‘Fargo’ actor Patrick Wilson taps into real-life role as family man

CALGARY – Before accepting the starring role in the second season of “Fargo,” Patrick Wilson was a bit reluctant to head to Calgary and leave his young family behind.

Last fall, the father of two school-aged boys was away shooting two movies. So the thought of packing for another two-and-a-half months to film up north gave him pause.

In the award-winning Coen brothers-inspired FX series, Wilson, 42, plays state trooper and Vietnam War veteran Lou Solverson, the father of a young daughter named Molly.

In an interview on the set of “Fargo” near Calgary this spring, Wilson said he could relate to Lou as a parent.

Every decision is “sort of run through the funnel of family”, he said.

“Nothing is worth not being there for my family, which is a lot like Lou in the series.”

In the end, he, his wife (actress Dagmara Dominczyk) and agent all agreed he couldn’t say no to “one of the best jobs in TV.”

The second season of “Fargo” takes place in the same bleak, snowy universe as the first — but about three decades earlier, in 1979.

Both seasons have their own self-contained storylines, but Lou and Molly appear in both.

In season 1, Lou owns a diner and counsels his grown-up police officer daughter (played by Allison Tolman) as she tries to solve a spate of grisly murders.

In the second season, viewers get to know Lou in his previous life as a lawman and learn about the horrific sequence of events that would shape him.

“He’s more of an open wound. He believes in the humanity of people that are constantly letting him down. He’s really trying to hold up the American moral centre,” said Wilson.

Family relationships are a big theme in the series.

Ted Danson, who plays Lou’s father-in-law and the local police sheriff, said although there’s some “one-upmanship” in the relationship between the two men, “there’s a lot of dignity in our family.”

Writer Noah Hawley said the show’s relationships reflect the Minnesota culture imagined in the 1996 Coen brothers film of the same name.

“You would never embarrass anyone by asking them how they’re feeling, nor would you burden them by telling them how you’re feeling,” said Hawley.

“It’s a place where people keep their emotions to themselves, so a sort of polite and tight-lipped society — which can often be the most violent, because people tend to snap, they don’t bend.”

“Fargo”‘s second season premieres on Monday on FX Canada.

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