Based on Joe R. Lansdale's popular series of novels, AMC's Hap and Leonard is about two best friends down on their luck in East Texas, trying to make an honest living while being constantly pulled back into a life of crime. They come across Klansmen, Femme Fatales, political activists, criminals, and all manner of colorful characters during their adventures, but through it all, they stay true to each other.
Starring James Purefoy and Michael K. Williams as Hap and Leonard, and joined by such prominent television stars as Christina Hendricks and Jimmi Simpson, the series is a smartly acted and cleverly written crime drama, with a deep sense of duty to the people and places that make up the American South. Here are some intriguing facts about the cast fans may not know.
Hap & Leonard Also Starred In Another Series Together
In an interview with TV Drama Weekly, James Purefoy describes working with his co-star Michael Kenneth Williams in the series The Philanthropist (2009), wherein Purefoy plays a billionaire philanthropist and Williams plays his chief of security, chauffeur, and pilot all rolled into one.
They shot the series for several months in Southern Africa and developed a very close working relationship. After The Following ended and Purefoy was leaving New York, Williams contacted him after they'd ran into each other at a party and expressed interest in working with him on a new project called Hap and Leonard.
James Purefoy Is British
James Purefoy is a known name to UK citizens, having appeared in several BBC period dramas including Dance to the Music of Time, and often uses his native British accent even in American productions such as The Following opposite Kevin Bacon and in the HBO hit series Rome as Marc Antony.
Hap Collins speaks with a thick East Texan accent, which may sound melodramatic to some ears, but is very reminiscent of author Joe R. Lansdale's, whom Purefoy based his dialect off of. In the same interview for TV Drama Weekly, he noted it was very particular and very specific, even for American actors to perfect.
Michael K. Williams Is No Stranger To Dramatic Television
Leonard is a man of extremes, often vacillating between quiet, seething intensity and explosive, dynamic rage, but Michael K. Williams has played many characters on a similar dramatic spectrum. He played charismatic Baltimore drug dealer Omar in The Wire, one of its defining figures in one of the most influential series in television history.
He also played Chalky White in HBO's Boardwalk Empire, a crime boss in charge of bootlegging in Atlantic City, in a star-studded cast that included Steve Buscemi. Both of these characters were more urbane than Leonard but were no stranger to sudden paroxysms.
Christina Hendricks Loved The Role's Passion
Christina Hendricks is no stranger to playing Femme Fatales, but according to an interview for SundanceTV, she was attracted to the character of Trudy Fawst not just because she was "sexy and vibrant", but because she was willing to "sacrifice everything for a cause".
Trudy is Hap's ex-lover, who didn't wait for him after he went to jail for being a conscientious objector, and fell in with a group of extreme activists. She re-enters Hap's life and encourages him and Leonard to get involved in her political movement, which ultimately turns violent.
Jimmi Simpson & Pollyanna McIntosh Loved Their Characters' Assertiveness
Jimmi Simpson (HBO's Westworld) and Pollyanna McIntosh (The Walking Dead) play Soldier and Angel, two criminals with a taste for the extreme and two of the most unique characters in the series. They steal, kidnap, and blast their way across the South, fueled by the adrenaline of their own deviance.
SundanceTV caught up with Simpson and McIntosh to see what they thought of their characters, and while they both love their assertiveness, they don't really feel like they can look up to their violent and aggressive natures. They were however great fun to play because they broke all the rules.
James Purefoy Grew Up On A Farm Castrating Piglets
In an interview with Nola.com, James Purefoy explains that he grew up in the rural, industrialized part of Western England that is a far cry from the bucolic setting often showcased in British dramas, particularly period ones that focus on courtly manners and polite socializing like Downton Abbey. One of his first jobs as a boy growing up on a farm was castrating piglets.
He felt very connected to Hap Collins because he'd grown up in a community with men just like him; pig and chicken farmers and men with mechanical know-how and a sly sense of humor. He felt he could channel the modest civility and quiet masculinity they carried, despite being stuck in dead-end jobs in their 30s and 40s.
They Wanted To Show A Disenfranchised Community
In an interview with James Purefoy and Michael K. Williams about the third season of the series, they discuss how Hap and Leonard is special because it focuses on a community in the United States that is often neglected.
The rural South in America is often used to promote concepts of racism and bigotry, and rarely showcases camaraderie, love, and friendship. It was their great honor to show the good and the bad of the area around Baton Rouge, Louisiana through the adventures of two best friends who happen to have different skin colors.
They Were Not Prepared For The Hazardous Set Conditions
Filming in Baton Rouge, Louisiana was a brutal process due to its inhospitable environment. Speaking as part of the AOL BUILD Series, members of the cast opened up about the "ten-page hazard sheet" they each received explaining the dangerous things they would have to watch out for on set.
Aside from sudden tornadoes, hail storms, brown recluse spiders, and snakes, there were wild gators to mind. Hired gunmen were kept on set to shoot any that took an interest in the actors during the scenes filmed in a swamp.
Michael K. Williams Felt The Pair Redefined Male Friendship
As a guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Michael K. Williams explains that it's precisely because Hap and Leonard are so different in everything from political alignment to skin color that their bond is so important. Hap is white, liberal, and a conscientious objector and Leonard is a Black Republican and a veteran of the Vietnam War.
Williams says that their unlikely friendship redefines what it means for two men to have such a strong bond and that it's important to show viewers what true male friendship can be in America.
Christina Hendricks Has Dual Passports
Though she was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, Christina Hendricks has roots in England. Her father Robert was born in Birmingham, allowing Hendricks to have a US/UK passport, which she uses to visit England in between filming projects.
In the '90s, when Britpop was once again dominating the airwaves and the Spice Girls were everywhere, Hendricks loved to visit around Soho, and still returns there when she's in London to have a pint at the Coach and Horses.