Full panel with Elisabeth Moss, Ellen Pompeo, Niecy Nash-Betts, Kaitlin Olson and Nicole Brydon Bloom
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00:00Thank you guys all so much for being here.
00:03Elizabeth, you're actually my first question, so that works out perfectly.
00:07Okay, so going into this final season of The Handmaid's Sale,
00:11did you feel, did this feel a little different because you were preparing to say goodbye to it?
00:17It felt different, I think, in the sense of we wanted to just kind of leave it all out on the dance floor.
00:23Like, we really wanted to do our best work, and it felt like that across the boards.
00:30Like, every single department you felt was really bringing their A-game, and it really mattered to them.
00:35And it's always mattered to us, of course, but I think there definitely was a sense of really everybody
00:42just wanting to do their absolute best work this kind of one final time.
00:47So you could feel that energy, which was very inspiring and made it a really kind of electric,
00:55incredible, creative place to work.
00:58So that's, yeah, it definitely felt different in that way.
01:01I love that.
01:03Nisi, Crotesquery was so incredible, and your role was so layered,
01:08and I feel like there was so much that goes in.
01:10Yes, you are allowed to applause. Please applause.
01:12Thanks, guys. Thank you.
01:14There were so many twists and turns.
01:16I'm curious how it was for you to tap into Lois' state of mind and kind of what she was going through.
01:22You know, I have to say that, first of all, thank y'all for coming.
01:26But I have to say it was one of the hardest things I've ever done, I think,
01:32and it is probably one of the pieces I'm the most proud of because I like a challenge,
01:39and I've never played someone with an alcoholic addiction.
01:43And there are so many places you could be in, and you could be hammered, you could be hungover,
01:48you can be tipsy, you can be going through withdrawal.
01:51I mean, you can be anywhere on the wave.
01:54And so to be able to unpack where she was and chart her addiction throughout the entire series,
02:01you know, because if you're a fake-looking drunk, that's bad.
02:06They don't want that, you know.
02:10But so it was challenging.
02:13Ryan Murphy is a great partner because he did a lot to help keep me on the path.
02:18Yep, give it up for Ryan.
02:19Yes, of course.
02:20So, you know, I just, I loved it so much.
02:26And, you know, it really was a family drama with the backdrop of a serial killer
02:33because I had a lot of problems in my family on that one.
02:37But it was a wonderful journey to chart.
02:42Nicole, I feel like similarly to Nisi, your character of Jane really kind of starts out
02:50as one thing, and it's turned into something else later on, for sure.
02:56How was that for you?
02:57How did you kind of find that balance of playing this character who was very likable
03:01but had a very dark side that she was kind of masking?
03:05It was really interesting for me.
03:06I think, you know, only in this business do we get the opportunity to play people who are
03:11different from us.
03:11And so sort of the first half of the season, I'm playing someone quite similar to myself,
03:16but then it's revealed that she's crazy, sociopathic behavior.
03:26And so exploring that was actually such a gift and so much fun.
03:30And I'm really thankful to our showrunner, Dan, for giving me the opportunity to do that
03:34because it's so much more interesting to play a character like her.
03:40Yeah, of course, of course.
03:41I mean, Ellen, Christine, I think, is the only character up here that was based on a real
03:47person.
03:47So for you, did you find that more challenging when it was based on a real person that you
03:52could not completely shape?
03:54Or was that a little bit, did you look at it a little bit as like a guideway?
03:57Exactly.
03:58Exactly.
03:58I think I looked at it as sort of the architecture for I had sort of a blueprint for some behavior,
04:05certainly some of the psychological pieces.
04:09But then also because we can't really follow the exact true story, just sort of using it
04:18as a blueprint.
04:18I also had freedom to do, you know, I wasn't so tied to trying to imitate her physicality,
04:26maybe just the emotional pieces, trying to find why she would make the decisions that she
04:32made.
04:33How challenging was that to try to tap into that, though?
04:36It was pretty challenging.
04:39But, you know, I think it's so interesting.
