The Deputy Star William H. Macy on Crime-Drama, Embracing Indie Chaos

Posted in: Exclusive, Interview, Movies | Tagged: The Deputy

The Deputy Star William H. Macy on Crime-Drama, Embracing Indie Chaos

William H. Macy (Fargo) spoke to us about his latest Well Go USA crime drama, The Deputy, co-star Duke Nicholson, and more.

Published Mon, 05 Oct 2026 07:46:09 -0500
by Tom Chang
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Article Summary

• William H. Macy explains why The Deputy script hooked him, praising its closed mystery and twisty, satisfying ending.
• Macy breaks down The Deputy's indie-film chaos, and how director Matt Sukkar kept calm under intense production pressure.
• Macy shares what stood out about Duke Nicholson in The Deputy, calling him quiet, prepared, magnetic, and thoughtful.
• The Deputy interview also finds Macy reflecting on missed chances with Jack Nicholson and his wish to do more horror.

William H. Macy is at a point in his career where no role is too big or too small as long as it's "interesting," and, for an actor of his longevity, he's been embracing the indie film scene more. With a career spanning five decades, the Oscar nominee still finds gems that challenge him from mainstream work like 20th Century's Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (2024) and Paramount's remake of The Running Man (2025) to indie films like the supernatural Speed Demon (2026) and biopic Soul on Fire (2025). His latest is Well Go USA's The Deputy, which follows a rookie sheriff's deputy, Toby Sawyer (Duke Nicholson), who's tasked by Chief Kreuger (Macy) to guard a dead body, but when the corpse vanishes, Toby launches a frantic search that unearths decades of small-town rot. Pressured to look the other way, Toby finds a lone ally in Deputy Amanda Jackson (Tiffany Haddish) and sets his sights on unraveling a lethal web of corruption to clear his name in a town where secrets stay buried. Macy spoke with Bleeding Cool about working with director Matt Sukkar, how Carlo Bernard and Victor Gischler's script appealed to him, working with Nicholson, if he ever came across the opportunity to possibly share the screen with his grandfather, Jack Nicholson, and what genre work he wished he'd done more of.

The Deputy Star William H. Macy on Embracing the Crime-Drama, Working with Dir. Matt Sukkar, co-star Duke Nicholson, and More

Bleeding Cool: What intrigued you about 'The Deputy?'

Macy: I like this script. It's a closed mystery, and it kept me going. I didn't see where it was going to go. I like my character and the switcheroo at the end. That's delicious to play.

What did you like about Matt's direction in the film?

He kept his cool, was kind on set, and was respectful of everyone. I can't stand mean directors. Life is too short for that, and it was an indie, and they're a caution to make. Anything that can go wrong will go wrong. For instance, we got to the climactic scene for my character [Sheriff Kruger], and we couldn't shoot it as it was scripted because somehow somebody forgot to build that part of the set [laughs]. So, he was scrambling to figure out how to shoot that. It's a little like watching a train wreck when the sun's setting and you've got a lot yet to shoot. On an indie film, if you don't get it, you don't get it. There's no coming back tomorrow to fix it, so everyone's under a lot of pressure, but the other thing I love about indies is that everyone's there because they really want to be there. Generally speaking, they're first-timers, or they've moved up a notch. They were an assistant costumer; now they're the costumer. They were a grip, and now they're a camera op. Everybody's moved up, and that makes for a lot of electricity, a lot of ingenuity, and a lot of enthusiasm. It also makes for some boneheaded moves.

What can you tell me about working with Duke and the way he carries himself on screen?

He was only there for three days, so I didn't get to know him, but what you see is what you get. He's not that different off-screen than on-screen. He's quiet and thoughtful and a little melancholy. Do you know what I mean? A little bit of a sad sack. He's a good actor. I think when Matt read this script, he thought of Duke immediately, because they're good friends. Duke was part of the development of the script, and that showed because he knew the thing inside out, and he's one of those actors who draws you in. Some actors are bam! Right out there in your face, and he draws you in, and I enjoyed working with him; very professional and prepared, and good sense of humor.

As long a career as you've had, was the opportunity ever presented itself that you could have like worked with his grandfather, Jack [Nicholson], or just never come up?
No, never happened. Boy, that would be a treat. Maybe it's not too late. I don't know. Is Jack still working? I'm still working.

Yeah, I think he's technically retired. Was there a project that you've always wanted to do that you haven't gotten a chance to, or one you haven't felt like you haven't done enough of in your career?

Generally speaking, you know, some of the superhero movies (like 'Mystery Men'), I've shot off my mouth about violence in films, but if there were a role for me, I would love to do that. I've always thought it'd be fun to do a horror film where I could play myself, and I don't believe in the supernatural at all, with ghosts and stuff like that. I just poo-poo it. I would like to be the dad who says, "Oh, grow up. There's nothing in the closet. See?!" I look, and there's a freaking monster in there. "See what I mean? Now go to sleep." I think that'd be a good role for me to combine horror with humor. Yeah, there are a lot of roles, if it's a good story, and I didn't see the ending coming. You got my attention.

The Deputy, which also stars Stephen Dorff, Billie Lourd, and Julia Fox, is available in theaters, digital, and on-demand.

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