To-date FX has employed diversion and deception in their promos for this season’s plot, but we’re getting a slightly sharper look at several of the primary characters. According to FX, Fargo Season 3 is set in 2010 and focuses on the Stussy brothers, Emmit and Ray (both played by actor Ewan McGregor). Emmit is the slick and debonair “Parking Lot King of Minnesota,” while Ray’s Parole Officer is, well, not quite so accomplished. What makes these particular roles so intriguing is that McGregor is playing both at different ages, wherein Emmit is the older brother by several years.
McGregor’s Ray strongly evokes Nicolas Cage’s epic dual roles in Charlie Kaufman’s Adaptation (2002). Ray actually bears an eerie resemblance to an older, current-day Cage. If McGregor can channel even a tenth of that classic Cage performance, we’re in for something special.
Actress Mary Elizabeth Winstead plays Nikki Swango, a parolee under Ray’s supervision. Swango embeds with Ray, and plots to recapture some of his lost youth and the results should be gloriously tragic.
Countering the darkness of the Ray/Swango relationship is Eden Prairie Police Chief Gloria Burgle, played by actress Carrie Coon. Burgle, a recently divorced mother, is pulled into an investigation that quickly turns personal and emotional.
Rounding out the spectacular cast is David Thewlis, as V.M. Vargas; a shadowy loner with nefarious intentions for Emmit’s real estate empire. Actor Michael Stuhlbarg is Sy Feltz, a lawyer — dontcha know.
Check out a couple of more promo pics here!!