04:43So my first job ever, I think, was an episode of Law and Order.
04:48And I was playing, also, I was playing a murderer.
04:53And I said to Jerry Orbach, like, I just can't connect to this.
04:57I have no experience with this.
04:59I honestly don't know what to do.
05:00And he said, but your lie is your truth.
05:05And I thought, oh, wow, okay.
05:07And I had never, you know, it was really green and really new and really terrified.
05:11And that, that's something I never forgot.
05:13And so in playing Christine Barnett, her lie is her truth.
05:17It isn't it.
05:18You're not playing a lie.
05:19It isn't a lie to her.
05:20It's her truth.
05:21And that really sort of, for a corny thing, it sets you free.
05:26Yeah.
05:26Because you can just believe in it.
05:29100%.
05:29Caitlin, High Potential is the sole broadcast representative up here, which is so exciting.
05:36And I, yes, please.
05:37I love that.
05:37But I always wanted to be.
05:42But I think it says a lot because it's not easy to break into this and really take off.
05:47And the show has been so successful.
05:48And, of course, that's a lot of credit to you.
05:50So I'm curious about what it is about this role and what you think it is about Morgan that really resonates with people.
05:57You know, I think it's because she is flawed, but she takes care of business.
06:05She's a well-rounded person.
06:07She's, you know, I love, I love that it's different from something I've done before.
06:11I think people are connecting to it because you can see yourself in her.
06:16I mean, she's struggling.
06:18And she's, like, juggling a ton of things and making ends meet.
06:21And at the end of the day, she's learned from a hard life that she can't really count on anyone else.
06:26And she's going to figure it out herself.
06:27And she's going to show up for her kids with, you know, this mask of everything's fine, but she's tormented inside.
06:35So I think that at least that's what I hope people are loving about it.
06:39I think you can recognize a little bit of yourself in her because everybody, I think, right now is feeling like they're going a little bit crazy.
06:45Yeah.
06:47Aren't we, though?
06:48No, we all are.
06:49We are.
06:49Because, I mean, it's not less than us that there's the group of powerful women on this stage is so, so incredible.
06:58And it definitely takes a village to get these kind of roles on TV.
07:04And I wanted to just kind of put that out there because it is really important to say.
07:08But I want to ask you guys kind of the advice that you've been given in your careers that have really,
07:13something that has always stuck with you as a woman in this industry who is really leading these incredible projects.
07:19Ellen, maybe you want to start?
07:23Advice.
07:25Well, I think one of the best pieces of advice that I've shared before is that Shonda Rhimes said to me,
07:33you know, all anyone can ever say to you is no.
07:36And if you don't ask, you'll never know.
07:40So I thought that was pretty good advice.
07:42That's very good.
07:43And I tell my kids the same thing.
07:45Of course.
07:46Nicole, what about you?
07:47The first thing that came to mind was my manager right after I graduated college, you know, I was debating where to live.
07:55And he said, move where you'll be the happiest and you can go wherever you need to go for work.
08:01And I think that's been really important for me.
08:03I ended up moving to New York and my family's close by and my friends are there.
08:08And I just felt really supported in an industry that, you know, sometimes can be very difficult, lots of rejection, lots of no, until you get that yes.
08:17And then it feels really wonderful.
08:19So I think feeling grounded in that way has been really important for me.
08:24That's great.
08:25Elizabeth?
08:26How about you?
08:26I think for me, probably the advice would be, and it's also just kind of came through experience, is that the experience of doing something is the most important thing.
08:37Like, this is all fun and it's fun to get dressed up and see all of you.
08:42Thank you for coming.
08:42And it's all kind of Sherry on top, but that you have to make the experience every day the thing that matters.
08:51And that's you and the group that you're making it with.
08:54That's you, the cast.
08:55That's you and the crew.
08:56And it's every day, all day, all night.
08:59And those are the things that you remember and those are the things that you should cherish.
09:03And for me, it's all about, especially as a producer or a director, really trying to give that experience to the group that's there and to have that experience on set.
