PBS released a new photo today of Mary and actress Hannah James in the upcoming civil war drama, Mercy Street. You can head to the gallery to check out the full-sized pic.
In the new PBS drama MERCY STREET, Hannah James plays Emma Green and Mary Elizabeth Winstead plays Mary Phinney, two volunteer nurses on opposing sides of the Civil War. Mercy Street debuts in January 2016.
Mary has been a bit quieter than usual on social media lately, and its because she’s been busy another new series, this time for PBS. According to The Wrap,“How I Met Your Mother” alum Josh Radnor and “The Returned’s” Mary Elizabeth Winstead will star in PBS’s civil war drama “Mercy Street” from exec producers Ridley Scott, David W. Zucker, David Zabel and Lisa Q. Wolfinger, the network announced Wednesday.
Directors Roxann Dawson and Jeremy Webb have also been added to the six-part series, which marks the first American drama to air on PBS in over a decade.
“Mercy Street” follows the lives of two volunteer nurses on opposing sides of the Civil War — New England abolitionist Mary Phinney (Winstead) and Confederate supporter Emma Green (played by newcomer Hannah James) — when the Green family’s luxury hotel in Alexandria, Virginia, has been transformed into Mansion House, a Union Army hospital tending to those wounded by the war. The series is inspired by memoirs and letters from real doctors and nurse volunteers at Mansion House Hospital.
Mary’s character is described as a feisty New Englander and widow who is a newcomer at Mansion House Hospital.
Filmed on location in Virginia, “Mercy Street” will be the first American drama to air on PBS in more than a decade. The series will join the final season of “Downton Abbey” in winter 2016 on “Masterpiece.”
Congrats, Mary!!
And be sure to head to the gallery to check out the full-sized first look photo!
Thanks to Paige, I have added screencaps of Mary’s scenes in episodes 7 and 8 of The Returned which are now up in the gallery. Below, you can also find a preview for next week’s episode which I’ve also capped. Also, come back later for a BIG announcement! 🙂
‘Rowan’ screencaps
‘Claire’ screencaps
1×09 teaser– ‘Helen’
Mary recently did an interview with Details.com about her role in Alex of Venice and The Returned among other things. Click the link to read the full interview. Below are some highlights:
DETAILS: You’re currently on A&E’s resurrection drama The Returned. Do you believe in life after death?
Mary Elizabeth Winstead: I’m not sure if I believe in it. I certainly hope that something like that could be true. But I also wouldn’t quite call myself a believer. I’d say I am open—I’m open to possibilities.DETAILS: You’re a renowned “scream queen” because of all the horror movies on your resume. What scares you in real life?
Mary Elizabeth Winstead: I’m scared of complacency in my career. I have a real fear of getting too comfortable and not reaching my full potential in life because of that.DETAILS: What else would people be surprised to know about you?
Mary Elizabeth Winstead: When it comes to people in the industry, I tend to be quite different in terms the goals that I have. I just want to do good work and work with other talented people. I kind of shy away from the sort of eagerness and neediness that is seen a lot around here: People who are desperate for fame. And I’m actually surprised by people who are surprised by the fact that there would be somebody in the entertainment industry who wouldn’t be attracted to those things. I mean, it takes so much work to put yourself out there like that. If your goal is to be famous, it really is a full-time job. You’ve go to sell yourself and make yourself a brand and do all this stuff. But I’ve never been interested in that side of things.
Mary also did an interview with The Mary Sue where she talked more in depth about Alex of Venice, returning to studio films and working with her husband on Faults. Click the link above to read it in full!
With Alex of Venice being released on iTunes, the latest (and probably final) clip of Mary in the film has been posted online. You can watch it below and I will screen cap it some time tomorrow. For now, enjoy it and be sure to rent it ASAP!
With Alex of Venice hitting select theaters tomorrow and also being released on VOD, more new interviews and reviews about the film have been released. First up, Mary did a short interview with Too Fab. Below are highlights:
toofab: You’re on an indie roll right now, what draws you to these kinds of films?
Mary: Its just the bigger films tend to be male driven. It’s kind of hard to find like an interesting complex female role in those worlds. Not to say they aren’t great movies, but from time to time I kind of get rolled in to play the girlfriend if it’s exciting enough. A lot of times, they end up being the thing I don’t want to continue to do. My goal in a perfect world would be this movie to be a wide release.
toofab: What was it about this latest project that you loved?
Mary: I was kind of no brainer when I read it. It feels like a movie that I could’ve seen from the ‘70s or early ‘80s, back when these films were blockbusters, when stories about women trying to figure out their lives out was a really big deal. Those are the kinds of films I love and I was really excited to get to do something like that.
Twitch Film also did a lengthy interview with her. Read the full interview by clicking on the provided link:
You’ve played some broken characters dealing with real issues people face every day, Alex in ALEX OF VENICE is a perfect example of one of these characters. Why are these roles important for you to play and why do you think stories like ALEX OF VENICE are important to cinema?
