‘Fargo’ season 2: Show boss on Coen Brothers’ involvement at PaleyFest

“Fargo” season 2 was the latest show to get a little bit of the spotlight at PaleyFest in New York City, and while there was not much in the way of scoop that came out of the event, there were opportunities to learn a thing or two about how things work behind the scenes.

For example, just how involved are Joel and Ethan Coen in the production of the show? The brothers are both listed as executive producers, but often don’t spend too much time talking about the show other than treating it as a separate thing. Noah Hawley is really the architect behind the series version, and he said (per Entertainment Weekly) that most of the talks between him and the brothers are limited:

“They ask how it’s going, and we talk about some stuff, and I try not to overstay my welcome … We send them everything, and I don’t know that they read things and watch things.

“They’ve been so generous with me, and it must be odd for them on some level that this movie they made 20, 25 years ago has this second life that they had nothing to do with and has a marketing budget that far exceeds what they had… It’s mostly just, I like to keep in touch with them, but I try not to bother them.”

Ultimately, this approach seems to be working. Maybe if “Fargo” was in the hands of a lesser talent, the brothers would have more cause for concern. Hawley and company have delivered something that is equal and at times even better than the original movie, and that is something we were not quite sure we were going to be getting at one point.

(Photo: FX.)