09:13So when something ends, everything that comes after is fun or maybe nothing happens, and that's also fine.
09:20But for me, the experience being something to value is probably the most important advice I've gotten.
09:27Absolutely.
09:28That's a good one.
09:29Nisi?
09:30How about you?
09:30Well, the best piece of advice I think I've ever received is from a woman.
09:36I don't know if any of you all have heard of her.
09:38Her name is Ava DuVernay.
09:42Ava says something to me.
09:44It was one word.
09:47She said, onward.
09:50When she said that to me, it just clicked.
09:54Because onward is the word for everything.
09:57You understand, early in my career, you know, I was in a troubled marriage.
10:03I had to go and audition to be funny, crying all the way there.
10:07But when I got there, honey, I fixed my face in that car.
10:10And what?
10:11Onward.
10:11You know, if you don't get the part or the show goes away, onward.
10:15You know, there is always something more ahead of you as long as you got a day above ground.
10:21So I live by that.
10:22Onward.
10:23All right, Caitlin.
10:29Well, I don't want to go after that, but I will.
10:34I think I'm going to go with Danny DeVito.
10:37He did say a couple of things, but mostly just by example.
10:41I mean, we really kind of grew up with him as our North Star on that show.
10:46And this is going to be a little controversial, but I'll explain what I mean.
10:51He had a director come up and give him a note.
10:55And he went, hmm.
10:55And then we did the scene, and he just did the exact same thing he just did.
11:00And then the director came back and gave him another note.
11:02And he was like, yep.
11:03And then we did the scene.
11:05And he did something different, but it had nothing to do with what that director said.
11:09And I go, are you doing that on purpose?
11:11And he goes, do what you want.
11:14Now, I'm not saying don't listen to a director at all.
11:18But here's what I got from it.
11:21And it's really, you have to do what feels right to you.
11:27You have to please yourself.
11:28You have to make yourself laugh.
11:30You have to really feel it in your own way.
11:33And if someone's saying something that doesn't make any sense, I mean, obviously, you can ask a clarifying question.
11:39But Danny was like, I got this, and I'm going to give them multiple different things to choose from.
11:44But this Yahoo doesn't know what he's talking about.
11:47Not everyone's a Yahoo, but there are a lot of Yahoos out there.
11:51And you don't have to listen to them.
11:53But it kind of goes along with everything that everybody just said, which is like your day, that's your life.
12:00You can't just be going to auditions and trying to please everyone else.
12:04You have to go into any situation and go, all right, I prepared for it.
12:09Now I've got to let it all go.
12:11And I've got to just experience this and find joy in it.
12:15And that's where the magic happens.
12:17Yeah, 100%.
12:18I want to ask you guys how you do it.
12:20Onward.
12:20Awesome.
12:24You can combine all of them.
12:26That would be the best way.
12:27Like you kind of just said, getting out of a funk, whether it's a bad audition, whether it's a really heavy role and stepping into a new one.
12:37What are your guys' secrets for doing that?
12:40How do you get out of a heavy role?
12:41I mean, Nisi, your character went through it in this series.
12:45How did you kind of turn that off when you got off set and went home?
12:48You know, first of all, I married well.
12:52You know what I mean?
12:53That's the secret.
12:54And for me, that's my secret sauce.
12:56I married somebody who, on my low days, will put a battery in my bag.
13:00On my hard days, will be standing there like, what do you need?
13:04Cheesecake or tequila or both?
13:06What do you need?
13:07And so my superpower is being plugged into my partner.
13:13And that's the thing that, that's for real now.
13:16I'm telling you, if you've been in a bad relationship, you know what I'm talking about.
13:20So that's my superpower.
13:22That's the thing that will get me up and go.
13:24You know, I'll take a car to work.
13:26But if I have a hard day at work, my spouse will say, cancel the car.
13:30I'm coming to get you.
13:32Just so I can get the good juju in the car on the way home.
13:35You know what I mean?
13:36So for me, that's the way.
13:38Yeah, absolutely.
