Fans of FX’sJustifiedmay yet get to see their favorite Kentucky Marshal Raylan Givens once again, and this time it won’t be through a confusing but satisfying cameo onThe Good Place. The makers ofJustifiedare reuniting to create another series for the network based on the work of the late Elmore Leonard, and that might very well include Timothy Olyphant.
Leonard’s 1980 novelCity Primeval: High Noon in Detroitwill be the subject of this latest adaptation, and the producers andwriters behindJustified(including its creator Graham Yost) will return to work on the series.Justifiedwas based on Leonard’s 2001 short story “Fire in the Hole” and featured Olyphant as U.S. Deputy Marshal Raylan Givens, who had also been established as a character in several of Leonard’s other novels over the years. The show’s success apparently made a new series all but inevitable (and likely gave Olyphant the boost in star power thatlanded him a guest role onThe Mandalorian), though it’s been a fair bit of time sinceJustifiedended in 2015.
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According to Variety, the new project is still in its early stages, meaning very little is actually confirmed in terms of casting. Because of that, the idea that Olyphant might return is little more than educated speculation at this point. While Raylan is a recurring character in many of Leonard’s stories ever since his introduction in the 1993 novelPronto, he doesn’t feature inCity Primeval. Of course, that doesn’t mean he won’t appear, as evenJustifiedtook a great many liberties with its characters and plot points compared to the source material. But if Olyphant does appear, it’s possible it won’t be in a starring role, or even a shared spotlight likehis time on the binge-worthy seriesDeadwood.
City Primeval, in contrast to the rural Kentucky setting ofJustified, takes place in Detroit. It follows murderer and “Oklahoma Wildman” Clement Mansell, whose latest crime catches the personal eye of homicide Detective Raymond Cruz. Cruz is fed up with Mansell’s ability to slip through the legal system’s fingers thanks to the killer’s intimidating lawyer Carolyn Wilder, so he vows to bring the remorseless maniac to justice at any cost. No casting information has been revealed as of yet.
The team who broughtJustifiedto life really went above and beyond, whether it be from the stellar writing or the engaging performances. With that in mind, it’s easy to see why FX would want to try catching that lightning in a bottle once again. Setting the show in Detroit might offer some different storytelling opportunities than Kentucky, which should help keep the ideas fresh. Plus, the potential return of Olyphant as Raylan could be more than enough to get the series the attention it needs to really take off. At the very least, it’s more likely to happen thanever seeing Olyphant play Agent 47 again.
But whether or not Olyphant appears in the new series, the combination of the creative team behind this upcoming show as well as the source material should really perk up a few ears. Leonard’s mastery of old western tropes in more modern settings brings a lot to the table, and while he unfortunately won’t be involved this time due to his tragic passing in 2013, his legacy looks ready to live on.
