Orange is the New Black is nominated for 12 Emmys with 5 in acting categories including the incredible Laverne Cox (for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series). As part of the Screen Actors Guild Foundation Emmy nominee Conversations series Laverne Cox sat down with Mark Peikert, Executive Editor of Backstage – the series is in partnership with Backstage – to discuss the role/episode she is nominated for and her acting journey.
The focus is on training and the acting process which sounds like it could be rather stuffy to someone who isn’t in this industry, but this is far from the case and I think I could listen to Cox talking about her experience for hours. Anyone who visits TV Ate My Wardrobe regularly will know that I love these kinds of discussions (particularly with fascinating women) from Comic-Con panels to Emmy roundtables and one reason I am such a fan of these longer discussions is that you get so much more from the person being showcased than you do in a regular interview. Part of this is because there’s something more informal about these chats so the participants will share more, but as Cox also mentions she has to shorten everything to sound bites for live TV interviews, whereas in this setting she can provide further insight.
This includes not only talking about her background in acting, but also how Orange as the New Black as a cultural phenomenon is helping a wider audience understand more about the transgender community. Cox references the Time cover as the obvious point when she realized she was becoming a spokesperson for this community, but she also mentions the reality show she was on prior to OITNB as well as the Katie Couric interview as a major shift. One aspect of this role that she mentions is how it isn’t a PSA; instead this show has provided an affirming point of reference as Sophia is a “really human, nuanced, complicated chick who people can relate to and happens to be played by someone who is actually trans.”
Cox is currently writing a book (when can I pre-order?) and while her publisher would probably like her to hold back on certain stories she goes into detail of what her first day was like on the set of OITNB (Jodie Foster gave her a tour of the set), the scene that made her realize how incredible and unique OITNB is, which piece of costuming puts her in the right Sophia headspace, her academic background and how dance training helps when performing a scene (and why she chose acting over dance).
It’s a really fun discussion and kicking off this series with Laverne Cox has set the bar high for the other participants.
It might still look like summer, but fall campaigns are being unveiled at a rapid rate with September issues hitting newsstands soon (in some cases they are already out) and NARS is celebrating 20 years in style. The first ad in this campaign features the stunning and iconic Charlotte Rampling in a super sultry black and white shot. Showcasing the Audacious Lipstick Collection through a black and white image might be an unusual choice; however the second panel’s giant lipstick does the trick. And when you look as good as Rampling (in this photo taken by François Nars) it kind of sells itself.
Lipstick isn’t the only thing this ad is selling as I now want to find a black lady tux (I pretty much always want a lady tux jacket so this isn’t the greatest of leaps for me).
Anything to wash away the memories of anyone who was involved in the final season of Dexter. If you want to see Rampling being a badass in a recent TV series may I offer up Restless(also starring Hayley Atwell and Michelle Dockery), which is a two-part spy drama spanning several decades starting during WWII. You get to see Lady Mary in a whole lot of ’70s attire and Hayley Atwell plays a young Charlotte Rampling in a role that is very much suited as prep for Agent Carter. I think there could be a Restless costuming post in the near future.
Watching women talking about their experiences in the entertainment industry and the shows they are on is something regular TV Ate My Wardrobe readers know is my happy place. This time of year is especially stacked when it comes to these types of panels with Emmy roundtables and Comic-Con. In Hall H on Saturday Entertainment Weekly’s Women Who Kick Ass Panel took place featuring Katey Sagal, Sarah Paulson, Tatiana Maslany, Nicole Beharie, Maisie Williams and Natalie Dormer. Like the recent TimesTalks session it features women from a variety of shows from network and cable with a range of complicated and fascinating characters.
With two women from Game of Thrones on the panel the way women are portrayed on this show was addressed and what kind of power they wield in an environment that is so brutal with Maisie Williams emphasizing just how young her character is and that at 12-years old Arya has seen and done far more than any person of this age ever should. Natalie Dormer is asked about Margaery’s manipulation skills and whether her acts of charity are just a facade “When people ask me about Margaery, I say they’re not mutually exclusive. You don’t have to be practical and politically savvy and not be a good person. You can be a good human being and just be shrewd. I think all these women play similar characters.”
It is a topic we covered in a recent extensive GoT chat and Dormer sums up the different types of power these female characters have “Whether it’s psychological, physical, sexual, dragons. I think we’d all go for the dragons if we were given the choice. But that’s the secret of the writing, that’s why it’s such a compelling show—because it shows how different people are given different weapons, physically and metaphorically, and how they use them.” I think I would go direwolf over dragon personally.
