Ray Stussy
Ray Stussy | |
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Fargo character | |
First appearance | "The Law of Vacant Places" (2017) |
Last appearance | "Who Rules the Land of Denial?" (2017) |
Created by | Noah Hawley |
Portrayed by | Ewan McGregor |
In-universe information | |
Alias | Ray |
Species |
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Occupation | Parole officer |
Family |
|
Significant other | Nikki Swango |
Raymond "Ray" Stussy is a
Character overview
2010
In
Giving up on asking Emmit for money, Ray manipulates a parolee, Maurice LeFay (
Maurice then drives to Nikki's apartment to inform Ray of his actions and provides a strip of postage stamps. Ray, realizing the name mix-up, explains the situation to Nikki before an argument begins between him and Maurice. Maurice pulls a gun, demanding further payment or else he will turn Ray and Nikki in. As he leaves the apartment building, though, Nikki and Ray drop an air conditioner unit onto Maurice's head, killing him. She then calls 911, orchestrating the event to appear as a freak accident.
The tension between Ray and Emmit worsens, and Sy lashes out by crashing into Ray's Stingray with his Hummer. In retaliation, Nikki suggests Ray make peace with his brother while she steals the stamp. He cordially visits Emmit and the two make peace, which gives Nikki enough time to infiltrate the mansion and search his home office. However, Emmit has sent the stamp away to have the frame replaced after a cleaner had damaged it, and temporarily replaced it with a picture of a donkey. Enraged due to believing this was a message to Ray, she leaves a used tampon in one of his desk drawers (where she also finds details of a safety deposit box Emmit holds). Emmit later discovers the tampon, and, feeling betrayed, informs Sy. Angry and hurt, Emmit decides to cut his brother out of his life. Sy further retaliates by acquiring photos of Nikki and Ray together and sending them to Ray's bosses at the parole board, resulting in Ray getting fired.
Ray is questioned by Gloria, who has since made further connections between the death of her stepfather and Maurice's death, but he is able to maintain he and Nikki's story. After shaving his mustache and donning a wig, Ray impersonates Emmit and is able to retrieve the safety deposit box that Nikki stole the information for, but it only contains the remains of a family pet. Ray and Nikki then try to blackmail Emmit by filming a sex tape of themselves roleplaying as Emmit and a prostitute, and leave it at Emmit's house as a means of blackmail. The attempt backfires as Emmit's wife Stella (
The two arrive at the motel but are unknowingly followed by Meemo, and Ray realizes too late that they left a large sum of their remaining getaway money at the house. Despite protests from Nikki, Ray leaves to retrieve the money. Emmit confronts Ray at the house, wishing to make amends at last and offers the framed stamp to end the feud. Insulted, Ray refuses the stamp and the two get into a fight, that ends with Emmit accidentally smashing the glass frame into Ray's face and sending a shard into his neck. Emmit, shocked, steps away as Ray weakly calls out to him before he bleeds to death. Panicked, Emmit decides to call Varga, who agrees to cover up the murder and sets the rest of the season’s plot into motion.
Later, Ray's spirit is inferred by the immortal Wandering Jew Paul Murrane (Ray Wise) to have then inhabited the body of a young kitten, which Nikki then pets. Paul then assures Nikki that Ray will be safe.
Reception
Ewan McGregor's performances as the Stussy brothers received critical acclaim, and was described by many as the stand-out of the season. On review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes, the critical consensus is " Thanks in part to a memorable dual performance from Ewan McGregor, Fargo mostly maintains the sly wit and off-kilter sensibility it displayed in its first two seasons."[2]
In
References
- ^ "5 Facts About the Stussy Brothers on Fargo (As Told By Ewan McGregor)". Hidden Remote. April 19, 2017.
- ^ "Fargo: Season 3 - Rotten Tomatoes" – via www.rottentomatoes.com.