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Apple TV has been stacking a steady lineup of hits in the 2020s, and that track record isn’t about to change in 2026. Apple TV is rolling out several highly anticipated new and returning shows this year, and this summer will see a mix of both, thanks to the premiere of Silo Season 3 and the new series Lucky. The latter series is a crime drama thriller that comes with a stacked cast, including Anya Taylor-Joy, Annette Bening, and Timothy Olyphant.
had the chance to sit down for an interview with Timothy Olyphant, who fans know from shows like Justified and Alien: Earth. Lucky will place Olyphant in a role that is more personal to him than most, playing a father whose child strayed far from the righteous path and is trying to get back there. As a parent himself, Olyphant took his role in Lucky kind of personally.
Timothy Olyphant Talks Apple TV’s Lucky (Interview)
Lucky star Anya Taylor-Joy as Luciana “Lucky” Armstrong, “a reformed criminal” who “is forced to confront her past and return to illicit activities for one final job, hoping to secure her freedom and leave her former life behind for good.” Olyphant plays Lucky’s dad, John, who had a complicated hand in shaping his daughter. Without giving away any spoilers, John also seems to have a hand in getting Lucky into a tough spot where she’s forced to pull the “one last job” that will be her gateway out of the criminal life.
As a parent of three children (with his wife of 35 years, Alexis Knief), Olyphant definitely has perspective on the impact of fatherhood, especially on a daughter. In fact, in a funny kind of role reversal, Olyphant played a lawman with severe daddy issues trying to parent a 15-year-old girl (his real-life daughter, Vivian) in the revival series Justified: City Primeval. But that was a very different take on fatherhood than John Armstrong will be ( It’s pretty rich, and so complicated, and really quite heartfelt”). With that kind of character, Olyphant had to enjoy the role without ever endorsing the character’s point of view.
“I’m a father myself, so I can tell you the worst thing in the world is feeling like you ever did harm to your kids,” he explained. “Playing John, it’s ironic how enjoyable it was, because he’s done a lot of harm. And as an audience member, it’s tough to see it… I think he’s failing with a capital ‘F ‘ and just did a lot of harm. But as a character? I think he loves his daughter dearly, and he’s doing the best he can, and he’s not even aware how bad his impulses are.”
John Armstrong won’t be some arch kind of villain; as ’s Chris Killian pointed out, Timothy Olyphant has excelled at adding charm to very unlikable characters (see: The Girl Next Door). His character in Lucky may be a scumbag, but he’ll be a scumbag with a silver tongue. However, the actor acknowledges that all that sweet talk won’t excuse the impact that John has on his daughter’s life.
“It becomes a liability to his daughter, you know? I think that bullsh*t he’s selling with such confidence, he’s been selling it arguably to himself to make himself believe he’s not a bad guy. But he’s a bad guy.”
Lucky will begin streaming on Apple TV on July 15th. Discuss TV with us on the Forum!
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