not had a backstory in my head or otherwise.

Malvo is all about he has a job to do and whatever he has to do to do it, that’s what he does. And, he has supreme confidence. He doesn’t think about failure and he’s not afraid of anything, and I was afraid that a backstory might mess with that a little bit.”

Both the series and your performance have earned high praise from critics. Did you feel a sense of something special going on while you were filming it compared to other projects you’ve worked on?

Billy Bob Thornton: “I think you generally get a sense when you’re filming something if you’re doing a good job or if the thing is good. I think you do get a sense of that. What you don’t get a sense of is how people are going to react to it. So in other words, I’ve done things before that I thought were okay and people think they’re amazing. And I’ve done things that I thought were amazing and people don’t get it. So you don’t always know how people are going to react to it.

But I think you do get a pretty good sense of if you’ve done your job and if it’s got that vibe. It would probably be comparable to like being in a band or something and you’re doing a concert and some nights you’re on and some nights you’re not. This show in particular really felt like we were on, so yes, we could tell. It was, I don’t want to say easy, but I think the writing was so good and it’s based on such a classic thing and that tone had already been set by the Coen Brothers. We all had a groove to fall into, so yes, I think we really felt we were up to something.

In terms of what people use in the press, all the words and compliments and everything, one of the ones that bothers me is when they always say something is ‘award-worthy’ because that sounds like they’re saying other people’s stuff wasn’t worthy. It kind of…I don’t know…sounds a little dehumanizing or something like that. I think in terms of when people are picked out for awards and they start talking, that depends on the machine behind you. You can make a movie for $2 million that doesn’t get a distributor; nobody sees it. Those don’t have a chance and maybe they’re just as good as the one that had a machine behind it and got all the right things lined up, all the right press lined up or whatever.

I guess the most you can hope for is that you get to be in good quality projects and know that you did your job and then after that, you decide to leave it up to fate or whatever and just see what happens. This one felt good during the process.”

In some shots Malvo’s physicality is reminiscent of the film character Nosferatu. Is that something you thought about?

Billy Bob Thornton: “That’s a very good question and no one else has compared Malvo to Nosferatu, but that’s pretty good. I like that. I think a lot of that is just because after years and years of injuries and weighing 140 pounds, I look like Homer Simpson’s boss to start with, my physicality, so some of it is just natural. But I did choose to be very sort of slinky and just sort of appear from places.

I did choose to be very quiet, but not like purposely menacing like the guy who twirls his moustache. Malvo even acts like he’s a pal to people sometimes, especially Lester. That was conscious to make him not the typical bad guy who screams a lot and grits his teeth and grabs people by the collar. That was a conscious choice.”

You’ve done some amazing writing work for the screen. Did you ever have the urge to get in there with Noah Hawley in the creative process or were you glad to turn that over to someone else for this project? Would you consider trying to write a short run TV series in the future after this experience?

Billy Bob Thornton: “First of all, it was so well written; it was just like when I’ve worked with the Coen Brothers in the past. I tend to be kind of an improvisational actor, but in this case it was so well written that I pretty much stuck to what Noah wrote. I had ideas every now and then, but they were generally less about dialog and things like that and more about how about I don’t go in a room right away or just little things like that here and there. Actors always have some kind of suggestion, so little stuff like that. But for the most part I just stuck to what Noah wrote.

I think something that’s been overlooked a little bit throughout our press for this show there’s been a lot of talk about how we’ve created a whole new animal, even though it’s based on the movie. The Coen Brothers didn’t write any of it. It’s been just our thing and its own show and all we took from Fargo was the snow and the general idea. But something that I think has been overlooked a little bit and not talked about enough is that if it weren’t for Joel and Ethan Coen, we wouldn’t be here.

They created a whole new genre, practically for movies. It’s not that nobody else had that dark sense of humor and nobody else had thought about these kinds of things in their mind before, otherwise the Coen Brothers wouldn’t have any fans. But all those people who had that sensibility, they hadn’t done it yet. The Coen Brothers are the first to do it.

It’s like there might not be a Will Ferrell without a Steve Martin, if you know what I’m saying. So I think more credit needs to be given to Joel and Ethan for starting this ball rolling. They’re the ones who really created this world and I just have to say that because I think sometimes that’s overlooked, that we wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for them. They set this tone and deserve the credit for us even having this show.

In terms of writing one myself, I don’t know. I’ve never written anything over movie length, so I don’t know if I’d be any good at it or not but I certainly think that’s the future. I think this short-run television thing, whether it’s a three episode mini-series like [Kevin] Costner did with the Hatfields and McCoys, or a 10 episode thing like ours, these are like movies, extended movies, and I think it’s a great world to be in and I certainly have thought about it. Whether I’d be any good at creating one or writing it, I don’t know. But I certainly would love to be involved in another one if it’s of this quality.”

