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[0:22] Eila Mell: Hello and welcome to Behind the Awards. I'm Eila. As always, I am here with Bruce.

[0:28] Bruce Gotlieb: Hello there, Eila. How are you doing today?

[0:30] Eila Mell: I'm good. I love S. Epatha Merkerson. I love Law and Order. The whole thing is great. Oh my god, she's winning there for Lackawanna Blues. But I mean, just so funny. She puts her acceptance speech in her bosom and she can't find it. But it's up there. I mean, Claire, I mean, you couldn't write a better TV moment if you tried, right?

[0:58] Bruce Gotlieb: Right, right. That's hilarious to me that you use the word bosom. I don't think I've heard anyone use that in maybe, you know, 100 years.

[1:07] Eila Mell: It's the first thing that comes to my head. I'm like, what am I gonna say? And then I just, you know, pictured like, I don't know, a league of their own that whole like, Madonna back and forth.

[1:20] Bruce Gotlieb: Well, yes, yes, she won for Lackawanna Blues by Ruben Santiago Hudson, who I am just, you know, so, so fond of, but the world knows her for Law and Order. I mean, Law and Order is the gift that keeps on giving. So and I always say you're not a real New York actor unless you've been on Law and Order. And so many people have.

[1:41] Eila Mell: Oh, my gosh. There's for the, you know, before they were famous. Do you want to hear a list before they were famous? They were probably, you know, either a victim or a dead body even.

[1:53] Bruce Gotlieb: Exactly. All right. So here we go. Philip Seymour Hoffman.

[1:56] Eila Mell: Sure.

[1:57] Bruce Gotlieb: Cynthia Nixon. Claire Danes must have been a baby on the show.

[2:00] Eila Mell: Yeah. Jennifer Garner. Let's see who else? Maura Tierney. Tova Feldshuh. She was already famous by the time Law and Order came around. So that's, I mean, they do totally count.

[2:14] Bruce Gotlieb: They do have some good guest spots.

[2:16] Eila Mell: Oh, my gosh. Yeah. People that are established like I remember when Carol Burnett did it. She did that arc that was so good. And Julia Roberts was on.

[2:24] Bruce Gotlieb: Yeah. Lewis Black. He was on. Who else? Sarah Paulson. I remember that episode. Edie Falco. Cameron Manheim. I mean, Allison Janney. I could go on and on, but it's probably boring, so I won't.

[2:38] Eila Mell: But one of the most important guests that was ever on Law and Order is our guest today, Carrie Preston.

[2:45] Bruce Gotlieb: Oh, my God. Did you see I saw a little clip the other day. They just announced that there's this festival going on in Austin, Texas. They're doing like a reading, a staged reading of one of the scripts of Golden Girls with Carrie Preston, Yvette Nicole Brown, Constance Zimmer and Pamela Adlon.

[3:02] Eila Mell: Is that? Yeah. Yeah. Well, Carrie is going to be amazing.

[3:11] Bruce Gotlieb: She's Blanche.

[3:12] Eila Mell: She's Blanche. Yeah. But fantastic. So who's who? Who is Natasha Yvette Williams?

[3:17] Bruce Gotlieb: She is Rose.

[3:18] Eila Mell: Perfect. Zimmer is Dorothy. And then we have Sophia, Pamela Adlon. I mean, she is hilarious. So she's going to be good. It's going to be really good. And I think there are clips floating around out there. I think it was last week and that they did this live thing.

[3:35] Bruce Gotlieb: But it reminded me of, you know, when we had those lives of the Norman Lear shows that when they brought back and did those live, you know, little episodes.

[3:41] Eila Mell: Yeah, they were fun. They were fun. I wonder if, you know, because Norman Lear's passing, if that's kind of, you know, gone away.

[3:53] Bruce Gotlieb: Yeah, I don't know. Jimmy Kimmel was producing those. So we'll have to call Jimmy and find out. I mean, I'm down for another one.

[4:00] Eila Mell: I know. What show? What show? So they did All in the Family. They did The Jeffersons.

[4:06] Bruce Gotlieb: Right. Did they do Maud?

