COLLIDER: Robert Taylor Talks LONGMIRE and How the Show Convinced Him to Do American TV
by Christina Radish
June 1st, 2012
The A&E drama series Longmire, based on the Walt Longmire mystery novels by best-selling author Craig Johnson, is a contemporary crime thriller set in Big Sky country. Walt Longmire (Australian actor Robert Taylor) is the charismatic, dedicated and unflappable sheriff of Absaroka County, Wyoming, who buries the pain of losing his wife behind a brave face and dry wit. With the help of Victoria “Vic” Moretti (Katee Sackhoff), a female deputy new to the department, Longmire becomes reinvigorated about his job and committed to running for re-election, as he rebuilds his personal and professional life.
During this exclusive interview with Collider, actor Robert Taylor (Agent Jones in The Matrix) talked about how this series came about for him, what sets Longmire apart from other shows like it, what appealed to him about the character of Walt Longmire, balancing the procedural crime element of the show with the character development, and that this is a character he’d like to play and explore for a few years...
... COLLIDER: How will his working relationships develop?
TAYLOR: "We’ll see. There’s the competition with Branch (Bailey Chase), who’s a young guy. Walt has respect for him and what he does, but he’s not sure he’s ready for the job yet, and he’s not sure if he cares. Walt has probably got a bit of an ego, buried there somewhere, like everyone. There’s an interesting dynamic there.
And Walt’s other deputy, Vic (Katee Sackhoff), has come from a different world and things operate at a different pace. There’s a bit more give-and-take here because we know all these people. These are our neighbors and our associates. We don’t just work with them. We see everybody. A lot of the other characters in the show, that haven’t been introduced yet, will be in there a lot. We see them, every day. Vic is struggling with her husband. I don’t know where that’s going to go either.
And then, there’s Henry (Lou Diamond Phillips), who’s like a touchstone for Walt. He represents what’s right and what’s decent, and the whole Native American situation and the different layers and levels. Henry is very, very important to the show. Walt has enormous respect for him, and Henry understands Walt. He knows what Walt is going through and he knows what he needs, which is probably just some simple stuff like a bit of company, a few beers and some female company.
And the young deputy is just a delightful character. Walt loves Ferg (Adam Bartley), but he’d never tell him that. How they’re all going to mesh together, we’ll see. I don’t know. It’s quite lyrical and gentle, but the stakes can really ramp up. There’s a lot of competing interests and different kinds of mind-sets. Walt is trying to stitch it all together and keep everyone on the straight and narrow, and deal with his own stuff. We’ll see..."
Longmire premieres Sunday, June 3, 2012 at 10/9c on A&E. Cast includes Robert Taylor, Katee Sackhoff, Lou Diamond Phillips, Bailey Chase, Cassidy Freeman and Adam Bartley.
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