After posting several new interviews early yesterday afternoon with Mary talking about her film Faults and The Returned, more new interviews are also online. First is one with Rama Screen where they discuss the film and the possibility of a Scott Pilgrim sequel:
Rama’s SCREEN: This movie was your husband’s feature directorial debut and he wrote it as well, so your having worked with many directors before, did you give your husband any input or advice along the way, during the filming process?
Mary Elizabeth Winstead: “A little bit, but he knew what he was doing, which I was really impressed by, he’s kind of a natural born leader, which I think is the most important thing in a director. And he’s also spent so much time on set with me just hanging out, and he’s learned so much in just by kind of observing, so I didn’t really have to give him that much advice, which was nice, it was really wonderful to be on set and to watch him in his element doing something that he’s really good at, it was awesome.”
Rama’s SCREEN: I was rooting for you guys, “Scott Pilgrim” back in 2010, but “The Expendables” and “Eat Pray Love” came out on the same weekend and you guys got beaten by those two films. So do you think Edgar Wright will come call you and say ‘Hey, let’s do SCOTT PILGRIM 2!’ or do you not see that happening at all?
Mary Elizabeth Winstead: “I don’t see that happening, I think because the film didn’t make a lot of money, I don’t really see the studio backing a sequel for that reason. But I don’t think it needs it either, I think it’s such a great movie on its own, and it will always be there, it will always exist, this great movie that we all made, and that’s certainly enough for me and I think enough for everybody involved. So ya, hopefully we’ll all get to work together again in some capacity because it was a really amazing talented group of people that I’d love to work with again someday, but I highly doubt it will be on the set of Scott Pilgrim 2.”
Next is an interview with ShockYa:
ShockYa (SY): You play Claire, a young woman whose parents are desperate to be reunited with her after she falls under the grip of a mysterious cult, in the new thriller, ‘Faults.’ What was it about the character, as well as the script, that convinced you to take on the role?
Mary Elizabeth Winstead (MEW): Well, I was a bit biased from the start, because my husband wrote the script and role for me. So I instantly knew that this was a character I was most likely going to play. It helped that I loved the script so much, and thought the role was so smart, exciting and interesting.
But I did have doubts about whether I’d be able to do the role justice, which was one of my main concerns throughout the process. I wanted to make sure I brought a lot of complexity to the role, and keep the audience engaged in the character. But once I got over those doubts and we were on the set, shooting, I knew I loved this character so much. I had so much fun playing her.
SY: Besides films, you have also starred in several short films and television series throughout your career, including the upcoming supernatural drama series, ‘The Returned.’ What is it about television that you also enjoy working on? How does it compare and contrast to making films, particularly indies like ‘Faults?’MEW: Ultimately, I like to do good material, as well as work with people I like. When I go back and look at all the things I’ve done, I typically chose my roles, based on the scripts and people involved. It doesn’t really matter what type of platform it is, whether it’s a short film, play, TV show or feature; it’s all the same to me, as long as I’m enjoying what I’m doing when I’m there.
The platforms all have their differences. TV is different, as actors are usually closer to the writers than we are on a film. We’re typically closer to directors on a movie than on television. So that’s a bit of a changeover we have to do in our minds, and get used to the different ways of working.
But at the end of the day, it all stems from the script and the material, which you have to be passionate about. That’s what really matters to me.
SY: Speaking of plays, since you’re primarily known for staring in feature films, as well as on shorts and television series, would you also be interested in performing in theater?
MEW: I would love to do theater. There have been a couple scripts that have come my way, which I have tried to get but didn’t, or have been offered to me, but I couldn’t do them because of scheduling. I’m certainly intimidated by theater, but the more people I meet, and the friends I make who are in the theater world, the less scared of it I am. They all tell me I’ll be fine, and it’s all the same, so I should give it a try. They’ve all been encouraging me to do it, so I think I will try it one of these days, whenever I can, and find the right project.
NukeTheFridge also caught up with Mary and Riley to talk about the film as well:
Nuke: Mary, did this role give you challenges you hadn’t faced before?
Mary Elizabeth Winstead: Definitely. It was a scary role for me to play because it was very complex, but at the same time the performance had to be a bit removed and a bit deadpan and very still. I knew that in part because I knew Riley tonally, his style is sort of that. So I knew that it needed to be that but it was sort of like how can we do deadpan but also have so much going on underneath the surface. I had a little bit of that with Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World and things like that. I know that those roles can be hard for people to be able to show a window into who this character is when you’re playing somebody who doesn’t show emotion very often. That was a bit scary for me and wanting to make sure I didn’t do too much with it, but I also didn’t do too little with it. I wanted to make sure I didn’t give anything away about her, but that there was also something to keep the audience interested. It was challenging.