[4:08] Eila Mell: I don't think so. No, they did Facts of Life in Different Strokes.

[4:11] Bruce Gotlieb: Oh, right. Right. All right. Well, let's get Carrie out, because as you know, I am probably the biggest fan of Elsbeth that there is. I love this show so much.

[4:23] Bruce Gotlieb: Well, we shouldn't have Carrie wait any longer.

[4:30] Eila Mell: Well, Bruce, you know, my favorite show is Elsbeth. How can you not know?

[4:35] Carrie Preston: It comes up more often than you think, Carrie. How wonderful. I love hearing that. And I'm so excited to welcome Carrie Preston to our show. Hi, Carrie.

[4:41] Carrie Preston: Hi. Thanks for having me.

[4:48] Eila Mell: Thank you so much for joining us. So I have been very aware of you for a long time, but especially because I remember seeing you at Fashion Week years ago when I covered Fashion Week.

[5:01] Carrie Preston: Okay. All right. So are you a big fashion fan also?

[5:04] Carrie Preston: I mean, yes, of course. It's a brilliant art form. I don't get the opportunity to go to Fashion Week as much as I would like. Thankfully, it's because I'm busy, which is always good.

[5:15] Carrie Preston: Yeah. But yeah, I do enjoy going to that. I certainly enjoy the fashions of Elsbeth Tascioni.

[5:22] Eila Mell: Oh my gosh. Yes. They're quite unique. Are you part of the team creating her fashion? Do you have a say in what she wears? I know you have a wonderful costume designer.

[5:30] Carrie Preston: We have the best costume designer, Dan Lawson. He's incredible. He did the costumes for The Good Wife, The Good Fight, and now Elsbeth. So I always say I just put myself in his hands and he hands me the character every week. I just stand there like a paper doll.

[5:46] Carrie Preston: Yeah. So he brings such a world of creativity and expertise to the creation of this iconic look of this woman. I have input, of course, because I'm the one who is embodying the character, but I usually don't have that much to say other than yes or yes, yes or hell yes. So I feel very blessed to have such a great designer and costume team.

[6:20] Eila Mell: Now, when your character first came on the scene in The Good Wife, I remember there was a guest starring and this new character was introduced and, you know, she came on her quirky self with all her little nuance. And then it seemed like after that, that the universe of the fans of The Good Wife just went crazy for the character. Is that kind of how this all started rolling? Or was it always a trajectory that this character would be built out?

[6:47] Carrie Preston: No, I don't think it was a trajectory at all. I think it was a result of people like yourself who talk about shows and pop culture and who write about things, and then the fans expressing their excitement and joy about watching the character. And then just Robert and Michelle King who created the show, wanting to extend the good universe, but in a way that was new. They didn't want to do another legal show. They wanted to find a way in with Elsbeth.

[7:36] Carrie Preston: I mean, from the very beginning, when I first started playing the character 15 years ago, Robert and Michelle described the character as like a female Columbo. And it's so fascinating to see that that is where we end up, is actually, yes, borrowing the structure of Columbo. And the way it actually went down was over the years, people like yourself would say, hey, why don't you do a spinoff with Elsbeth? And then they would reach out and say, hey, are you interested in this? And then I would say, of course, yes. And then it just wouldn't happen for whatever reason.

[8:10] Carrie Preston: And then they end up doing a spinoff and it was with Christine and it was for The Good Fight. And I thought, all right, well, there, that's fine. She's an icon. And they brought me on a few times to do that. And then I just let it go. And then in 2020, when we were all in lockdown, Robert and Michelle started rewatching episodes of Columbo. They were like, they weren't watching the new shows. They went back and started looking at that show because they loved it.

[8:38] Carrie Preston: And they thought, oh, well, huh, maybe this is our way in. Maybe they knew that The Good Fight was going to be ending soon. And they thought, well, maybe we could put Elsbeth in a similar type situation. And they got excited about this idea. And then simultaneously, the New York Times, a writer, Elizabeth Vincentelli, was writing an article about what she was watching during lockdown. And it was episodes of Columbo.

