Breaking Bad star Bob Odenkirk is joining Martin Freeman in the TV adaptation of the Coen brothers’ classic film Fargo.
Variety reports that Odenkirk along with Glenn Howerton, Kate Walsh and Oliver Platt are joining the cast that includes Martin Freeman, Colin Hanks, and Billy Bob Thornton. There’s currently no word on what character Odenkirk will play.
It was announced at the end of September that Martin Freeman will play the role originally played by William H. Macy. Freeman will play Lester Nygaard (the character’s first name was Jerry in the Coen brothers’ film), the main character who is an insurance salesman and proves throughout the story how inept he is at pulling off a crime.
Billy Bob Thornton will play Lorne Malvo, the “rootless, manipulative man who meets the small-town insurance salesman and sets him on a path of destruction.”
Unfortunately for some, it was announced that Frances McDormand’s iconic Fargo character Marge Gunderson won’t be in the TV adaptation.
Though the cast will be impressive, the people behind the scenes are perhaps even more impressive. Joel and Ethan Coen will be returning to executive produce Fargo. Noah Hawley will write the series as well as executive produce. The pilot will be directed by Emmy-winning director Adam Bernstein (30 Rock, Breaking Bad) who will also executive produce. Other executive producers are Warren Littlefield and Geyer Kosinski.
The series will last for only 10 episodes when it is released on FX. Production on Fargo will start in October. It’s planned to be released in Spring 2014.