Justified: City Primeval showrunner Dave Andron says the stakes are so high in the limited series that Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant) may not make it out alive. Based on a series of books by Elmore Leonard, Justified follows Raylan, a Deputy U.S. Marshal, and his controversial sense of justice. Justified: City Primeval takes place after the original series, pitting Raylan against the violent Clement Mansell, who goes by the moniker “The Oklahoma Wildman” (Boyd Holbrook).
Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Andron said the dangers Raylan will face in Justified: City Primeval could lead to his demise. He claims that, because it’s a limited series, there are plenty of possible outcomes for the protagonist, including death. Check out what Andron had to say below:
“If you’re bringing Raylan back, you put him up against a really, really bad guy who doesn’t have any problem killing people, because Raylan could die. This is a limited [series] and Raylan could very well not make it out of this. Every season we ended the show with ‘You’ll Never Leave Harlan Alive,’ but then he does. Right up until the end of the show, you know Raylan’s not going to die, and obviously he did not at the end. But I think, at this point, all bets are off.”
Will Raylan Really Die In Justified: City Primeval?
Justified: City Primeval will take place 15 years after the end of the original series. The rebooted show sees Raylan living in Miami with his daughter Willa (Vivian Olyphant) until a chance encounter with Clement leads to a life-or-death situation for Rylan and a new cast of characters. The limited series will be loosely based on Leonard’s 1980 novel City Primeval, which sees Detective Raymond Cruz as its protagonist.
Because Leonard’s City Primeval doesn’t include Raylan as the main character, it seems anything could happen to him in Justified: City Primeval. The series could possibly introduce a protégé who would carry on Raylan’s legacy after his death. This could be Willa, though given she’s just a teenager, it may feel more tragic because she would lose her father at a young age.
Despite Andron emphasizing how high-stakes Justified: City Primeval is, Raylan dying would negate him settling down after everything that happened in Justified, which may not make for a satisfying conclusion. In addition, Olyphant is open to Justified: City Primeval continuing past its expected single-season run. While it seems unlikely Raylan will die in Justified: City Primeval, Andron’s quote still illustrates how dangerous his conflict with Clement will be.
Source: EW
