Photo Credit: Chris Reardon / Lifetime

TV Tango: Tell me about your role as Charlie Siringo, for those who aren’t familiar with the movie LIZZIE BORDEN TOOK AN AX.

Cole Hauser: My character is based on a real guy named Charlie Siringo who was born in Texas. He used to run around with [19th century gunman] Billy the Kid when he was young. He moved to Chicago where [gunman] Pat Garrett took him under his wing, and then he became a legendary Pinkerton [an agent for the Pinkerton National Detective Agency]. He’s that American cowboy that I think every actor wants to play. He’s a very smart, tough, but fair guy, and a good person at heart. He passed away in Altadena, CA in 1928. I actually visited his gravestone and there’s this quote on it that I really love:

Cole Hauser: “Just plant me in some stretch of West
That’s sunny, lone and wide.
Let cattle rub my tombstone down
And coyotes mourn their kin,
Let hawses paw and tromp the moun’
But don’t you fence it in!” – Badger Clark, Jr.

He didn’t want to be fenced in. He was great at his job and caught a bunch of outlaws. [SPOILER ALERT!] Unfortunately, he passes away in this series. I might come back as his brother! Haha.

TV Tango: Did you feel more pressure playing him since he was a real person, as opposed to a fictional character?

Cole Hauser: Not really pressure, it was more of an honor. I wanted to honor him and make sure that he was as authentic as possible, and hopefully I accomplished that. I had a blast.

Photo Credit: Chris Reardon / Lifetime

TV Tango: You filmed in Halifax, Nova Scotia. What was your impression of Canada?

Cole Hauser: I have to say that Halifax is one of my favorite cities in Canada. I’ve been to Toronto, Winnipeg, Vancouver - I’ve been all over. There’s such a rich history there. It has an old-school European feeling…the restaurants are old, the bars are old. The people are the friendliest I’ve ever met. I would go back there in a heartbeat.

Photo Credit: Michael Tompkins / Lifetime

TV Tango: What was it like working with Christina Ricci?

Cole Hauser: She’s fantastic! We didn’t have many scenes together since there’s a cat-and-mouse game between the two of us. But the scenes that we did share were pretty electric. Clea DuVall was tremendous as well. Across the board, from Jonathan Banks to Dylan Taylor, the list goes on. This cast is loaded with really talented people.

Cole Hauser in his film debut, SCHOOL TIES, released in 1992.

TV Tango: I read that you left high school at the age of 16 to pursue acting. How would you feel if one of your kids wanted to follow your career trajectory?

Cole Hauser: It was a different time…my kids don’t know that I dropped out of school. I’m a big believer in following your dreams. And if that dream takes you out of school and gets you on the path where you’re happy, then go for it. But if you don’t have that clear picture of what you want, go to school and figure it out. I was fortunate that I found something that I loved very early on. I wouldn’t tell my children to drop out of school, but if they have a dream and they feel confident that they’ll be successful at it… My wife wouldn’t be happy about it but I might be okay with it.

Photo Credit: Marvin Moore / Lifetime

TV Tango: Why should people watch the series?

Cole Hauser: It takes you on a ride. It’s a very smart thriller in the sense that although you know Lizzie is committing these atrocities and killing people, you wonder how Charlie is going to bring her to justice. It takes a bunch of unexpected turns. I think it’s one of those shows where you sit on the edge of your seat trying to figure out, “How is this happening? Is she going to get caught?” Charlie Siringo is a persistent guy. You have to believe that he’s going to get his man or woman at the end.