Speaking of that, and I don’t know how often you’re asked this, but have you thought about directing?
No, I haven’t and I am interested in that. We’re just finishing episode five, but I just spent episode four shadowing the director of that episode. Meaning just following her around, watching the monitor, learning from her, which was amazing. In particular, I really learned a lot about preproduction. You know, because that’s part of the production process that actors have very little to do with. I had never been on a locatio n scout even though I’ve been on countless sets so that was cool. And I really did learn a lot. I would like to direct an episode of “The Deuce.” And I think probably for the rest of the season, I’ll just sort of catch as catch can, pull up a chair and observe s much as I can the directors that are working. Almost all of them have been women, which is also really interesting. And also, I’m adapting a book into a screenplay that I’d like to direct as a small, independent movie. Which I am starting to see is, I think, almost an entirely different job than directing a really big episodic television show.
Yeah. It’s like, it’s almost night and day. I’m guessing you’re 13, 14 episodes into playing Candy. What about her do you like playing the most?
That’s interesting. I like how wild she is. She’s not always like that. But there are times where she’s just like, “I know what I need and I have to find a way to get it.” And I like that it’s kind of a mix of how smart she is, and wild, and also, I think another really wonderful thing about Candy is that she’s not judgmental. She doesn’t judge people. I mean, first of all, as a sex worker, I think that’s such an interesting thing. She’s like, everybody needs sex. And I think she’s very open-minded and open-hearted. And, at the same time, very smart, and pretty tough. So it’s a very interesting combination. But I love that she’s amoral. Meaning, she’s sort of beyond morality. Or not beyond, but she’s like, “Let me think about that, is that cool with me? Yeah, okay. You know? Or like, I’m sorry, that might be cool with everyone else, but that’s not fucking cool with me.” She’s got her own sense of morality which means she has a mind and I think she’s pretty in touch with it. And I really like playing somebody like that. I also love, like, when somebody really comes up to me and says, “I like, I love Candy” I feel like I know that they have some humanity, you know?
I’m actually really curious about this. Compared to when you do a movie do you have more people come up to you on the street and comment about being on a show on television? Does the fact that it’s on TV, do you think it makes people feel like there’s more to ask? Or that they have more of an intimate connection?
I mean, maybe. And also, maybe because it’s so long, so you get to spend a lot of time with Candy. There’s something cool about, like, living in New York, having the show about New York, and the people who respond, it’s all different people who respond to her. You know, I mean … I don’t know, I feel like I just love the people that like her. And who want to come tell me. I always really appreciate it. Because I really love her.
I’m assuming you shot “The Kindergarten Teacher” right after or soon after you shot the first season of “The Deuce.” Is that right?
Let’s see, I finished “The Deuce like, in November. And then I shot “The Kindergarten Teacher” in July.
Can you just talk about what made you want to do it, and I’m guessing that was a very quick shoot. It must have been, what, 30 days or less?
22. 22 days. It is my favorite thing so far. I love that movie. It was, yes, very fast. So it was the opposite of “The Deuce” in a way. Now that I’m halfway through the second season, I’m realizing that it’s like running a marathon, you know? You have to pace yourself. You have to protect yourself. You have to take care of yourself because it’s long and you can’t burn out. Whereas with “The Kindergarten Teacher” it was just fast and furious. It was like you went into a tunnel and you couldn’t see anything else except the tunnel of “The Kindergarten Teacher” until you come out the other side. A nd then after that, it required some, like, taking care of myself. I mean, that was a pretty uncomfortable person to play. I think what’s so interesting about her is that she is also a person with a mind, like Candy, and needs, but she’s not being fed. And she doesn’t know how to get fed and she gets really confused. And I think in a lot of ways it was a response, even though the script was written way before this, it was a response to the way I think a lot of us were feeling after Trump was elected. We were like, “How do we fit into the world now?” And I think that’s what she’s wondering. And also, I think it’s a similar theme, in a way, to “The Deuce” just in that, like, she’s also an artist. She’s a poet. And nobody cares about her work. And who is deciding what’s good and bad. You know, some guy, who’s her professor. Where is the space for her work in the world? But anyway, that’s my favorite so far. I love that movie. I can’t wait for it to come out. .I’ll talk about that one all day.
I know you must have done some Q&As at Sundance, but because of the last sequence of the film I just feel that audience reaction must be all over the place. It must be interesting to hear what people ask about it. Maybe I’m wrong.
One of the things I thought was so interesting, watching that movie with an audience, was that the ways that people [responded]. Because it’s got a brutality to it, I think it’s uncomfortable, in some ways, to watch. And the ways that people expressed how uncomfortable it was. I mean, there was this one part in it where the entire audience laughed. Almost, like, guffawed. Kind of at my character. And I was like, “Whoa. Wow. How interesting, that everyone sort of laughing at her like that.” And then two seconds later, you get to see her weeping in a bathroom. I mean, yeah, it’s intense. I can’t wait for people to see it. I feel so proud of it. I love the things that it’s saying, you know. I love the things it’s making people think about.
For sure. And Maggie, congratulations on both roles. You’ve had a great year. And I can’t wait to see “The Deuce” come back. I really want to see what happens to Candy. Thanks so much for taking the time.
Okay, you too. Bye.
The first season of “The Deuce” is available on HBO GO. “The Kindergarten Teacher” will launch on Netflix sometime this fall.