Timothy Olyphant returns to ‘Justified’ role. What he says about it, growing up in Modesto
Get ready to see Modesto-bred Timothy Olyphant don that famous Stetson hat again, “Justified” fans.
The Beyer High graduate reprises his TV role as U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens in “Justified: City Primeval,” with its eight-episode run beginning July 18 on FX. The show also will stream on Hulu.
Olyphant, 55, grew up on Norwegian Avenue, “right off of McHenry,” he said in an email interview. “I went to Standiford Elementary, Jr High at Somerset, then Beyer.”
He said his mom still lives in Modesto, as do as a couple of his best friends. So how often does he visit?
“According to my mother, not as often as I should,” he said.
“I’m pretty sure I was in town last year. Had a great meal at Papapavlo’s. Another one over at Ciao Bella’s.”
Growing up in Modesto “wasn’t really a straight line” to becoming an actor, Olyphant said.
“But there was a movie theater down the street from us, on the corner of Briggsmore and McHenry,” he said. “I remember loving walking down there to see movies. Especially, ‘Star Wars.’ And (George) Lucas being from Modesto, that made quite an impression on me.”
Playing Givens “was always a joy”
Olyphant, who also is among the executive producers of the new show, was happy to revisit the character of Raylan Givens.
“Well, the money was good. So there’s that. But playing the role was always a joy. And I thought the idea we had for this new chapter was a good one,” he said. “I think everyone involved was excited creatively.”
But don’t expect to see Boyd Crowder or any of the other characters from the original six-season series based on the Elmore Leonard short story “Fire in the Hole.” That show garnered Olyphant an Emmy nomination in 2011 for outstanding lead actor.
“Primeval” is based on a different Leonard book, “City Primeval,” and Givens isn’t even a character in the novel.
According to an Entertainment Weekly story, showrunner Dave Andron said they didn’t intend to make a sequel, but rather a “mash-up” by adding the character.
Olyphant said the new show touches on what’s happened in Givens’ life since the original “Justified” ended.
In “Primeval,” Givens left Kentucky 15 years ago, is now living in Miami and the father of 15-year-old Willa, played by Olyphant’s real-life 20-year-old daughter, Vivian Olyphant (more on that below), the Entertainment Weekly story said.
“When a chance encounter on a Florida highway sends Raylan and Willa to Detroit, he crosses paths with Clement Mansell ... a violent, sociopathic desperado who’s already slipped through the fingers of Detroit’s finest once and aims to do so again with the help of his formidable lawyer Carolyn Wilder,” the EW story said. Mansell, Wilder and Givens are “on a collision course” to see who survives.
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Working with his daughter on the show “was very special,” Olyphant said. “The best thing about the gig, really.”
He said he and his family are happy for her to follow in his career path.
“Look, when our kids were little and we took family videos of them, Vivian was the one who always wanted to see playback. So, we kinda saw this coming,” he said.
He has another show streaming
“City Primeval” isn’t the only series in which Olyphant is appearing.
“Full Circle” is a limited series that began streaming July 13 on Max. He stars with Claire Danes as the wealthy parents of a son who was the victim in a failed kidnapping.
“(It’s) directed by Steven Soderbergh,” Olyphant said. “Really proud to be a part of it. I play a guy who’s made a terrible mistake years ago and it’s come back to haunt him.”
“Justified: City Primeval” is a limited series as well, but Olyphant is open to a second season.
“I would be interested. For sure,” he said. “We’ll see. Stay tuned. …”
Meanwhile, Olyphant said he’s “just out here trying my best like everyone else. Hope folks enjoy the work.”
And how was it to don that Stetson again?
“As you get older, you know what the good thing about a hat is?” Olyphant said. “It’s not one of them items you have hard time fitting back into.”
This story was originally published July 16, 2023 at 8:00 AM.