13:40Ellen, what about for you?
13:41When you were getting out of Christine's sometimes such dark mindset, how was that?
13:46Well, I made a good decision early on, which was that I sent my kids to the East Coast with
13:54my husband so that I could come home and be by myself.
13:58And I did not have to come home to them.
14:00I had the privilege to do that.
14:02And that was really, I think, the smartest thing I could have done.
14:05Because also, I didn't have, to be honest, that much trouble leaving her when I took off
14:12those clothes.
14:13At the end of the day, I couldn't wait to step out of those shoes.
14:16But it's the exhaustion.
14:19I think the physical exhaustion, how tired you are when you come home, certainly not in
14:25the best place for my kids or anybody.
14:28I just really want to go to sleep because you have to wake up and do it all again tomorrow.
14:32That role was a lot of physical anxiety that I carried and a lot of physical anger that
14:40I carried and victimhood, which I felt was exhausting.
14:47So I was very lucky to be able to just go home and stay by myself and just wake up and
14:52do it all over again the next day.
14:55I think it's so interesting that you said that and it's almost the opposite because for
14:58every person and for every role, I would assume it's so different what you need.
15:02To get out of what the role is in the darkness.
15:05We were just talking outside about you saying how much laughter you would have on your sets.
15:11You crying all day.
15:13And in the middle of it, you know, it's the laughter.
15:16But that is such a good gift.
15:17The laughter of it all, you know.
15:20It's so important.
15:21It's so necessary.
15:22And I think that, I mean, the simple answer for me is that I love what I do so much.
15:29I love being on set.
15:31I've been doing this for 36 years.
15:33Like, it's my happy place being on set.
15:36And so I feel joyful when I'm at work.
15:39And it's my favorite place to be.
15:42Like, so it's not for me ever something that I feel like I have to let go of.
15:48I'm not a method actor either.
15:50So I'm not really being that serious anyway.
15:53I mean, I'm barely in it.
15:55So it's hard to get out of it.
15:59But it's fun for me.
16:04I know that's kind of hard to believe when you see Handmaids and it's so serious.
16:07But it is.
16:08It's really it.
16:08We have so much fun.
16:09I was saying to her outside that I feel like, especially as a director, I'm like a kindergarten teacher most of the time.
16:15Where I'm just, like, trying to get them to be serious for two minutes so we can do the scene.
16:20Like, and stop laughing and stop joking.
16:23And I've, like, stopped just short of being like, I will turn this car right around.
16:29That's how fun it is on our set, though.
16:30They're all Caitlyn's.
16:31Like, don't listen to the director.
16:33It's fine.
16:34I'm sorry.
16:34Exactly.
16:35And it's people like her.
16:37People like Dan.
16:38That I have to deal with.
16:40I do it.
16:42Also, there's something to be said for doing something for so long.
16:45You do sort of settle in in a much different way than taking on a role for the first time or a limited series.
16:53You know, I think that if you're, if you have the privilege to do something for a while, you get to kind of,
16:58it's easier to slip in and out and to relax and have more fun.
17:02And you have a family.
17:03You feel comfortable.
17:04Yeah, 100%.
17:05Nicole, what was it like for you stepping in and out of Jane's mindset?
17:12Most days it wasn't too hard.
17:14Are you out of it now?
17:16Just checking.
17:17You'll never know.
17:19But there was, there was one day where someone who was supposed to be close to Jane dies and Sterling K. Brown and I go into the room and, you know, I'm supposed to have sort of a big reaction to this loss, even though I already know what's happened to him.
17:37Um, and it was really, really strange to, to get into the mindset of that kind of loss, but to be playing someone who, who made that happen, right?
17:52So spoiler, Jane killed the guy she was dating and then, and then has to pretend like she didn't even know he was dead.
17:59But, and we did quite a few takes and then I suddenly started to feel really, really weird and Sterling just gave me a hug and he like saw what I was feeling.
18:09And so it's sort of a combination of like wanting support, but then also needing space.
