I’ve never wanted to portray women who are easy to understand
men had the main word, so she knows how difficult it is to fight for your own place. That’s why she encourages her younger col- leagues to go their own way. How much has it meant to you that you’ve worked throughout your career with people whose approach differs to yours? – A lot. I like ensembles in which everyone comes with dif- ferent experiences. I worked on this project with women who come from different generations and professional worlds. I’m their mentor in the series, but during shooting I actually learned from them a lot. I think it’s a mistake to assume that experi- ence means you don’t have anything left to learn. The best col- laborations occur when everyone remains open to each other. Your career has encompassed film, television and theatre. Is it easier today to find interesting roles for mature actresses than it used to be? – Television has played a major role in that. I remember a time when I was told that accepting a television project could destroy my film career. I never understood why an actor should reject a good story just because of the medium through which it would be told. Television and new platforms have gradually attracted exceptional authors, and that has created many more opportunities for women, including older actresses. The most important thing for me has always been to find a good role. What quality would you like to retain regardless of your age and everything you’ve already achieved? – Curiosity. That’s what drove me in the beginning and still drives me today. I want to play characters that make me dis- cover something new, think differently and continue learning. I don’t believe experience should make us less open to the un- known. On the contrary. If there’s no more creativity, challeng- es and revelations in the work, then you have to ask yourself what remains of the passion that prompted you to choose this kind of work in the first place.
You’ve often chosen characters who’ve elicited strong, and sometimes completely contradictory, audience reactions. Why do you find such women more interesting than classic heroines? – Because I don’t believe we can so simply divide people in- to good and bad. When preparing for a role, I don‘t think about whether the woman I’m playing is a villain or a hero. I try to understand what shaped her, what she fears, what she desires and why she makes certain decisions. The audience can judge her, but my job is to understand her. It is in that very complex- ity that I find the most interesting part of acting. Have you ever struggled to defend a character that’s been almost universally condemned by audiences? - Alex from Fatal Attraction is a great example. Many con- sidered her exclusively as a dangerous, unbalanced woman. I always wanted her pain to be seen. I didn’t want her just to be a monster. I think it’s crucial not to reduce people to one char- acter trait or one decision. That’s something that’s followed me throughout my career. Even when I play someone whose actions I don’t approve of, I have to find the human being beneath it all. After almost half a century of work, what represents a real professional challenge for you? – That moment when you realise you don’t know exactly how you’re going to do something. When I started working on
the series All’s Fair, I wasn’t familiar with the creative world of Ryan Mur- phy. The set-ups were just being creat- ed, and I had to find a way to under- stand the project’s tone and energy. I felt insecure, which is perhaps un- usual after so many years. But that’s precisely what’s precious. I don’t want to do a job in which I know all the an- swers in advance. authority that she doesn’t have to prove constantly. How do you interpret true power? – I like the fact that Dina is a wom- an who uses her experience to help others. She went through a very tra- ditional professional system, in which Your character, Dina Standish, possesses
Interview » Intervju | 37
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