Nicole Beharie as one of the leads of Sleepy Hollow is in a relatively new position in terms of her acting career and she talks about how this has changed how she presents herself “Just owning that space and not being expected, as a woman, to shrink, or curtsy, or any of those sort of things.”
Rising to a challenge and finding pleasure in something that is scary is something Katey Sagal describes as “awesome” and because they work in TV they don’t have a whole lot of time to question what they are doing thanks to the quick turnaround time. Maisie Williams has given herself extra work as Arya is left-handed in the books and despite being right-handed she wanted to remain true to the character on the page, which can prove difficult with some of the choreography. Natalie Dormer is yet to wield a sword on GoT but she did take up fencing after drama school (where she studied with Sleepy Hollow’s Tom Mison).
Prior to Orphan Black Tatiana Maslany had never played an adult, always portraying someone 10 years her junior and now she is playing multiple roles with different insecurities and inner power. The most clones Maslany plays in one day is three and the dance party scene took two days to film. Sarah Paulson will be playing a two-headed woman on the next season of American Horror Story and she looks set to pick Maslany’s brain for multiple part acting tips.
You can currently watch the full panel here:
On the same day over at Zachary Levi’s Nerd HQ another female centric discussion took place; “A Conversation with Badass Women” featuring Yvonne Strahovski, Retta, Missy Peregrym, Jennifer Morrison, Ming-Na Wen and Sophie Turner. It’s a slightly more raucous and chaotic panel that flows more organically than the usual moderator/audience Q&As and instead focuses solely on audience questions.
Some similar ground is covered as Jennifer Morrison also talks about female characters being more than just one thing in that they can be kickass and vulnerable in equal measures; television has the advantage over film in terms of how much time they can spend on character development so it would be disappointing if TV didn’t do this.
This panel covers far broader subjects than the shows they are all on with questions including role models (Sophie Turner has high praise for Lena Headey) and part of this sees Ming-Na and Retta going into detail about their family background and why they dropped their surnames (Ming-Na uses hers again, but didn’t when she was on E.R.). Seeing how people react on a very personal level to WOC getting roles on big shows is one reason why conversations like this are so rewarding as the panelists get to share their own experiences as well as seeing how it can profoundly impact an audience.
During the TimesTalks panel one of the subjects that came up was how to say no to things that make these actresses feel uncomfortable and this is covered in various ways during this discussion with Yvonne Strahovski mentioning unnecessary underwear scenes – I was beyond thrilled that her character in 24 not only had no scenes like this, but she also dressed in an appropriate and realistic way for job – and Retta talking about the “sassy” trope as well as cliche ghetto or nurse parts.
It’s a fun conversation that is hilarious as well as touching and you can watch it below. For more from Nerd HQ’s Comic-Con conversations (including Orphan Black, Walking Dead, Stephen Amell and Nathan Fillion) head here.
The New York Times hosted a discussion with four women who are on current or forthcoming shows as part of the TimesTalks series; from network, cable to streaming and all with varying levels of experience in television and film. Maggie Gyllenhaal (The Honourable Woman), Taylor Schilling (Orange is the New Black), Lucy Liu (Elementary) and Mira Sorvino (Intruders) sat down to talk about a variety of subjects including why television is so good for actresses at the moment and how they navigate some of the more challenging aspects of working in this industry.
Television as a medium is constantly being championed as an outlet for complex female roles and this is something that is a staple discussion point during any panel like this.* This is Maggie Gyllenhaal’s first foray into television and the character she plays in the Sundance/BBC co-production The Honourable Woman is not one you are likely to see in a mainstream movie; she is strong, intelligent and poised and like a lot of fascinating characters there is a flip side where this crumbles. Having seen the first four episodes I can attest that Maggie Gyllenhaal’s Nessa Stein is complicated and her performance so far has been exceptional.
*Keri Russell talks about this during the recent THR roundtable and her role in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes vs. The Americans is a pretty accurate example of why TV is viewed in this way over the more reductive roles that are generally on offer for women in film.
It’s not hard to see why Gyllenhaal took on a role like this and the beauty of TV is that there is so much more time to explore and dissect a character benefiting both performer and viewer. The idea that so many people watch TV as opposed to some of the tiny indie passion projects they have made gets referenced on multiple occasions.