18:13And we sort of, um, took the time that we needed and, uh, yeah, that felt again, very grounding.
18:19And I think, I think that's really important when you're doing something heavy.
18:23Yeah, definitely.
18:24Caitlin, obviously your show is not as heavy.
18:26Nah.
18:27But there is death, there's some, there's some death in there.
18:32There's some, you, I mean, you still are in a character's mindset all day and then are not at the end of the day.
18:38Yeah.
18:38I mean, I would be lying.
18:39I could, I could probably make something up, but it wouldn't be truthful.
18:42I, um, it's just, yeah, it's, it's, I'm not, I'm not feeling like, you know, there was, there was one episode that where, um, my daughter is taken hostage.
18:56And, and I'm there with her and I make her leave.
18:58I think that was heavy.
19:00And, and I was also really wanted to show up for Amira who had to have a really, you know, she had to kind of crack open and, and sob.
19:08And it, and it was challenging.
19:10I mean, that's challenging for anyone.
19:12She was 16.
19:13Um, so that day I, I kind of tried to like stay in it, which I'm not method either.
19:19I do dick and ball jokes for a living usually.
19:22Um, so that day was kind of heavy and hard, but honestly, once it was over, I was like, Oh, thank God that's over.
19:30Yeah.
19:31Probably had a margarita.
19:34It never works.
19:35Yeah.
19:35Whatever works.
19:36Yeah.
19:36I don't, I just show up and know that, you know what though it is, you are in the process of it and the whole season.
19:43I mean, there's one thing after the other.
19:44And honestly, you've got to keep in mind, like, especially if you're producing your, your mind's constantly onto the next thing.
19:50Sometimes it's harder to, to stay in it for as long as you need to, because then you're watching casting or then you're giving notes or you're, you know, trying to memorize lines.
19:58So, um, I think just being able to set aside time to just breathe for a minute or, you know, just not allow yourself to, to get too overwhelmed, I think is, is key to these things for all of us.
20:14Cause it's just, it's sort of nonstop and constant.
20:16And if, if there ever is stress or frustration, I don't want to take that home to my kids and I don't want to, um, we got a no asshole policy.
20:24Like you never want to take anything out on anybody else either.
20:27So I mean, just making time for yourself and being easy with each other and asking people just communication.
20:32Yeah.
20:33That's a good lesson in life.
20:34Just communicate.
20:35Yeah, just talk.
20:36Just say you need something.
20:36Talk to people.
20:37Um, well, the last thing I want to, I want to ask all of you, you kind of mentioned this earlier, the world's at a tough spot for many different reasons, but a lot of people turn to TV for escapes.
20:46That's something that we all do.
20:48That's why I'm in this job.
20:49That's why I'm sure a lot of people are in this industry.
20:51So for you guys, what is the, the go-to escape show that you turn on when you don't want to think about the world?
21:00Nishi, I'm going to start with you.
21:02Okay.
21:02I know you're ready.
21:03I could see it in your eyes.
21:04Okay.
21:05Okay.
21:06This is a two part answer.
21:09I love murder.
21:12I, I, you know what?
21:14So I would turn to true crime to relax.
21:17They say that makes me a weirdo, but I don't care.
21:21Um, but if I was going to right now, my spouse, her smile came outside of her cheeks.
21:30When I FaceTimed her with this cute thing on the phone outside, because we are watching Handmaid's Tale all the way through.
21:38Started at the beginning, all the way through.
21:40So yeah, you getting us through, girl.
21:42Just a, just a, just a relaxing watch.
21:45Handmaid's Tale, a relaxing watch.
21:50Yeah.
21:50She told me she was watching the whole thing with her wife.
21:52I was like, whoa.
21:54Oh, Lord.
21:55What happened when she saw your face?
21:57She was happy.
21:58Yeah.
21:59That's right.
22:00Aw.
22:01Elizabeth, what about you?
22:02What is your, what's your go-to?
22:04Oh my God.
22:05Um, probably, I mean, I tend to watch more comedy, honestly, because I make more drama.