[9:05] Carrie Preston: And the last line of her article was, we don't need a spinoff of Columbo. We just need to give Elsbeth Tascioni her own show. And I was just sitting there going, wait a minute, what? And so the fact that like that had happened, you know, and Robert and Michelle had been thinking about, and they had already come to this conclusion, it was just like this weird synergy in the universe, you know.

[9:28] Carrie Preston: And it took them, you know, two or three years. But finally, you know, CBS was ready to, you know, come on board when they wrote it. And it just, it all happened in this very synergetic way. And I just couldn't believe it.

[9:40] Eila Mell: And I still can. I had never seen any of the good shows, The Good Wife, The Good Fight. I didn't even know it was a spinoff. I just found it. And I started watching and I couldn't believe how much I loved it.

[9:55] Carrie Preston: And I love this. I love hearing this more than yes. So to me, it was a brand new character. So eventually, of course, I found out that I was very late to the party. But yeah.

[10:07] Eila Mell: But we had Cara Patterson on our show, too.

[10:08] Carrie Preston: Oh, she's wonderful.

[10:09] Eila Mell: Yes, it's the best cast. It's you and Cara and Wendell Pierce. I mean, Daniel Isaac. And what I love so much is that you are in New York and you have all Broadway guest stars.

[10:22] Carrie Preston: Yes.

[10:23] Eila Mell: And it's just so much fun every week to see who's on your show. Does your audience know that you are also a Broadway person, do you think?

[10:30] Carrie Preston: I don't know. I mean, you know, I'm always shocked that some fans don't even know that I'm married to Michael Emerson and we've been together 30 years. So I never take for granted that anybody knows anything about, you know, me. And I love it that there are not just you, but there's a legion of fans that didn't know that this character lived in these other shows.

[10:52] Carrie Preston: And that makes me feel like we're all doing, you know, that we're doing a good job because we've started something that is standing on its own and it's not relying on, you know, these other universes. I mean, tonally, it's very different. Robert and Michelle, they did the pilot, but they passed the baton to John Tolens, our showrunner, and he and the writers, they are the ones that, you know, have created this very theatrical universe.

[11:23] Carrie Preston: You know, John is a playwright and he writes musicals and he's a huge Broadway fan. He's a big opera fan. And so he's bringing that sensibility to the writers room. We have a lot of writers in there who written plays and stuff. So it does, you know, it's just and I I'm, you know, I'm a trained theater actor, you know, so.

[11:42] Carrie Preston: And same with Kara, same with Wendell. Wendell went to Juilliard before we before me, so I didn't know him until we did the pilot. But of course, I, you know, he's an icon, of course. So, I mean, I knew him and his work. And so there's like a real common denominator there, which is based in theater. And I love that. And I love it that the audience is is into it.

[12:06] Carrie Preston: The audience is okay to watch a very theatrical show. You know, it's we have very long, very dialogue heavy scenes that's different than a lot of the shows on TV, you know, that are high paced and short scenes and a lot of action. And we have these, you know, five, six, seven page scenes sometimes. And that's what a treat. It's a job. It's a treat.

[12:32] Eila Mell: Yeah. You get to dig in like you would with theater.

[12:34] Carrie Preston: Yeah. Yeah. And how nice that your husband gets to be on the show once in a while.

[12:37] Carrie Preston: Yeah, I know. I know. Everyone kept asking me after the first season, you know, who do you want? Who do you want to be on the show? And I would always make these jokes, you know, well, I would love, you know, I am married to one of our greatest actors and stuff. And so they knew that they were, you know, John Tolens knew that he wanted to find something for Michael.

[12:57] Carrie Preston: And it was just a matter of finding, you know, what the best thing was going to be.

[13:02] Eila Mell: Yeah. Yeah. When they ask you, like, who you want to be on. I mean, some of the guests that you've had on your show are just like bucket list people. Like, I can't even imagine.

[13:10] Carrie Preston: Absolutely. Andre De Shields. Oh, my gosh. Andre De Shields. I know. Incredible.