Netflix is given praise for putting out a project like Orange is the New Black as it’s a show that has such strength in its diversity and the lack of restrictions on the content gives further creative freedom. This is a career high for Taylor Schilling (and when they were talking about film all I could think about was her cut down role as the wife in Argo) and her enthusiasm for this opportunity is obvious, particularly when previous work/heartbreak is brought up.
The manner in which these different shows are filmed varies from Maggie Gyllenhaal receiving all eight scripts at the start and shooting scenes for multiple episodes on the same day (all written and directed by Hugo Blick) to Lucy Liu’s episode by episode traditional network model with a variety of directors (including herself). TV can be many things including auteur like projects, adaptations of popular novels with both long and short form storytelling coming into play.
One thing that comes across from this panel (and at just over an hour and a half a lot of ground is covered) is that all four of these women have experienced some things they haven’t necessarily been comfortable with and they have had to learn how to say no when it hasn’t felt right to them. Mira Sorvino is thrilled to find out that she is not alone in having felt like and there is a lot of common ground despite the differences in how they started out/where they are now. Self belief and belief from others are both driving forces and the ability to remain hopeful is a repeated notion. As one audience member points out it is kind of like having a free therapy session and getting to hear some of these candid thoughts in a free flowing long discussion makes this panel essential viewing.
Maggie Gyllenhaal brings up how ideas of perfection in this industry are something she wishes could fall away a bit. The double standard is another aspect of this and she mentions that the scrutiny is far greater on woman than it is for men (from her experience of living with an actor). Lucy Liu also points out how easy it is to share projects with the technology we have, but she also wishes that people weren’t so quick to tear something apart.
This is just a brief taster of the subjects that are covered and both Maggie Gyllenhaal and Taylor Schilling talk about the current cultural relevance of their shows among other aspects that concern the broader and more personal aspects of their careers. You can currently watch the whole panel here.
TheNew Yorker has dropped the paywall for all articles dating back to 2007 for the summer and now is the time to catch up on seven years of writing that you may have missed or only read select quotes from. TheNew Yorker is calling this “a summer-long free-for-all” as they launch their new site and introduce a similar system to The New York Times in the fall. Content wise they are also introducing a Daily Cultural Comment column “in which our critics and other writers confront everything from the latest debates over the impact of technology to the latest volume from Chicago, Oslo, or Lima and the ongoing sagas of Don Draper, Daenerys Targaryen, and Hannah Horvath.”
With this in mind I have selected 10 articles with a link to television including some of my favorite pieces from current TV critic Emily Nussbaum (who makes up just under half the entries and hates lists, sorry Emily), recollections from Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, a range of genres and one profile that is about a current pop culture queen back in 2011 (this one is the exception to the TV focus of this list).
In the same package as The Hourboxset and another show on my catch up list is Enlightened and Emily Nussbaum’s Hummingbird Theory draws on Laura Dern’s Amy Jellicoe from Enlightened among others like Leslie Knope and Carrie Mathison. It is something we touched upon during our Comeback discussions and these kinds of characters are “idealistic feminine dreamers whose personalities are irritants.”
Emily Nussbaum’s essay on Sex and the Cityin reaction to Brett Martin’s Difficult Men: Behind the Scenes of a Creative Revolution: From ‘The Sopranos’ and ‘The Wire’ to ‘Mad Men’ and ‘Breaking Bad is one of my favorite Nussbaum New Yorker pieces. Nussbaum looks for reasons beyond the terrible movies as to why Sex and the City has lost its place in TV legacy discussions. All while pointing out its groundbreaking position and reinforcing why it was one of the most talked about shows beyond its ties to fashion.
Continuing with Emily Nussbaum and female centric shows that spark a lot of debate/column inches with Nussbaum’s thoughts on the sex scene in one of the most discussed and beloved (and hated) episodes of Girls “One Man’s Trash.”
The final piece from current New Yorker TV critic Emily Nussbaum is an examination of the variety – quality and genre – of work from one of the most controversial and prolific showrunners working in TV at the moment; Ryan Murphy.
Tina Fey wrote about her experiences on SNL and the lessons from working on late night in an essay from her book Bossypants (there are slight differences between the two).
Nailing those pre-college summer job feelings and slowly realizing what she wanted to do with her life is Amy Poehler in “Take Your Licks.”
Emily Greenhouse says goodbye to Gossip Girland makes sure to mention Dan Humphrey’s fictitious New Yorker submission.
Last year Lauren Collins asked why so many (myself included) have become obsessed with Scandinavian television tracking the success of Forbrydelsen (The Killing), Broen (The Bridge) and Borgen.
