She was a pitbull, who are deeply misunderstood. You know, people look at them and think they’re
scary and dangerous and whatever and actually just really they just want to be loved. And there
was something about like the heaviness in their back haunches that I wanted her feet to be really
heavy, which the ice-skates helped with. Walking around in ice-skates you’ve just got weight on
your feet. I wanted her to always feel that the world was like, [sighs], even the jaw a little
bit, like, you know.. so, you know, yeah. That’s not what I thought you were going say.
Did you find that your sort of process, the way you approached each part changed? I mean,
were you aware of yourself kind of growing as a performer?
Definitely. Every job that I did I like learnt, I added like a new thing to my prep process. So,
you know I think, as I went along you just learn more. And then I was like, “Oh wait.” You know,
dialect was always a crucial thing for me because I knew that I couldn't do an American accent when
I was on Neighbours. So that’s something I worked on for two years before I went to America. But
then it was like, working with an acting coach, and you know an acting coach mentions like, “Oh,
some people do this kind of coaching or there’s these classes.” You know, any time I heard
anything like that, being conscious that I never went to a drama school, I’d always do lessons and
stuff in my spare time. So, yeah, my prep process definitely evolved over the years. And now I do
a whole series of things before I prep for any role. Um, but, yeah it changed with every job.
And also every job and every character and every director demands something different of you so I’m
always very adaptable to what they want. I read somewhere that you worked with a
movement coach... I do.
identifying animals? Is that a real thing? Well it’s animal-- I do a lot of animal work
with a movement coach called Jean-Louis Rodrigue who’s wonderful. And, uh, you can do a number
of things with movement coaching. You can work on archetypes, you can work with colour and light and
all sorts of things. But one aspect that I found really helpful and the first time I started doing
this was for I, Tonya, was to do animal work where you pick an animal for your character and you
study that animal and then you transform into that animal which sounds so ridiculous and actor-y and
I’m just so happy that no-one ever sees me doing this other than Jean-Louis um,
because I’d look ridiculous. But it-- I find it really helpful. And slowly, you’d come out of
the animal until you have about five percent of the animal left over. Which is, hopefully, subtle
enough that people aren’t gonna be like, “Why’s she doing that?” but, significant enough that your
physicality is altered with every role. What was your Tonya animal?
Uh… She was a pitbull. And I ended up getting a pitbull after that because I fell in love with
pitbulls. But she was also a wild horse, you know a mustang or a brumbie, as we say in Australia.
When she was on the ice, she was a wild horse. Other than that, she was a pitbull, who are deeply
misunderstood. You know, people look at them and think they’re scary and dangerous and whatever and
actually just really they just want to be loved. And there was something about like the heaviness
in their back haunches that I wanted her feet to be really heavy, which the ice-skates helped
with. Walking around in ice-skates you’ve just got weight on your feet. I wanted her to always
feel that the world was like, [sighs], even the jaw a little bit, like, you know.. so, yeah.
You didn’t know she was real when you first read the script… is that true?
I had no idea that Tonya Harding was a real-life person, no. I thought, “This screenwriter is off
the charts, nuts. So specific and weird, all these things that happened.” And then
I found out it was all true. And then you went and met her.
Yep. And tell us about that experience.
I mean tell us about that meeting. Yeah it was great. It was, you know,
I’d done a lot of my prep before meeting her, intentionally. I didn’t want the meeting to really
lead… you know the cart lead the horse sort of thing. You know, we had a great script
and we had a vision… you know, a director with a vision and I wanted to service all those things.
Um, so it was more about filling in the gaps. I had a few questions where I was like, “This is
one aspect of her that I don’t understand.” Ans do I knew meeting with her might help with that. And
also it’s just a courtesy, just like as a courtesy to her I suppose to have that face time together.
Um, so yeah, it was great. I got to kind of ask all my questions and her
answers and her just general demeanour was really enlightening and helpful.
And how much responsibility did you feel? I mean had she… she presumably had read it?
Yeah, I mean, she, she… I did feel really responsible. It’s different
playing someone who’s still alive. You know, I’ve played other people who are now dead.
It’s different knowing that someone’s gonna see it. And I guess all you can do is
kind of let them know like I’m playing a character who’s embodying the spirit of
you. And that’s all you can do. Because also I can’t be Sharon Tate and I can’t be Tonya
Harding and I can’t be Queen Elizabeth but all I can do I think is, you know, try and capture the
spirit of them in some way and also service the story in the film that you’re trying to tell.