[13:15] Carrie Preston: Yeah. You know, Laurie Metcalf, Pamela Adlon, you know, Tracey Ullman. I was just like, are you kidding me right now? I go, yeah, Tracey Ullman. Tracey Ullman shows up in true exactly what you would want from her. She's got her she's got she's got a wig ready to go. He's got he's got brown contact lenses because she wants the character who's a psychic to have, you know, deep eyes.

[13:40] Carrie Preston: And this woman has a fake teeth bridge that she puts in to do this. Oh, my gosh. Oh, my gosh. I loved her show growing up.

[13:47] Eila Mell: Oh, absolutely. Never missed. And she.

[13:53] Carrie Preston: Have met her and to say that I worked with her was such a privilege. Like I while I'm I'm working while I'm shooting a scene I'm saying words from that scene, but I'm memorizing words from something I have to do, you know next week or the next day or tomorrow or whatever, you know, I've got this whole like system of how I process all of the material because yeah, you know, I finished one episode and start the next on the next day. So I'm having to do a lot of triple prep at all times, but I enjoy that I really like it, you know, it's it's it's challenging but I you know, my apps that I use and I have ways of making my notes. I have tricks that I use. I have, you know, I record my cue lines. I play it over and over again so I can get the rhythm of the scene down. I do all that that stuff and I I like the challenge, you know, it's overwhelming but I love it, you know, yeah, and I'm sure your theater background helps with all of that nuance that you're working in.

[15:54] Eila Mell: Absolutely. I don't know how I would do without my training.

[15:56] Carrie Preston: Yeah. So what's so incredible to me is that so is it only two seasons that Elsbeth has been on so far?

[16:06] Eila Mell: Yes.

[16:06] Carrie Preston: Yeah. And in that time or anytime I'm out like at a bar or a restaurant and someone comes in wearing something quirky, someone will always say, oh, look, she looks like Elsbeth and you've just become like part of the pop culture. And it's because that you've created such a real character that people really connect to. There are quirky things about her. Sure. But your performance is so skilled that, you know, people feel like they know her that she's real.

[16:33] Carrie Preston: That is so sweet. I mean, recently I was walking down the street and I dress, you know, I wear a lot of colors and patterns and I like that in my own life and always have. My mother used to call it humor dressing because she was like, why are you dressing so comically? I like it because it makes me happy. I like to dress like this. So anyway, I was walking down the street and I was, you know, wearing something that was slightly on the Elsbeth, you know, coded world. And somebody passed by me and goes, Elsbeth, you even look like Elsbeth. And I loved it. It was like became very meta, you know, recognized me as Elsbeth, but that I was also looking like the character of Elsbeth. And it was it just made me laugh of that.

[17:10] Eila Mell: Yeah. I don't think you've ever worn black as Elsbeth.

[17:15] Carrie Preston: No, I mean, even when I had to do a funereal look, it was still, you know, Dan Lawson, our costume designer, was still like, no, we were going to do something. You know, we're going to give you a little something.

[17:26] Eila Mell: Yeah.

[17:26] Carrie Preston: Yeah. Like even when I went to the we had an episode where I went to like a spa, you know, out in the country that was Eric McCormick playing that part of the villain. And Dan found a way for me to wear a crocheted scarf, even though everybody else was wearing, you know, just the plain yoga outfits. And I still had to have a colorful scarf on.

[17:49] Eila Mell: Of course. I mean, yes. Now people come to expect it.

[17:56] Carrie Preston: Yes. That's right. So, I mean, of course, I know your husband from Lost, and I guess that's when the world's really put a name to his face. Have things changed for you career wise since this show started? Do people know your name more or you stopped on the street more?

[18:06] Carrie Preston: You know, yes, I am. I'm definitely recognized more out in public, but I I have a bit of a Clark Kent about me, like when I wear these and I'm out in the world, it's sort of like they didn't. It's like Clark Kent. I mean, it's so crazy. It really is. I wear these. And if you throw a hat on to you.

[18:31] Eila Mell: Oh, well, yeah.