While I don’t necessarily agree with everything in Nancy Franklin’s reality TV analysis in “Frenemy Territory” it is fun to look back to 2008 when reality shows like The Hills were at peak popularity.
This last recommendation is a slight cheat as it isn’t strictly TV (SNL, CSI and Teen Mom allget a mention), it is however a fascinating look at the Taylor Swift angst empire back in 2011. Lizzie Widdicombe talks about Swift’s “unjaded sincerity no matter how contrived the situation” in “You Belong with Me” and it’s just as relevant now three years later.
The Orange is the New Black cast were out in full force on Sunday with floats at Pride parades in New York City and San Francisco. Laverne Cox was one of three grand marshals (Looking’s Jonathan Groff and Rea Carney were the other two) and she rode alongside Delores Nettles (her daughter Islan Nettles, a transgender woman was beaten to death last year).
Cox also visited the White House yesterday for their Pride reception and Michelle Obama is a big fan of the show as Cox revealed on Instagram “At the White House Pride luncheon earlier today. I met the President and First Lady. She hugged me and is a fan of @oitnb #oitnb #starstruck and #inspired.”
Escaping from Litchfield and riding the New York float in the incredible sunshine are Dascha Polanco, Danielle Brooks, Samira Wiley, Matt McGorry, Yael Stone and Barbara Rosenblat.
Yael Stone worked the rainbow false eyelashes and here’s a closer look courtesy of her Instagram:
Representing the West Coast contingent is Big Boo herself, Lea DeLaria riding a float at the San Francisco parade with all the bubbles.
And here is Laverne Cox as one of the New York City grand marshals.
Followed by a trip to the White House yesterday (here is a transcript of President Obama’s remarks at this event including a reference to Cox’s Time cover) and Laverne Cox’s dress game is on top form as she looks stunning in this photo she posted on Instagram:
“This is no fireside chat. It’s not just you and me. This speech is filmed and streamed and tweeted and uploaded” *waves*
Shonda Rhimes gave an incredibly powerful commencement speech at Dartmouth this past weekend and not only does she write powerful monologues for Kerry Washington and Joe Morton; she does so for herself. This is the second such address that has appeared on TV Ate My Wardrobe in the recent weeks and while Mindy Kaling’s skewed a more comedic edge (naturally), Shonda Rhimes opts for a more serious tone (there are still jokes and the word ‘poop’ is used several times). It’s inspiring as Rhimes emphasizes doing over dreaming and I’ve highlighted some of the standout moments below, however it is a speech worth watching in its entirety.
On dreams:
“Dreams are lovely. But they are just dreams. Fleeting, ephemeral, pretty. But dreams do not come true just because you dream them. It’s hard work that makes things happen. It’s hard work that creates change.
So, Lesson One, I guess is: Ditch the dream and be a doer, not a dreamer. Maybe you know exactly what it is you dream of being, or maybe you’re paralyzed because you have no idea what your passion is. The truth is, it doesn’t matter. You don’t have to know. You just have to keep moving forward. You just have to keep doing something, seizing the next opportunity, staying open to trying something new. It doesn’t have to fit your vision of the perfect job or the perfect life. Perfect is boring and dreams are not real. Just … do. So you think, “I wish I could travel.” Great. Sell your crappy car; buy a ticket to Bangkok, and go. Right now. I’m serious.”
On doing it all (or not):
“So women and men of Dartmouth: As you try to figure out the impossible task of juggling work and family and you hear over and over and over again that you just need a lot of help or you just need to be organized or you just need to try just a little bit harder … as a very successful woman, a single mother of three, who constantly gets asked the question “How do you do it all?” For once I am going to answer that question with 100 percent honesty here for you now. Because it’s just us. Because it’s our fireside chat. Because somebody has to tell you the truth.
Shonda, how do you do it all?
The answer is this: I don’t.
Whenever you see me somewhere succeeding in one area of my life, that almost certainly means I am failing in another area of my life.”
On the example she wants to set for her daughters:
“And yet. I want my daughters to see me and know me as a woman who works. I want that example set for them. I like how proud they are when they come to my offices and know that they come to Shondaland. There is a land and it is named after their mother. In their world, mothers run companies. In their world, mothers own Thursday nights. In their world, mothers work. And I am a better mother for it. The woman I am because I get to run Shondaland, because I get write all day, because I get to spend my days making things up, that woman is a better person—and a better mother. Because that woman is happy. That woman is fulfilled. That woman is whole. I wouldn’t want them to know the me who didn’t get to do this all day long. I wouldn’t want them to know the me who wasn’t doing.”
