As of Thursday, Allison Tolman is an Emmy nominee after having just one series regular role on FX’s “Fargo.”
“It’s beyond insane,” Tolman told TheWrap on Tuesday after she discovered she had been nominated for supporting actress in the miniseries category for “Fargo.”
She continued, “Just everything in the past year of my life has been just absolutely bizarre in the most wonderful way and this is just another stepping stone in this bizarre ride that I’ve been on.”
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Tolman played Deputy Molly Solverson, a dedicated cop who enjoys her job but often finds herself underestimated and alienated by her fellow small town cops.
TheWrap: How did you hear about the nomination?
Allison Tollman: Well I’m home in Chicago right now, so my boyfriend and I got up a few minutes early and logged online and watched the little telecast, but they didn’t announce my category during that. So, we both started frantically Googling things and found the list. I was lucky enough to be home and in familiar surroundings which is helpful when you are getting news that way.
Your performance in this role is often understated. Why do you think this role resonated with Emmy voters?
I think people — voters aside — I think it’s just viewers and fans of the show like this character, because I think [Molly] was different from what we are used to seeing on television because she is very warm and familiar. She seems like a person that you know and have met. I don’t think you realize how often on television, people are not like anyone we know or have known. And you don’t know that’s missing until you see it and she doesn’t fit into a whole that people have. She was like watching a friend and it was my honor to play a character that resonated so well with viewers.
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Is part of this bizarre ride luring you to move to Los Angeles?
Yes, we’re planning to move out to L.A. in September. So, I’ve been back and forth quite a bit this summer. We’re spending time in Chicago to say goodbye to our beloved city here for a little while and we’re packing up and hitting the road and should be there by the fall.
Me and my reporter friends are trying to wrap our heads around another season of “Fargo.” Is that a whole different story? Is it the same people? Are you open to be back on it for another season?
I would be really lucky to be back on it for another season, and I know as much as everyone else does and I’ve heard the same rumors as everyone else has. Like, “they aren’t bringing back any of the cast” or “they are.” So I really only know as little as everyone else does at this point. And I would be certainly lucky to spend another season with the same group of people, but also I trust Noah [Hawley] and our producers to turn out a season of television that’s as good as what they can do. And if that doesn’t include revisiting these characters, I would be sad as a Molly fan, like everyone else, but I would be rooting the show and new season.
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When you’re getting prepared for the ceremony are you for writing a speech beforehand or against it?
For the Critic’s Choice I made a list of people — that I soon promptly forgot half of — I certainly think there’s nothing wrong with writing something down but I don’t think I will. Maybe it’s superstition or maybe I think I’ll jinx myself, but I did make a list of people that I thought “I won’t remember these people’s names once I get up on that stage.”