Do you have a favorite scene or moment from the series?

Billy Bob Thornton: “I really enjoyed the scenes that I did with Martin [Freeman]. There’s a scene in a little café where I tell him about how he needs to be a man and step up and realize that we were once apes. I like the opening scene where he and I meet each other in the lobby of the waiting room of the hospital, the scene with myself and Colin Hanks at the end of the pilot where we first meet each other in the car. I remember those as particularly good moments. I remember feeling completely lost in them that we were really there, but I have to say all the stuff we did just felt really good.

I’ve particularly enjoyed working with Keith Carradine in the one scene we’ve had so far in his diner. I’ve always wanted to work with Keith and you could feel two actors disappearing into their characters in that scene. I remember coming out of it as if I’d actually been through something. It was really, really easy working with Keith and just looking at him as this guy.”

What was your take on the rain of fish scene?

Billy Bob Thornton: “My take on it, I thought it was pretty great and it obviously had the Biblical, sort of symbolic, Biblical thing, I guess. I think the one thing in terms of fish that I was pretty disappointed about was nobody told me they were going to do a photo shoot with all these girls in bikinis holding fish. I wasn’t warned about that, so I didn’t get to go over and watch. [Laughing] I always miss out on all the good stuff.”

When you play a very dark role, is there any point at which you really have to protect yourself from it?

Billy Bob Thornton: “I’ve never had a real problem with it I don’t think. I’m pretty able to just go home and have an omelet. I’m not really the type to let it permeate my life. Maybe when I was doing Bad Santa to a degree, I think maybe I probably drank a little more beer during that time than I normally have in my life because I’m kind of a lightweight.

For the most part I don’t let it creep into my regular life. It was really interesting playing a character like this who had no conscience, though. I’ve never done that. When I played odd characters or whatever, they usually had their softer side, but Malvo is pretty straight ahead. As I say he just kicks a** and takes names. He’s not worried about the consequences.”

Can you talk about the logistics of doing the scenes in which Malvo kills people?

Billy Bob Thornton: “First of all, I’ve been doing this for 30-something years so you get used to it, although this time I’m the giver rather than the receiver most of the time. We have really good technical people. The crew up there in Calgary was very good and the stunt people, everybody, they were really, really terrific, so we couldn’t have asked for more help.

What you want to do is you want to try to stay in a world of reality as much as possible, so you don’t try to ever think of it as fake blood or anything like that. You just want to stay inside the scene as if you’re really doing this stuff. I guess that’s the main trick is just keeping your head on straight and never getting outside of the scene. It’s just like having a camera in front of you; you’re supposed to not know it’s there.

And that’s why I never quite understood when actors don’t want someone in their eyeline because if you’re really in the scene, you’ve already got a camera operator, a boom guy, and a camera assistant and all these people in front of you. I’ve never understood the difference between five or six people in front of you and 13 people in front of you. I think the main thing as an actor is you just have to try to ignore anything else and just do things as if you’re doing it.”

Did you have a favorite persona to get into on the show?

Billy Bob Thornton: “The thing is is at the end of the day, there was always at the root of it all he was still Malvo and knew he was. No matter what he was pretending to be it was like camouflage for an animal in the forest really, so I tried not to think about it too much. But I have to say it was playing Frank Peterson I think gave me a particular thrill, just because I was around all those other actors who were doing these type of characters and I was thinking, ‘I wish I could do one of those just one day.’ I was thrilled when I found out I got to do it even for a minute there, so I would say, yes, Frank Peterson really thrilled me.

But I also liked playing the dentist because of my interaction with Stephen Root. I just thought that was a funny little relationship and also going from that character into a guy who can just clean out an elevator instantly after working on teeth.”

Malvo is very meticulous and economical in everything that he does. He just does enough to get by and not go out of his way, but he did have a little fun terrorizing those kids who moved into Lester’s old home. Was that just for fun for Malvo or was that on purpose?

Billy Bob Thornton: “Malvo does have fun messing with people and more than messing with the kids, he was really messing with the father. I think Malvo was probably pretty pissed that he didn’t find Lester yet, so who’s the nearest person I can poke with a stick? It’s like, ‘Lester is not here, so you bought Lester’s house. You’re not the guy I wanted, but let me just leave you with this little tidbit.’

Malvo definitely likes to mess with people and I think particularly people that are too cheery and that guy was just a little too friendly in the beginning. He thought he’d leave him a little something more serious to think about.”

Were you ever bothered by the possibility that it won’t be as good as the film?