As we edge into the summer season and plan what to catch up on (I just started season 2 of Game of Thrones so that plan is in full swing), there is still plenty of TV related action from other sources such as the many Emmy roundtables to commencement speeches at colleges across the country. One such speech comes from Mindy Kaling at the Harvard Law School Class Day ceremony.
During this speech Kaling jokes about why she is there as well as referring to previous graduate Elle Woods (of Legally Blonde) and squeezing in many pop culture references like Candy Crush, the Real Housewives and Wolf of Wall Street. Kaling alternates between heartfelt platitudes about her parents’ relationship with the U.S. – “Their romance with this country is more romantic than any romantic comedy that I could ever write” – and the responsibility these graduates have when it comes to the language of law. Leading on to the fear we all have when clicking the iTunes terms and conditions ‘accept’ box as “iTunes may own my ovaries for all I know.” It’s both funny and sweet; it’s exactly the kind of speech you would expect from Kaling and she mentions how silly it is to get advice from an actor when they should be the ones offering it (even if at least of couple of them are probably evil).
Watch the speech below and hey it’s a bonus Amy Poehler Harvard Class Day speech from 2011 if you fancy another funny/touching speech for afters (I might have a print out of this speech sitting in one of my desk trays).
Laverne Cox didn’t make Time magazines ‘100 Influential People’ list in April despite dominating the reader poll (these votes don’t directly impact the final 100) and this omission caused outrage and surprise. Time magazine listened and the Orange is the New Black star is covering the magazine in a piece entitled “The Transgender Tipping” point. This is a really wonderful cover, free from the clutter of other bylines and Cox looks incredible in a midnight blue bandage dress.
The Q&A on the website (the full cover story is behind the paywall) covers past and present; Cox’s isolation as a child, the progress that has been made and the challenges that still exist. One important thing she underlines is that each experience isn’t an exact reflection of someone else’s and this isn’t a reason to deny a person’s rights:
“There’s not just one trans story. There’s not just one trans experience. And I think what they need to understand is that not everybody who is born feels that their gender identity is in alignment with what they’re assigned at birth, based on their genitalia. If someone needs to express their gender in a way that is different, that is okay, and they should not be denied healthcare. They should not be bullied. They don’t deserve to be victims of violence. … That’s what people need to understand, that it’s okay and that if you are uncomfortable with it, then you need to look at yourself.”
Cox also talks about social media and how it has had positive impact “where we’re able to have a voice in a way that we haven’t been able to before. We’re being able to write our stories and we’re being able to talk back to the media … We are the reason. And we are setting the agenda in a different way.”
For more from this Q&A and a behind the scenes look head here.
“What’s Galentine’s Day? Oh it’s only the best day of the year. Every February 13th my lady friends and I leave our husbands and our boyfriends at home and we come and kick it breakfast style. Ladies celebrating ladies”
It might be a fictional holiday courtesy of Leslie Knope on Parks and Recreation, but Galentine’s Day is something TV Ate My Wardrobe fully supports. Celebrating lady friends AND with breakfast food; who wouldn’t want that?! Make sure to bring an intricate art and crafts project or at least some sort of gift certificate. Failing that, just make sure there are waffles and plenty of whipped cream.
Ann leaving Pawnee has left a big beautiful (insert your own choice here) hole in Leslie’s BFF heart and I’m disappointed we didn’t get one final Galentine’s Day before she departed. I’m going to miss this pairing as it’s one of my favorite TV female friendships and it’s one that didn’t suffer from the usual cliches. Instead of being sad here is a supercut of all the best Leslie and Ann moments – yes it’s over 25 minutes long and it’s all good.
I know this scene doesn’t come from a Galentine’s Day episode, however it captures everything I love about the lady friendships on Parks and Recreation and as April testifies “everyone know this song, it’s amazing.” Yes, yes it is.
The focus is on training and the acting process which sounds like it could be rather stuffy to someone who isn’t in this industry, but this is far from the case and I think I could listen to Cox talking about her experience for hours. Anyone who visits TV Ate My Wardrobe regularly will know that I love these kinds of discussions (particularly with fascinating women) from Comic-Con panels to Emmy roundtables and one reason I am such a fan of these longer discussions is that you get so much more from the person being showcased than you do in a regular interview. Part of this is because there’s something more informal about these chats so the participants will share more, but as Cox also mentions she has to shorten everything to sound bites for live TV interviews, whereas in this setting she can provide further insight.
TV Ate My Wardrobe 