22:12So when you're doing something like that every day, it's not, just not something you necessarily want to watch when you go home.
22:18Um, so I love a good comedy, a good half hour.
22:23Um, and then also Grey's Anatomy.
22:25I was wondering, I was like, it's a lot of people's feel-good show, but that's not always so soothing or it's definitely dramatic.
22:37So it's not always the most comforting thing in the world.
22:41It's definitely not comforting when I hear it on in the other room and I walk by and my kids are watching and asking me, oh my gosh, the worst.
22:51Mommy, why are your panties on the bulletin board?
22:55Those aren't my panties.
22:57Those are Meredith's panties.
23:03Casual conversation?
23:05I'm such a liar.
23:07I lie so much to my kids.
23:11You're allowed to for the kids.
23:13You're allowed to.
23:13Yeah, it's true.
23:14What is your go-to show to watch, to unwind?
23:18Um, well, let's see.
23:20I actually haven't been watching any, any shows.
23:24I've been, I know, it's awful.
23:27I've been watching the news.
23:28Like, I'm so, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know.
23:32I think I'm like a true actor.
23:34I love to punish myself.
23:36And I love torture.
23:38I revel in it.
23:39I get off on it.
23:40I don't understand.
23:42I'm just, it's just so, it's just, it is like a train wreck drama that we're watching that never ends.
23:48It's, it is kind of like a, a, a drama.
23:52Yeah.
23:52A crazy, like something.
23:54Yeah.
23:55Yeah.
23:55It's crazy.
23:55You can't believe you're watching it.
23:57It is.
23:57That is very true.
23:58Nicole, what are you watching?
24:00I return to comfort shows a lot, which I think means I have anxiety.
24:06But, um, but I watch, I rewatch The Office, Modern Family, Parks and Rec.
24:12I know them so well now.
24:14So it's just, it's, it's fun.
24:16Sometimes it really makes me laugh.
24:18Sometimes I can like fall asleep to it and I feel comforted.
24:21Um, yeah, those are probably the ones in my rotation.
24:25But I've been watching Traders recently.
24:27I was never, I was never into reality shows and my husband was like, we got to start and
24:33we did.
24:33And now I love it.
24:34Yeah.
24:36Am I the only one who likes watching myself?
24:40Oh, I mean, is it me?
24:43Because you know what?
24:44Now I don't, I don't mean this no kind of way, but I really am a fan of myself.
24:48Yeah, yeah, yeah.
24:48You should be.
24:49And I, I go back and rewatch shows that I'm on.
24:54I'm like, girl, you did that.
24:57It's for you.
24:58Because Reno 911 is on 24 hours a day.
25:01I watch Reno.
25:02I watch all episodes of Clean House.
25:04I watch Assault Man, Rookie Fest.
25:07I watch all of it.
25:09I'm like, girl, look at you.
25:13If we all take anything from today, it's that.
25:15Please let's all, let's let that rub off on all of us.
25:19All right, Caitlin, what are you watching?
25:20I love that.
25:21I, I, I will say I, I, um, I don't go back and purposefully watch, but I'd be lying if
25:26I did, if I said I didn't like that my 14 year old is watching Sonny now and there's
25:31nothing we can do.
25:31He's 14.
25:32He loves it so much.
25:34When he was little, he used to sneak scripts and we'd find them in his room.
25:37Um, and now he's watching it and I do, Rob and I find ourselves like standing, I'm like
25:43making dinner and I'm like, I'm about to, don't, don't turn away.
25:47I'm about to say something.
25:49So I do like it.
25:51Um, I, I, what are we, you know, I have very little time to watch TV and I also have very
25:58little time to hang out with my husband.
25:59So we usually try and find a show that we want to watch together and it's currently Mobland.
26:06Oh, I'm loving it.
26:08So good.
26:09I love that.
26:09Yeah, really good.
26:11All right, guys.
26:11I think that's all the time we have.
26:13Thank you all so much for being here.
26:14Thank you guys for coming.