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Molly Solverson is a fictional character in the FX
television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...
'' Fargo''. One of the main characters of the first season, she is portrayed by
Allison Tolman Allison Tolman is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Molly Solverson in the first season of the FX television series '' Fargo'', earning Emmy and Golden Globe nominations, and Alma Fillcot in the second season of the Param ...
, who received critical acclaim for her performance, and was nominated for a
Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Owned and operated by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the P ...
and a
Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Janua ...
, and won a
Critics' Choice Television Award The Critics' Choice Television Awards were accolades that were presented annually by the Critics Choice Association (CCA). They were established in 2011, and the first ceremony was held on June 20, 2011, and streamed live on VH1.com. The fou ...
for her performance. She appeared as a minor character in
season 2 Season 2 may refer to: * ''Season 2'' (Infinite album), 2014 * ''2econd Season'', an album by Unk, 2008 * "Season 2", a song by Phoenix from ''Alpha Zulu ''Alpha Zulu'' is the seventh studio album by French indie pop band Phoenix, released on 4 ...
, portrayed by Raven Stewart as a child; Tolman also briefly reprised her role in a cameo.


Character summary

Solverson is the female protagonist of the first season and appears as a child in a supporting role in the second season. In the first season, she is introduced as a deputy, and is a major figure in the solving of the case involving
Lorne Malvo Lorne Malvo is a fictional character and the main antagonist of the first season of the FX television series '' Fargo''. He is a psychopathic hitman who travels around Nevada and Minnesota hunting and killing people. He is portrayed by Billy Bo ...
(
Billy Bob Thornton Billy Bob Thornton (born August 4, 1955) is an American actor, filmmaker, singer and songwriter. He received international attention after writing, directing and starring in the independent film, independent Drama (film and television), drama f ...
) and
Lester Nygaard Lester Nygaard is a fictional character in the Fargo (season 1), first season of the FX (TV channel), FX television program, television series ''Fargo (TV series), Fargo'' and is portrayed by Martin Freeman, who received critical acclaim for his ...
(
Martin Freeman Martin John Christopher Freeman (born 8 September 1971) is an English actor. Among other accolades, he has won two Emmy Awards, a BAFTA Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award, and has been nominated for a Golden Globe Award. Freeman's most ...
). By the end of the season, she is promoted to Chief after Bill Oswalt (
Bob Odenkirk Robert John Odenkirk (; born October 22, 1962) is an American actor, screenwriter, comedian, and producer. He started his career as a comedian and comedy writer before expanding his career by acting in dramatic works. His List of awards and no ...
) resigns after the death of both Malvo and Nygaard. In the second season which is set in 1979, Solverson is the daughter of the protagonist of the second season,
Lou Solverson Lou Solverson is a fictional character in the FX television series '' Fargo''. He first appeared as a supporting character in the first season (set in 2006–2007), played by Keith Carradine, and then as a main character in the second season ...
, who is one of the major figures involved in the solving of the murder of Rye Gerhardt and the crime that surrounds it. Tolman reprised her role (along with
Colin Hanks Colin Lewes Hanks (born November 24, 1977) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is best known for his role as Gus Grimly on the FX crime series '' Fargo'' (2014–2015), which earned him nominations for a Golden Globe Award, a Primetime Emmy ...
,
Joey King Joey Lynn King (born July 30, 1999) is an American actress. She starred as Ramona Quimby in the comedy film '' Ramona and Beezus'' (2010) and gained wider recognition for her lead role as a late-blooming teenager in ''The Kissing Booth'' film ...
, and
Keith Carradine Keith Ian Carradine ( ; born August 8, 1949) is an American actor. In film he is known for his roles as Tom Frank in Robert Altman's ''Nashville'', E. J. Bellocq in Louis Malle's ''Pretty Baby'', and Mickey in Alan Rudolph's '' Choose Me.'' ...
) in a dream sequence by her mother, Betsy Solverson (
Cristin Milioti Cristin Milioti (born August 16, 1985) is an American actress. She is known for playing The Mother, The Mother (How I Met Your Mother), Tracy McConnell, in the CBS sitcom ''How I Met Your Mother'' from 2013 to 2014, and Sofia Falcone in the HBO ...
).


Production

Allison Tolman beat over 600 women for the role of Solverson. Tolman, who mostly worked in
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
theater, only had three credits on her resume when she auditioned for the role. Casting director, Rachel Tenner revealed that the casting directors and the producers were always open to an unknown actress accepting the role. She later added that Tolman was the only actress who felt right for the role to her, saying: "The only role we tested was Molly. We saw hundreds of girls trying to do Fargo accents. It's a lot to listen to… Alison felt so organic to this role. She found moments of humor and compassion where nobody else was."
Noah Hawley Noah Hawley (born 1967) is an American screenwriter, director, producer, author, and singer. He is best known for creating and writing the FX series '' Fargo'' (2014–present) and '' Legion'' (2017–2019). He also worked on the series '' Bones ...
has stated that the main reason he created the character Vern and Ida Thurman and initially set it up to seem like Vern would be the protagonist of the series, was so that the audience would not compare the character of Molly to Marge Gunderson, the protagonist of the
original film Original Film is an American film and television production company founded by Neal H. Moritz. Notable films the company has produced include the '' I Know What You Did Last Summer'', '' Cruel Intentions'' and ''Fast & Furious'' franchises, the ...
, stating: "I knew that if I started the show with "Molly" as the chief of police, everyone was going to make a direct comparison to
Frances McDormand Frances Louise McDormand (born Cynthia Ann Smith; June 23, 1957) is an American actress and film producer. In a career spanning over four decades, McDormand has received numerous accolades, including four Academy Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awa ...
and no one could survive that because Frances' performance was so
Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People and fictional and mythical characters * Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar * Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...
winning and iconic. So, I snuck "Molly" in through the side door. I created "Vern," and I gave him a pregnant wife, and my thought was well the audience will go oh, I see what they're doing, they just switched this and now the wife is pregnant but he's having a baby, and then I kill him off and "Molly" has been introduced through the side door as a sidekick, so suddenly you realize only in Episode 2 that she is actually the star of the show, but at that point, you haven't judged her against Frances McDormand. So, you've formed an opinion on her based on her performance versus based on somebody else's performance."


Reception

For her performance in the first season, Tolman received widespread critical acclaim, with some critics calling her the "breakout performance" of the show. Dan Fienberg of ''
HitFix HitFix, or HitFix.com, was an entertainment news website that launched in December 2008 specializing in breaking entertainment news, insider information, and reviews and critiques of film, music, and television. In mid-2010 HitFix crossed the 1,00 ...
'' praised Tolman's performance, writing: "Character acting gets no better than the performances by Billy Bob Thornton, Martin Freeman, Oliver Platt, Adam Goldberg, Keith Carradine and a dozen other familiar faces, but it was unknown Chicago theater actress Allison Tolman who grounded this perfectly contained gem of a season."


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Solverson, Molly Television characters introduced in 2014 Fictional American detectives Fictional American police officers Fargo (TV series) characters Fictional sheriffs