PITTSBURGH − As Jeremy Renner sits alongside his new costar Edie Falco on the set of "Mayor of Kingstown," (Season 4 premieres Oct. 26, new episodes stream every Sunday on Paramount+) he immediately realizes he's in unfamiliar territory. The two are in the middle of a cell block in Western Penitentiary, a former prison that was in use until 2017, that he's never seen before. "Kingstown" has filmed on location at the penitentiary since Season 2.

"This is a pleasant setting, isn't it?" the actor, 54, jokes as he looks around. He then sounds like his character, former inmate and current "Kingstown" fixer Mike McLusky: "F------ bleak."

Dull, marine green-colored tiles, a few of which are missing near Renner's feet, cover the floor. A couple of built-in tables with attached stools sit in the common area. The cell doors, stairs and railings are all steel and an equally-washed out teal, with visible paint chipping. The cells are equally bland, unless of course you allow your imagination to think about what these walls may have seen.

The only noticeable color in the room comes from the black and red checkers board painted on one table and the white and red "No Smoking" sign that hangs towards the front of the room by the guard's station.

"You don't have to do much to bring to life the bleakness of this," Falco, 62, adds. "But what makes me want to watch a show that may be bleak is that every character has at their center the same desire, which is to find a way to get through the day, to be happy, to take care of their loved ones."

Renner and Falco (who plays Anchor Bay's new warden, Nina Hobbs) say their characters have a full season in the fictional town of Kingstown, Michigan, to feel each other out. Speaking on set exclusively to USA TODAY, the actors also explain how they've personally persevered to get to, of all places, an empty prison on the banks of the Ohio River.

Jeremy Renner struggled to return to 'Kingstown' after his accident

Renner's journey back to "Mayor of Kingstown" is well documented. The actor was seriously injured in a snowplow accident on New Year's Day 2023 near his home in Nevada. Crushed under a 14,000-pound snowplow, he suffered more than 30 broken bones and a collapsed lung. The actor "could see my eye with my other eye," he told Diane Sawyer in an interview 10 months after the accident.

In January of 2024, Renner returned to work on "Kingstown" to film Season 3. Initially it did not go well.

"I almost got sent home by the doctors on the first episode," Renner recalls. "I fell asleep in the middle of a take."

As Falco responds, "Lord have mercy," Renner explains he had the blood levels "of a dead man."

Taking on Season 4 "was just quite a difference of strength and vitality," Renner continues. "Personality starts to come out this season versus last season, just trying to..."

"Get through the f------ day," Falco says to complete his sentence. "You would've been forgiven for walking away from this thing completely. It's really astonishing that you're here."

Renner liked the idea of getting back to work and varying his schedule following rehab. But he still wanted to prioritize his recovery. He says the cast and crew were fully supportive, altering the schedule to allow Renner ample time for rest.

Taylor Handley, who plays Renner's younger brother (Lt. Kyle McLusky), knew that the actor could handle the challenge. But recalling the first episode of Season 3, Handley is still astonished at how Renner performed.

"We had this incredible scene together," Handley recalls, speaking after he just filmed an intense prison scene for Season 4 himself. "I was anticipating the scene going one way, and then Renner comes out and he takes the scene and completely elevates it. Renner always brings his A game. I would just say this season, he's just unstoppable."

For Hugh Dillon, the show's co-creator and series regular (Lt. Ian Ferguson), having Renner for Season 3 was a "godsend." He says Renner helps to bring a "velocity" to Season 4, in which the void from the Russians' exit is filled with a new set of outsiders.

"He added a couple of really pivotal things," Dillon says, careful not to give any spoilers. "He's got a great BS detector."

Renner believes that his openness comes from his new perspective on life: One step and one breath at a time.

"I can just move forward to the next moment and enjoy where I'm at right now," he says. "And with that comes a lot of fortitude, a lot of confidence, a lot of real openness and love."

Edie Falco recalls breast cancer scare: 'I was one of the very lucky ones'

Falco, an Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actress for her roles on "The Sopranos" and "Nurse Jackie," is working with Renner for the first time. The two first met during a taping of NBC's "The Tonight Show" in 2015. In "Kingstown," not only is Falco's prison a place where McLusky handles business, for the start of Season 4, it's also holding his brother Kyle. In the final moments of Season 3, Kyle was arrested by authorities after he shot a fellow SWAT officer who was holding a civilian hostage.

Falco says that her character is confident, in part from spending her entire life working in the prison system.

"In a perfect world, she'll be able to also stick to her moral compass, but that's not an imperative," Falco says before previewing Hobbs' dilemna with McLusky. "I think she's known for getting done what is asked of her, and I don't know that she's come against such a complicated, worthy adversary before who really is presenting situations she hasn't been confronted with before."

In real life, Falco has also shown courage in the face of adversity. The actress was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2003. According to the American Cancer Society, about one in eight women will be diagonosed with the disease in their lifetime.

"It's almost like a rite of passage for many of my friends at this point," Falco says of the cancer. "I also know people who would come to me, 'Oh, I was just diagnosed,' and I would say, 'Just go through the treatments, do all the right things. It'll be just a little blip in your life.' And then those people are gone.

"I was one of the very, very, very, very lucky ones. And that's something you carry with you, whether or not you want to, every day. There's a reason I'm still here and I'm going to continue to show up to the best of my ability."

The 'Mayor of Kingstown' set is as influential as any other character

The Western Penitentiary dates back to the Civil War, and it looks the part. Narrow staircases connect dimly lit floors. Watchtowers perched on wooden platforms and brick walls look over the entire area. The abundance of chainlink fencing, barbed wire and rusted metal would even make the most hardened Steel City native blush (Pittsburgh gained that nickname for its history of steel production).

A typical reply from Uber drivers when reaching the destination is, "I've never dropped anyone off here before." Nestled next to the Ohio River, the penitentiary is subject to weather that can change in an instant. You can experience a few seasons over the course of a few hours.

"You act different, you perform different, the show has a different look," Dillon says of the location. "Even the steel bars outside or the fencing, you have to acclimate yourself."

Tony Award-winning actress Laura Benanti, who joins the cast as a new correctional officer, says filming in a prison takes getting used to. "It's kind of like Vegas because there's no windows, so you never know what time it is," she says. "There's something about that that's so disorienting."

Benanti then starts to tell a story about her first day on set, but quickly stops herself. She almost spoiled a scene. That wouldn't have gone well with anyone, including the warden and the mayor.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jeremy Renner, Edie Falco talk personal struggles on 'Mayor of Kingstown' set – Exclusive

Reporting by Ralphie Aversa, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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