[18:31] Carrie Preston: And I'm not like trying to go out in disguise or anything. I like meeting fans that, you know, I sometimes don't want to wear my contacts. So, you know, yeah. And so that happens to be that I'm, you know, I'm able to kind of can go out into the world and not be recognized. And it's fine. I don't feel like, you know, it must be so hard to be somebody that's so famous that they can't go anywhere. It's a prison.

[19:00] Eila Mell: Yeah.

[19:00] Carrie Preston: You know, and I just feel like Madonna steps out of her house and like, yeah, I feel like really hard, you know, yeah. Think about what you're doing. And I and I and I feel lucky in that, you know, I I can do that and kind of still be. And I live in New York, too, where people are not impressed.

[19:16] Eila Mell: Right.

[19:16] Carrie Preston: Yeah, that's right. Yeah. I like that part of the anonymity of New York City.

[19:23] Eila Mell: Yeah, sure.

[19:23] Carrie Preston: Yeah. We're much more relaxed. We're very used to seeing, you know, people on television, you know.

[19:30] Eila Mell: Yeah. Is there any talk of now, you know, all of your experience and all of your co-stars and guest stars who you think they'll ever do like an Elsbeth musical episode?

[19:35] Carrie Preston: Well, we do have in our finale a musical number.

[19:42] Eila Mell: Oh, my gosh.

[19:42] Carrie Preston: Yes. So you will have to tune in.

[19:51] Eila Mell: Of course. Yes. I'm tuning in anyway, but oh, my gosh. Now I'm excited.

[19:58] Carrie Preston: Yes. Yes. It'll make sense. It'll make sense when you.

[20:03] Eila Mell: OK. Yes. All right. That's exciting. One of my favorite scenes of yours is obviously my best friend's wedding. You and Rachel Griffiths. I mean, it's just that's speaking of musical scenes.

[20:10] Carrie Preston: Yeah, really. Right. So for the two people that might not realize that it's you in the movie, it's this scene. Is it brunch where they sing? Say a little prayer.

[20:21] Carrie Preston: Yes. Say a little prayer. Oh, my God. Did that take forever to shoot?

[20:27] Eila Mell: Yeah. Does that make it?

[20:27] Carrie Preston: Oh, my God. Like 14 hour days.

[20:33] Eila Mell: Wow.

[20:33] Carrie Preston: You know, I mean, I had to get all those angles and, you know, they the musical number wasn't in the original script. P.J. Hogan is the one who put it in there. The director.

[20:38] Eila Mell: Yeah.

[20:38] Carrie Preston: Yeah. So he wanted it to really feel like a screwball comedy from the 50s, you know, which always had like the musical element to it. And they got the rights to all these back rock songs. And so that was in the end, you know, the look of the costumes and everything just had that kind of throwback vibe to it. And yeah, so I feel I feel I knew at the time that that I was part of something in this first movie.

[21:02] Eila Mell: Wow.

[21:02] Carrie Preston: Yeah. You know, I mean, I couldn't believe, you know, that I'm on there with, you know, Julia Roberts, who's also from my home state. So, you know, we have the same roots and, you know, same age and just being able to see somebody at the height of their career at that age and how amazing she was at that job. You know that it was just such a different world than the theater world that I, you know, yeah, I'm up in. But yeah, that scene was definitely one that I, you know, knew at the time was gonna be special, but I didn't dream that we would still be talking about it 30 years later.

[21:45] Eila Mell: I know. Oh my god. I actually posted it on our Instagram and everyone went nuts.

[21:51] Carrie Preston: That's so great. That's so great. And the hats and the stuff. Oh my god. It's like everything is just like a layer of perfection on top of one another.

[21:57] Eila Mell: Yeah. So, so dreamy. Hi, this is Carrie Preston and Behind the Awards will be right back.

[22:06] Eila Mell: So what's your way into Elsbeth? How do you connect with her as a character?

