Justified: Why Walton Goggins Initially Rejected Boyd (& How He Fixed Him)
Walton Goggins was widely praised for his performance as Boyd Crowder, but the actor initially turned down the Justified role, before fixing the beloved criminal. After a recurring role in the crime drama’s first season, Goggins was Justified’s second lead throughout its remaining five seasons. It’s hard to imagine many actors turning down such a compelling character, but Goggins had an admirable reason for rejecting Boyd.
Based on Elmore Leonard’s novella “Fire in the Hole”, Justified follows US Marshal Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant), whose trigger-happy nature finds him relegated to his native Kentucky. Walton Goggins debuted in the show’s pilot, leading a white supremacist group in Harlan County who come into Raylan’s orbit. Following an almost fatal showdown with Raylan, Boyd repeatedly reinvents himself, the criminal managing to evade his many enemies and survive beyond the Justified season 6 finale.
It was Boyd’s white supremacist ties that prompted Goggins to initially reject the part in the pilot. In an interview with Rolling Stone, he revealed, “I turned down Justified twice.” Goggins didn’t want to simply play a racist, and largely took on the role out of respect for Timothy Olyphant and Justified showrunner Graham Yost. However, he asked for one pivotal change - that Boyd was no longer a racist - which served to improve the character. Walton Goggins’ request transformed Boyd into a far more captivating figure, adding far more nuance to the role itself.
Born in Alabama and raised in Georgia, Walton Goggins has an attachment to the South and was reluctant to play into stereotypes of the region. Luckily, his friendship with Olyphant helped change his mind. In a separate interview with Rolling Stone, the Raylan Givens and Mandalorian actor stated, “I had to convince him to do the job.” He confirmed discussions about the racism storyline and how Goggins “was sensitive about putting that out there in a one-dimensional way.” However, he believed Goggins was perfect for Boyd. Goggins relented under one condition: “I’ll say the things you want me to say in the pilot, because this is Elmore Leonard’s world. But… I need Raylan Givens to acknowledge that Boyd does not believe a word he’s saying.” Consequently, during Raylan and Boyd’s reunion in the Justified pilot, the US Marshal rejects Boyd’s alleged views, laughing them off as an example of his manipulative nature.
Sitting in an old church adorned with Nazi flags, Justified's Raylan Givens suffers through Boyd’s anti-Semitic religious rant, before calmly responding, “I think you just use the Bible to do whatever the hell you like.” He immediately sees through Boyd’s lies, excusing him of feigning racist views to control his slow-witted criminal gang. Goggins’ initial rejection of Boyd didn’t just result in a line change - the Justified pilot makes Boyd’s true agenda perfectly clear, with Raylan exposing Boyd’s racist actions as a mere cover for his drug dealing. Tellingly, Boyd doesn’t deny this, which instantly makes him much more interesting. Walton Goggins revealed he was granted “autonomy” over Boyd and was only ever asked to use a racial slur on one other occasion. He refused, recalling, “I wasn’t going to go near that storyline.” Justified sees Walton Goggins' Boyd briefly repent for his crimes, only to quickly return to his old ways and form a new gang. However, he completely abandons his white supremacist angle, reinventing himself as a sympathetic outlaw representing Harlan’s poor mining community. Ultimately, this change didn’t just elevate Boyd, but the entire show.
Boyd was only meant to appear in the pilot, but proved too exciting to kill off. Had Walton Goggins not rejected and fixed the character, it's doubtful he would have become such a tragic and beloved antihero. Instead of a reprehensible racist, Boyd is an enigmatic figure, redeemed by his love for Ava (Joelle Carter), and his futile dream of a better life. Boyd shouldn't return in Justified's revival, but his duality with Raylan will be missed.