Fargo premiers on small screen

The new series adapted from the Coen brothers' cult movie will premiere on Tuesday, April 15 on FX. Martin Freeman headlines the series in the role of Lester Nygaard, based on William H. Macy's character in the 1996 movie.

The new series adapted from the Coen brothers' cult movie will premiere on Tuesday, April 15 on FX.

Freeman-cornered

The cable network is preparing to air the first season (ten episodes) of Fargo featuring Martin Freeman, who played Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit trilogy.

The British actor headlines the series in the role of Lester Nygaard, based on William H. Macy's character in the 1996 movie. A hen-pecked insurance salesman, Nygaard meets a mysterious stranger who brings him nothing but trouble.

Billy Bob Thornton plays the latter character, a charming swindler named Lorne Malvo. Colin Hanks, Kate Walsh, Oliver Platt and Bob Odenkirk also appear in Fargo, which is produced by the directors of the original movie.

Screenwriter Noah Hawley (Bones) maintained the dark humor of Ethan and Joel Coen's film and its chilly setting in the titular Minneapolis suburb. The plot and the characters, meanwhile, are entirely new.