Entertainment

Timothy Olyphant bends the law on ‘Justified’

By the time you read this, three episodes of “Justified” will have aired on FX.

But even if you haven’t yet seen this modern-day take on Wyatt Earp — although this US Marshal has a laconic sense of humor — “Justified” star Timothy Olyphant says not to worry.

“If you didn’t see the first three [episodes] you won’t feel out of the loop,” says Olyphant, who plays US Marshal Raylan Givens, the hero of an Elmore Leonard short story and two novels who’s making his small-screen debut.

“They stood on their own, and there was some stuff percolating there . . . but the first few episodes felt like we were finding our legs and putting our toe in the water — and then it really feels like we start cooking with gas.”

Olyphant, 41, a standout on HBO’s “Deadwood” (Seth Bullock) and fellow FX drama “Damages” (Wes Krulik), says his “bible” in approaching Raylan were the short story “Fire in the Hole” and novels “Pronto” and “Riding the Rap” featuring Raylan as their protagonist.

“I had one of those books on me at all times — there was always one or two in a bag in my trailer — and they were a bible of sorts for the show,” he says.

“They’re very enlightening. They kind of told me how to play [Raylan]. And, anyway, I’m standing by what I did — it’s too late now.”

That’s just the sort of sly, offbeat humor you might expect from the literary Raylan, and “Justified” doesn’t deviate much from Leonard’s original vision of the quick-draw US Marshal as a modern-day cowboy — complete with Stetson hat and boots — who’s transferred back from sunny Miami to his home state of Kentucky as punishment (of sorts) for gunning down a slimeball in a “justified” shooting (“justified” defined as the other guy drawing first).

Raylan’s homecoming throws him back into a world he thought he’d escaped — including ex-wife Winona (Natalie Zea) and sultry Ava Crowder (Joelle Carter), who claims she killed her abusive husband in self-defense. She alsohas eyes for Raylan.

There’s also Raylan’s father, a career petty criminal and grifter from whom he’s estranged (he hasn’t yet made an appearance).

Yet instead of being flustered, or even openly defiant at this (unwanted) turn of events, Raylan handles it all with aplomb. But while there’s a twinkle in his eye, this is one hombre who means business.

“He thinks of himself as a cowboy. He’s straightforward — you learn quickly that if he says he’s going to do something, he’s a man of his word,” says Olyphant, who is married and has three children.

“There’s a simplicity to him, and he’s funny . . . he feels like a guy who’s been born 100 years too late. The bureaucracy is lost on him. He’ll say, ‘Why are we even talking about this?’ “

“There are easy things in the book that tickled me [about Raylan], things I can refer to,” says Olyphant.

“He’s a guy who won’t walk into someone’s house unless he’s invited, or unless he’s gonna bash the door down, or has been given permission to bash the door down — but he will give someone 24 hours’ notice to get out of town or he’ll kill them.

“There’s something so hilarious about that . . . and I love that for so many reasons.”

And the Honolulu-born actor has a message for the show’s fans: keep watching and you won’t be disappointed.

“I really feel like the second half of the season is especially strong,” he says. “If people stick with us in the first six [episodes], in the latter half we’re allowed to really grow and become about people you’re invested in.”

* Justified

Tuesday, 10 p.m., FX