[22:13] Carrie Preston: I mean, I always start with what what's on the page. You know, I definitely start with the words and it's been really fun because, you know, the way this show is written, it's different. You know, we're in a police procedural now. We went from this character living in a legal world to something where she's the center, but it's in a police world. So it's been really fun and fresh, you know, to try to maintain the character that I created all those years ago in this brand new world. But it's been a nice parallel is that the character is also in a new world. They were very smart. They took her out of Chicago. They put her in New York. They put her in a, you know, she's a bit of a fish out of water.

But she's we're seeing we're seeing the world of this police New York police world through the eyes of her rose colored look at at at New York. And so we're seeing the postcard New York, you know, we're not seeing the the downtown, you know, New York of like the 70s or whatever we're seeing. Right. We're seeing the all the beauty because that's how she perceives it.

[23:34] Carrie Preston: Yeah. And it's really made me enjoy the city that I've lived in for over 30 years now. You know, it's made me like really appreciate it more. But anyway, so back to I just to start with what was on the what's on the page. And, you know, I try to just go back to the basics of of acting, you know, what do I want? Why do I want it? How am I going to get it? And what's in my way? You know, just and then and then put myself in the hands of the other person that I'm playing with and creating some authentic moments together and keeping them fresh from day to day.

[24:03] Eila Mell: Yeah, I mean, Elsbeth could be like a larger than like big character. But, you know, so he needed it needs an actor who is skilled and who can keep things real, because otherwise it's going to be silly and it's not going to work. Right. And, you know, I just every episode after I watch it, you know, I just appreciate that you're doing such amazing work. And I I hope that people realize that that they don't think, well, that's just who she is.

[24:29] Carrie Preston: Oh, thanks. Thanks. Yeah. I mean, we try we all try as a as a team, you know, to to keep it to keep it fresh and fun and and and funny and light, but also really maintain the centeredness and the groundness. And so it's a fun thing to play. I mean, it's even hard to categorize, you know, like, I mean, for award purposes, they categorize us as a drama. I was not part of that conversation. I would write advocated for it to be a comedy. But I think it's because, you know, it has both of those those extremes. And and we you know, the world that Elisabeth is sitting in is a more is a serious one. But she has such, you know, joy and spontaneity and levity and quirkiness and all those things that it you know, it makes it for a fun balance of of the dark and the light.

[25:21] Eila Mell: It's got to help you, too, as a person. Right. I mean, here you are in if you were in a regular, you know, drama that was police based, you know, it could be a really heavy.

[25:27] Carrie Preston: Yes. A heavy ask. Just emotionally, like you hear people that they get out of playing a role that is in that world and they're like, they need time to, like, decompress from it and shake it off.

[25:35] Eila Mell: Right.

[25:35] Carrie Preston: And right. You have the ability to kind of be there, but you get to be the sunflower and still write in that happy place.

[25:48] Eila Mell: Yes, exactly. Although it in the last few episodes of the season, as we were going to some pretty heavy places for the character. And I was very grateful to have that opportunity to to show those. Sure. You know, and to to see what happens when she doubts herself, to see what happens when, you know, she's up against something that she can't conquer. And, you know, what happens when people are going on with their lives and she feels lonely and just all those fun things that, you know, that you want as an actor, you know, to stretch you and keep you keep keep you on your toes and fresh.

[26:29] Eila Mell: Yeah, absolutely. I like that it's quietly a feminist show. You know, it doesn't make a big point of saying that it's these two women who are solving these crimes with the support of men, but it's really women at the center. Is that a conscious decision?

[26:39] Carrie Preston: Yeah. And I think, you know, it's in the in the great tradition of of of Robert and Michelle King. I mean, their shows put women at the center. You know, Julianna Margulies, Christine Baranski, Katja Herbers, now, you know, me. And so it's they they they're doing that consciously. They wanted to create these strong, smart, female characters that are, in my case, reinventing themselves, like this woman is reinventing herself at this stage in her life. You know, he's it's a brave thing to do. And I think it's, you know, a brave thing for a network television show to do, too. You know, Elizabeth is not you know, I had a little romantic, romantic involvement this, but it's not like I'm suddenly paired up with a man, you know, and I'm there in this vast city, finding my way and being strong and smart and.

