The Mad Men star heads the cast of the limited-run series premiering Nov. 21 on FX.
Jon Hamm has stepped away from the Manhattan office towers of Mad Men to strut his stuff in less populous but more dangerous territory for the upcoming fifth season of Fargo, the FX series inspired by the Oscar-winning 1996 film by Joel and Ethan Coen.
Each season of the darkly comical crime drama spins a self-contained story in a different time and locale, with earlier iterations showcasing such diverse talents as Billy Bob Thornton, Kirsten Dunst, Ewan McGregor, and Chris Rock. For Season 5, Hamm dons a cowboy hat, a shearling coat, and an improbably huge belt buckle that reads “A Hard Man for Hard Times” to join an impressive ensemble alongside such notables as Juno Temple (Ted Lasso), Jennifer Jason Leigh (Jennifer Jason Leigh) and Dave Foley (Hot in Cleveland).
What’s it all about? According to FX:
“The latest installment of Fargo is set in Minnesota and North Dakota, 2019. After an unexpected series of events lands Dorothy ‘Dot’ Lyon (Juno Temple) in hot water with the authorities, this seemingly typical Midwestern housewife is suddenly plunged back into a life she thought she had left behind.
“North Dakota Sheriff Roy Tillman (Hamm) has been searching for Dot for a long time. A rancher, preacher and a constitutional lawman, Roy believes that he is the law and therefore is above the law. At his side is his loyal but feckless son, Gator (Joe Keery), who is desperate to prove himself to his larger-than-life father. Too bad he’s hopeless. So when it comes to hunting Dot, Roy enlists Ole Munch (Sam Spruell), a shadowy drifter of mysterious origin.
“With her deepest secrets beginning to unravel, Dot attempts to shield her family from her past. But her doting, well-meaning husband Wayne (David Rysdahl) keeps running to his mother, Lorraine Lyon (Jennifer Jason Leigh), for help. CEO of the largest debt collection agency in the country, the ‘Queen of Debt’ is unimpressed with her son’s choice in a wife and spares no opportunity to voice her disapproval. However, when Dot’s unusual behavior catches the attention of Minnesota Police Deputy Indira Olmstead (Richa Moorjani) and North Dakota Deputy Witt Farr (Lamorne Morris), Lorraine appoints her in-house counsel and primary advisor, Danish Graves (Foley), to aid her daughter-in-law. After all, family is family.
“But Dot has an uncanny knack for survival. And with her back to the wall, she’s about to show why one should never provoke a mother Lyon.”
Season 5 of Fargo kicks off with two back-to-back episodes Nov. 21 before continuing its regular weekly release on FX. Each episode will be available for streaming on Hulu the day after its FX premiere.
