Juno Temple interview: ‘Fargo’
SPOILER ALERT: This article and video contain spoilers for Season 5.
“I wept,” admits Juno Temple about her first reaction to the “Fargo” ending. In our recent webchat she adds, “I was like, ‘Wow.’ This is an extraordinary way to finish this chapter” Watch our exclusive video interview above.
“Fargo” is the FX anthology series created by Noah Hawley that was inspired by the 1996 Joel and Ethan Coen film. Each season takes a darkly comedic look at new characters dealing with life and crime in the Midwest. In the series’ fifth installment Temple plays Dot, a housewife whose normal life is disrupted when her abusive ex-husband, Sheriff Roy Tillman (Jon Hamm), discovers her whereabouts.
Temple explains, “She’s a superhero mom. Her physicality isn’t slick. She’s a survivor, and a feral one at that. Something that surprised me was the never-ending ways in which she would divert a situation. There was a lot of fun with her physicality. I kind of ran with it. The one thing that I didn’t love doing was setting fire to somebody. That really threw me.”
The season concludes with an assassin Munch, played by Sam Spruell, breaking into Dot’s house. Rather than a scene of violence that “Fargo” is known for, Dot invites her hunter to join the family for dinner, with biscuits and all. Temple reveals, “It was truly about allowing forgiveness to be more important than debt. I think that is a big part of Dot’s power. Her ability to forgive. It was the last scene we shot, too.”
In the scene, Dot includes her husband Wayne (David Rysdahl) and daughter Scottie (Sienna King) in welcoming Munch. Temple breaks-down the scene: “She doesn’t tell them to leave. Because it helps with the choice for Munch; be a part of the family, enjoy the moment, and chow down on some forgiveness. Making the dance happen with the family was really important. We rehearsed it like a play to figure out when Scottie would interrupt Munch, and Wayne would offer a drink. It felt like a standoff between light and dark. Reacting to David and Sienna’s genuine curiosity and kindness meant I couldn’t ever feel dangerous. Everybody in this cast were so giving. The choices that people made were profound and affected my performance.”
Temple has reaped three supporting actress Emmy nominationss for her work on the Best Comedy Series champ “Ted Lasso.” This year, she will compete in the Best Limited Actress race for “Fargo.” She says, “The moments that you salivating for are the moments we forget a camera is rolling. The moments that you hear a ‘cut!’ and you’re like, ‘what?’ The magic of living in Dot’s shoes was being present with the people that you were performing with. Bouncing off each other felt so real and so precious.”
She reflects, “I’ve always been terrified of growing up. And in more recent years I have grown up. On camera, I’m playing moms, and women who have left their early twenties. That experience is teaching me that maybe being a grown up doesn’t have to be as scary as I thought. It’s not going to be easy, but it’s worth it.”
