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- In Boy Erased, you play the mother of a child
who's sent to gay conversion therapy.
What about the messaging of that movie appealed to you?
- I immediately connected to Martha,
in the film she's called Nancy.
Actually, both the roles that I play,
I did, sort of, very close together,
and even though they are diametrically opposed,
in terms of the way they look and behave,
and as women they're still on a similar path.
Because they're both looking to heal what they've done
to their child.
Which I find, that just gets me.
And Martha because she's a real person,
she put her child into conversion therapy
because she thought it was the right thing to do.
She actually thought it was the most loving thing to do.
Because she didn't know anything else.
And she loves her son, and they actually now have
the most extraordinary relationship.
And she's apologized and healed what she did,
which I think is beautiful.
That's a great message in terms of what can happen.
I mean their story is real.
And they have the most intimate relationship
as a mother and son that I've seen in terms of family,
that have gone through so much.
But they're like this.
So the idea that you can do something and then heal it
is very powerful to me,
that's what I responded to emotionally.
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I was taught really early on, never to cut a take.
Do you ever cut a take?
I mean unless you're like in danger.
- Stop?
- Never cut a take, right?
Because you never know what's going to happen.
Because if you're trying to control it,
or control the take, the magic happens a lot of the time.
So I was taught that at like I started working at 14.
It's ingrained in me.
And I always try to pass it on to other actors.
- It took me so long, starting in theater.
It took me so long to realize you didn't
have to be perfect on the whole take.
They only take a little bit.
It's so hard to let, to surrender.
- Only the director gets to cut.
I mean unless your life is in danger and you're about to.
(laughs)
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- What's the best feedback you've gotten from a kid?
Either yours or another.
- I did a thing Aquaman, and I did it for them actually.
Cause you know you do something like destroyer
and they're like, I'm never going to be seeing it.
(laughter)
But you do Aquaman and it's like oh my gosh.
The best feedback I got was I ate a gelatine goldfish
in the scene, and they think that's my best work.
- What did you do on destroyer to research that role?
- I actually just kind of entered through.
I entered so deeply into her that I don't always do this
with a character, but this one I had to.
Cause I didn't want to feel like I was ever shifting
into a performance.
So I just stayed in character the whole time.
Which was.
- Exhausting.
- You're really good friends with Karen.
It was difficult because you don't get to explain
why you're behaving in a particular way.
Or I didn't, so I just kind of stayed in it.
But I really had to learn how to use guns.
Cause I had no idea how to fire guns or really use guns
so I put a lot of time, I live in Tennessee,
I have a gun range that's just down from my house
and I would go down there and I could shoot anything
that is in that film.
And I can reload.
- Like when you say that, like living the role.
I feel like that happened, but how do you decipher
what's happening in your personal life
when that is going on.
- Cause of my kids?
- Well I just mean for me I'm sort of going like every
decision I make while I'm playing a role, as I'm living
my private life at the same time.
How does form together.
- Did you stay in the character when you went home?
- You didn't have to call me Erin, but I would go,
it just all but enters the psyche and I just was yeah,
my husband was like I cannot wait for this thing to end.
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