And did you meet Nancy and any of the other characters?
No. I didn’t meet Nancy I didn’t meet Geoff I didn’t meet anyone else, no.
And throughout there’s a real balance in there of kind of comedy and tragedy and… I mean,
you were also a producer on this movie, this was your first, or the first big number.
Yeah, there was a lot going on. How easy was that balance to get right?
The balance wasn’t the hard part. It was just a hard movie to make. You know the reason we got
that movie as such a young production company is because everyone else in town was like,
“It can’t be made. It’s just too specific. Whe humour, the tone everything’s very specific.
And then also it’s too ambitious. You’ve got two Olympics, you’ve got two-hundred-and-something
scenes. It’s a period piece. To do all that at the budget size that a film like this would kind
of command is impossible.” But we were young and dumb enough to go, “I think we can do it.”
So, we got it and we did it. So, yeah, that was a really hard one to produce because it was just,
it was a lot to pull off. Like, we were swinging for the fences and there was a lot of chance--
there was a big chance that we would miss. And did you find there was a real conflict
between you as a producer on one side and you as a performer on the other?
No, I actually feel like it really goes hand in hand. And I’m a better actor having known all the
things… you just know so much more as a producer. It’s not like you come in for the three months,
or in this case the thirty-one days that we shot. You know, if you come in just for that,
that’s all you know. Whereas if you’re on it for a year before, you’re on it for a year afterwards,
you just have so much more context and can be more helpful, I think. I mean, on the flip-side I think
I can be helpful as a producer when I’m also an actor. You know, I can say, like, “By the way,
like, morale is low right now. Let’s have, like, a whatever. Certain departments, aren’t feeling—“
you know whatever. You can be kind of helpful. Um, but yeah. And as long as the director I’m working
with isn’t bothered by it, Craig wasn’t, it’s not a problem actually, it’s really helpful.
And I’ve heard you say before that people think that you’re a kind of vanity producer.
Well, thankfully after doing it enough times, people are like, “Oh, no, she’s an
actual producer.” Yeah, yeah, which is good. But where is your producer mind set? Are you one
of the kind of hard-nosed business guys or are you kind of creative,
nurturing script guy, kind of type producer? I’m a bit of both. I really do like the business
side of it. I do like combing through a budget. I do enjoy it. I find the problem-solving aspect
of that really fun and exciting. And then I definitely love the creative side. I do
spend like, you know, years with writers, breaking story and you know, whatever.
But I do think I have quite a big, you know, asset in my problem-solving sort of aspect of the brain.
So, no, I like both, yeah. And then of course you have to be practical at some point. You can’t
micromanage. You have to… I think one of the best things you can do is a producer is hire the best
people and then all you have to do is support them, give them everything they need to do the
best job they possibly can. So at some point as a producer you’re just knowing when to take your
hands off the wheel and just making sure you’re there and available if anyone needs you.
And the company’s obviously gone from strength to strength and now you’re commissioning stuff
that’s completely separate from you in a way. So for example Promising Young Woman,
which a lot of people don’t know that you—it was your company, you produced it. How clear are you
about the films that you should be in, and the ones that you should just literally produce?
I mean I always know when-- and not just because we might looking at it as a company but just also
when people send me scripts like, I just trust my instinct. Like, I so often will get sent something
and I’ll be like, “I’m not the right actress for this. Let me tell you the three people I think
you should be talking to.” My team’s often like, “Why are you pitching other people for jobs?!”
But I’m like, “No, I just, I’m telling you, I’m not the right person for this.” Actually,
Promising Young Woman is one of those cases where I was like, “I love Emerald. We’d been, you know,
following her for years and, you know, trying to support this film and I was like, “I know we
could get this going quicker if I just signed on but I just know I’m not the right… This won’t be
as surprising an experience for an audience member if I play Cassie. It just won’t be.” And you get
someone like Carey Mulligan. And I’m like, “That is surprising.” Like seeing Carey Mulligan in a
bandage dress with mascara down her face, what a joy. I mean, it’s brilliant. But you know,
people have seen me like that before and I was like, “I don’t think this movie’s as good…”
So yeah, I just rely on my instincts a lot for that. Snd then make it really clear to everyone,
you know, “Please don’t develop this with us thinking I’m gonna star in it necessarily.” Like,
I’m very honest from the get-go, whether that’s where my head’s at or not.