Billy Bob Thornton: “When I read the pilot script, I could see how good it was. I think if I had just heard about the idea without having read it, I think maybe I would have been a little more worried about it. But as it turns out when they met with me and offered me the role, I read it right away. That dispelled any concerns I might have because it almost looked like it was written by the Coen Brothers to me.

It was very, very much like the movie in that way, so yes, I thought Noah really hit the mark. I didn’t worry about it so much. But if I hadn’t read it right away, I probably would have been concerned.”

Just like the movie, the TV series used the initial words, “This is a real story.” This seems to give the audience the right motivation to somehow look at this universe in a different way. Do you think that’s a factor in the show’s appeal?

Billy Bob Thornton: “Yes, definitely. Obviously it’s not a real story, but it falls in the category of a true crime story meaning that you get to see the crime unfold in real time. I think that’s a cool thing for the audience. Even though they know intellectually it’s not a real story, I think it helps you get into it more and helps the audience think of it as being real, because at the end of the day whatever movie or TV show you’re doing, you want the audience to feel that. So yes, I definitely think it helps.”

If Lester had walked away, do you think Malvo would have left him alone or do you think he would eventually come after him anyway?

Billy Bob Thornton: “I think Malvo is kind of like a cat with a mouse. I think the temptation would have probably been too great. I’m not sure he could have left him alone. It is, ‘Are you kidding me here? We are in the same place in Las Vegas; I’ve got to do something about this.’ Plus this whole thing is more like Malvo is almost like God and the devil wrapped into one and I think these things were just going to happen. Do you know what I mean? I think a lot of this is about faith. You always think about if I’d only gotten on my motorcycle two minutes later, then I wouldn’t have hit that deer or whatever it is. Malvo is kind of the spirit that makes all those things happen, sort of lines up people’s faith for them.”

Do you read all that’s being said about the show by the press? Do you have to be selective? How do you deal with all that feedback?

Billy Bob Thornton: “I don’t really read the stuff. I hear it from other people. I think I’d rather do it that way. Like friends call up and say, ‘People love the show, and I’ve heard that it’s even a big hit in England, which is great. So, I hear those things. If you put any given thousand people together and have them start a conversation back and forth with each other, some of them are going to love you, some of them are going to hate you, and I don’t know why you’d want to subject yourself to the ones who say, ‘He’s ugly. We don’t like him.’ I don’t know he said something bad to my cousin or whatever it is. It’s like I don’t need to read that stuff.

In terms of legitimate publications, my publicist will send me the reviews and stuff like that and I’ll read those sometimes. It depends on the source. In other words, I don’t get on the Internet and read chat rooms or stuff like that about what people think about it because if people tell me that there’s a good reaction to the show, that’s enough for me without reading the particulars. But as I said, newspapers, magazines, different things like that that do legitimate reviews of it, I’ll read those sometimes. I’ve been so happy and grateful that people have embraced the show the way they have. It’s been a real thrill for all of us.”

Your character was almost like a hummingbird going from scene-to-scene and having so many different interactions with probably more characters than anybody else, besides Lester. Were you tied to the script more since you did have so many different interactions? Can you compare this with being able to work with another actor throughout a whole project?

Billy Bob Thornton: “Because my guy doesn’t really know any of these people, I think that made it seem very realistic for me that I just stepped into the lives of different people throughout the series. I think you do have a different feeling than you would have if you were playing, say, the husband of one of the lead actresses or something or you’re the guy who’s lived in the town forever. You then have to think about your relationship and your history with these people. But my guy, he’s from nowhere.

It’s kind of like Clint Eastwood in the old spaghetti Westerns, like he was the Man with No Name. Malvo is kind of the man from nowhere. I found it very interesting to be able to do that and I didn’t have to know anything about these people, and I could look at them as if I just met them all the time. I don’t know. I enjoyed that aspect of it.”

What’s been your favorite scene so far that you haven’t been in but have really enjoyed just watching as a viewer?

Billy Bob Thornton: “It’s hard to say, there are so many. I know you guys get answers like that all the time and I’m sure you hate it, but it really is so difficult to pinpoint one thing. I know one thing I really enjoyed scenes where…I can tell you a scene. It’s when Molly and Bill, the character that’s played by Bob Odenkirk, when they go over to question Lester and Bob just talks about when they’re growing up and stuff like that. Molly knows she smells a rat with this guy and Bill just won’t have it. He’s just like, ‘Okay, Lester, sorry to bug you.’

I think I enjoyed every time there were scenes like that with Bob. I’ve particularly enjoyed his character and just what he did with that. It’s sort of like he just couldn’t believe and wasn’t going to have any part of some guy he knew in town even potentially having anything to do with all this stuff. So, I’d say that.”