Man. In terms of the roles that I’m drawn to, I demand a certain complexity. Just for myself, I feel like the older I get and the further down my career I get, I just want to have roles that are exciting to me and challenging to me. I want there to be a level of complexity that, um, makes me a better actor at the end of the day. I don’t want to be bored by the characters that I play. Those are all really important things for me, in finding a role.
I think, in terms of why a film like this is needed, it’s really rare to get to see this full life represented, particularly for a female and particularly for my age-range and things like that. We get to see her as a mother and a wife and a sister and a daughter and a lawyer. We get to see how she behaves in all of these relationship and how she can be, sort of, different people within this one person.
I have added the latest stills of Mary Elizabeth Winstead in next week’s episode of The Returned titled after her character, Rowan. Head to the gallery to check them out, and if you haven’t seen it yet, you can view the promo for the ep below:
As the title reads, Ain’t It Cool News recently chatted with Mary about her upcoming film, Alex of Venice. Below are some highlights from the interview, and be sure to click on the link above to read the full Q&A:
With this film, when you first read this script, what was it about Alex that jumped out at you? Was there an aspect to her life or the upheaval that happens to it that made you think, “I’ve seen that before,” or “I know someone that’s happened to”?
MEW: I think in general, the complexity of the role was really exciting to me and the reliability of it. I loved the fact that you get to see her with her sister and her husband and her father and her son, and you get to see the full spectrum of relationships and how she handles herself in each one. I am really drawn to characters who are trying to be better people and in every scene are striving to figure out what it is about their lives that isn’t working and how they can grow from that and move on and become better. So that was something that really spoke to me about this role, too, is you feel like all the way through the end she’s trying to figure out how to do this. How do I be a good sister? How do I be a good mom? How do I be a good daughter? How do I be a good wife? And I think that that is something for me that is incredibly relatable and universal.
I heard about these crazy long takes that he did, too. How did you like that experience?
MEW: I loved that. I absolutely loved getting to play. A lot of times he let the camera play out and see what happens, and other times he would stoke the fire. He would go behind the camera and he would just shout stuff out: “Tell her you love her. Tell her you can’t stand her anymore. Tell her you’re sick of her,” just to switch things up and see what happens. I loved that. I really loved that energy when you don’t know what’s going to happen in a scene and if something brilliant can come about that you never expected. I love that.
Don Johnson is phenomenal in this. I’ve seen him in quite a few things in the last few years, but usually they bring him in just for the vibe or comic relief. But here, he’s actually digging in, and just eating this thing whole. What did you learn from him just watching him work and embody this this character?
MEW: He’s a really inspiring person, because he’s just so committed as an actor. He came to it and hit the ground running in terms of wanting this character to feel authentic and doing whatever he could to get it there. He’s maybe not synonymous with a being serious actor, because he’s known for “Miami Vice” and other things, but I think when you go back to the beginning of his career, he was in acting school and alongside really serious actors. That’s always been where his heart lies. To me, I always loved watching him. And I really felt like I was getting to act along side somebody who was the real deal, who has seen a lot as an actor, and experienced a lot, and is someone I can really learn from.
A new promo for next week’s episode of The Returned has been put online and you can view it below. The episode will concentrate on Mary’s character Rowan. I also added screencaps of the video to the gallery.
In other news, Joblo gave Alex of Venice a really fantastic review. Here’s what they had to say:
ALEX OF VENICE is an impressive directorial debut for actor Chris Messina. Well-known for his work in movies and on The Mindy Project, Messina’s first film behind the camera is a sensitive character piece that works as another strong showcase for Mary Elizabeth Winstead, who’s quickly establishing herself as one of the preeminent actresses of the American indie movie scene.
One of the best things about Winstead is that she’s such a naturalistic performer. Many of her contemporaries go for “big” performances but she’s always been far more subtle, a fact that makes her consistently believable whatever the part. She’s perfect for Alex – who’s a go-getter but is also convincingly human, in that we see her getting flustered in court, and expressing grave doubts about her ability to juggle family and work. Winstead’s as drop-dead gorgeous as any major starlet, but she’s able to convey a certain degree of shyness, making it feasible that after splitting with her hubby that she’d be awkward trying to meet men. It’s really a nuanced performance and it seems obvious that sooner or later Winstead will be acknowledged as one of the great actresses of her generation.
The movie is currently at a rating of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and if you want to read more reviews (so far) about the film, just click on the above link.
Thanks to Paige, I have added screencaps of Mary in last week’s episode of The Returned. Head to the gallery to view them all. I will add the preview for 1×07 later today, which is titled Rowan. Mary’s character was not featured in last night’s episode.
Also, stay tuned for more interviews of Mary talking about Alex of Venice, which will be available on VOD this Friday.