Jesse Plemons has the letters TVZ tattooed on his right index finger, for Townes Van Zandt. The letters are smudged and faded, blue-black in the midday Los Angeles light. It’s Friday in the Valley, and we’re sitting outside a coffee shop so he can smoke. Everything seems to move slower out here—the cars, Plemons. He talks so quietly that at times he’s barely audible.

We’re not talking for any particular reason. He’s got nothing to promote. GQ took his photo for a thing, so here we are. But do you need a reason to talk to Jesse Plemons? He’s 28 but has been acting, in one form or another, since he was a kid. We’ve watched him grow up, harden on-screen. There’s something about him that still looks so sweet, so amiable, that it’s surprising when one of his characters kills somebody. On Friday Night Lights, when his beloved Landry committed murder, you could pass it off as a joke, a glitch in the plan. But by Breaking Bad and Black Mass, it was clear that menace comes just as easily to Plemons as innocence. Which is probably why directors keep casting him, in roles that veer from cult apostate (The Master) to grieving comedy writer (Other People) to surprisingly capable butcher and absurdly loyal husband (Fargo). He’s one of the best we’ve got.

GQ: I’m a little surprised you live in the Valley.

Jesse Plemons: I live right down the street. I rent a place with a couple friends.

Roommates is an interesting decision for a grown man.

That’s a very good way to put it. It started out as kind of the only thing that made sense money-wise, just because I just couldn’t really afford to have my own place here. I probably could now. But it feels like home. I’ve been there so long, I’ve got my dogs here. I mean…I’m ready to get back to Austin. I used to have a much more tortured relationship with this city.

When was your tortured era?

I think right when I first moved out here, post–Friday Night Lights. It’s just kind of…intimidating. I went to a lot of awful places and then just realized you don’t have to go to the awful places, like a bad bar or club, just because your friend’s there. There was a period of time when I was like, “Why am I here?”

And what was the answer to that question?

I didn’t have one. So I stopped going.

You recently played the lead in Other People—is that something that you aspire to, more leading roles? Right now, you’re usually pegged as a character actor.

That’s all I ever really want to do. It just depends on what I read and feel like I have to play. I mean, if it’s a scene or if it’s a lead, I don’t really care.

But I think for a lot of actors, there’s this notion of an arc. You start on the side, and then you gradually move toward the center, and your name moves up on a marquee. … You’re laughing.

I don’t think I’m a slacker, but I don’t have aspirations to, like, conquer Hollywood. Or the world. Or anything.

Were you always so Zen about this?

I just think I’m a little intimidated by reaching that level, maybe. It’s more intimidating than it is enticing. I feel like I’ve always had similar views about it. I don’t really know.

And yet you auditioned for a Star Wars movie. How did that happen?

My agent said, “You need to meet J. J. Abrams.” I said, “I probably should meet J. J. Abrams.” But the thought of a franchise just scares the hell out of me—it’s just such a huge commitment. And, I mean, it’s not really my genre. So it was a very weird experience being in that room, auditioning for that. He was so nice, and I was just bombing so, so terribly hard.