[27:47] Eila Mell: Welcome back to Behind the Awards. We are thrilled to have Emmy winner Carrie Preston with us today.

[28:03] Bruce Gotlieb: Carrie, it's so great to have you here. Congratulations on the renewal of Elsbeth for a third season!

[28:18] Carrie Preston: Thank you! I'm so excited about it. Elsbeth has been such a fun character to portray, and I love that we get to continue her story.

[28:38] Eila Mell: Can you tell us a bit about the evolution of Elsbeth from The Good Wife to The Good Fight and now in her own series?

[28:58] Carrie Preston: Absolutely! When I first played Elsbeth in The Good Wife, she was introduced as this quirky, unconventional attorney. Over time, as she appeared in The Good Fight, we got to explore her character more deeply. Now, in Elsbeth, I feel like we’re really diving into her world, her fashion, and her unique approach to solving crimes.

[29:18] Bruce Gotlieb: Speaking of her fashion, it seems like Elsbeth has a very distinct style. How do you approach that aspect of the character?

[29:38] Carrie Preston: I love Elsbeth's fashion! It’s a reflection of her personality—quirky, bold, and unapologetic. We work closely with the costume designers to create looks that are both fun and functional for her character.

[29:58] Eila Mell: It sounds like a collaborative process. What has been your favorite part about playing Elsbeth?

[30:18] Carrie Preston: I think my favorite part is the humor. Elsbeth has this ability to find levity in serious situations, and I love bringing that to life. Plus, the writing is so sharp and clever.

[30:38] Bruce Gotlieb: You’ve had such a diverse career, from True Blood to Claws. How do you choose your roles?

[30:58] Carrie Preston: I look for characters that challenge me and allow me to explore different facets of my acting. I love roles that have depth and complexity, and Elsbeth definitely fits that bill.

[31:18] Eila Mell: You also have a background in theater. How has that influenced your work in television and film?

[31:38] Carrie Preston: My theater training has been invaluable. It taught me the importance of character development and storytelling. I bring that same dedication to my television and film roles.

[31:58] Bruce Gotlieb: You’ve also worked with some incredible actors. Any memorable experiences you’d like to share?

[32:18] Carrie Preston: Oh, absolutely! Working with Patrick Stewart in The Tempest was a dream come true. He’s such a generous actor and a wonderful mentor.

[32:38] Eila Mell: That sounds amazing! What’s next for you after Elsbeth?

[32:58] Carrie Preston: I’m excited to see where Elsbeth goes next, but I’m also looking at some new projects. I love exploring different genres and stories.

[33:18] Bruce Gotlieb: We can’t wait to see what you do next!

[33:38] Carrie Preston: Thank you! I appreciate that.

[33:58] Eila Mell: Before we wrap up, can you share a little about your Emmy win for Lackawanna Blues?

[34:18] Carrie Preston: Winning the Emmy was surreal. It was such an honor to be recognized for that role, and it meant a lot to me personally.

[34:38] Bruce Gotlieb: It’s a testament to your talent. Thank you for sharing your journey with us today, Carrie.

[34:58] Carrie Preston: Thank you for having me! It’s been a pleasure.

[35:18] Eila Mell: And thank you to our listeners for tuning in to Behind the Awards. We’ll see you next time!

[35:38] Bruce Gotlieb: Bye everyone!

[35:58] Carrie Preston: Bye!

[36:18] Eila Mell: Take care!

[36:38] Bruce Gotlieb: Until next time!

[36:58] Eila Mell: Bye!

[37:18] Bruce Gotlieb: Bye!

[37:38] Eila Mell: Bye!

[37:58] Bruce Gotlieb: Bye!

[38:18] Eila Mell: Bye!

[38:38] Bruce Gotlieb: Bye!

[38:58] Eila Mell: Bye!

[39:18] Bruce Gotlieb: Bye!

[39:38] Eila Mell: Bye!

[39:58] Bruce Gotlieb: Bye!

[40:18] Eila Mell: Bye!

[40:38] Bruce Gotlieb: Bye!

[40:58] Eila Mell: Bye!

[41:18] Bruce Gotlieb: Bye!