A Chat with Elizabeth Mitchell
One week ago we had the chance to talk to Elizabeth Mitchell about her latest project Witch Hunt, which will be released in theaters and video on demand all over the US October 1st, 2021. However, we couldn’t miss the chance to include some questions about Outer Banks and acting in general. Scroll down to see what it’s all about.
Witch Hunt
Q: The roles you play often end up influencing your outlook on life. Was this the same with your new project Witch Hunt and playing Martha?
Elizabeth Mitchell: She is so brave. So, so scared, but also doing the right thing. She does the right thing against all odds. But she lives in a state of perpetual fear and anxiety, but tries not to have that be something that guides her life. She tries to be with her children, she tries to be a good mother, she tries to do all the things that she needs to do under extraordinary circumstances. I loved her and I found her to be heroic. Not quite sure if I’m quite that heroic. I live a very quiet life and I don’t have a lot of stress in my life. I have a farm with about 10 acres, and I read a lot of books. I’m quiet and don’t find myself in a place of stress. She made me aware of the heroes of our world. I was also just grateful to be able to play one, if that makes any sense.
Q: Can you explain the story of Witch Hunt from your character’s perspective?
E: So, it’s a different reality, which is set in a different world. The idea is that witchcraft is real. There are women with power. Women with the ability to do things are a cautionary tale. There is a police force set up just to monitor them and make sure that they don’t get too powerful, and that they are taken out of the world, if they become a threat to the men, or, you know, the people in power. My character has three children, a young girl and two young boys and she runs a very secret safe house in the middle of absolutely nowhere. She is protecting her family and protecting the neighborhood while at the same time, posing like she is on board with absolutely everything that is happening in this crazy kind of alternate reality world. She’s pretty good at it. And she’s, I think, always afraid, always interested. She is doing these incredibly heroic things, putting herself and her family in danger for a very important reason that we kind of come to find out throughout the course of the movie.
Q: Witch Hunt is about magic and witches. If you would get the chance to have powers as a witch would you take them or stay a normal human being?
E: Absolutely, I would take them. I like to think that I would only use powers for good. And I feel like the people who are going to use powers for good are probably the ones who should have them. I don’t have any overreaching desire to be the most powerful woman in the world. None of that, but oh my gosh, if I could help alleviate pain or make the world better for people or do something to make the balance of things better. Wouldn’t it be a joy to do it?
Outer Banks
Q: I’ve read that you enjoy the physical transformation that comes with new parts. So how was it like transforming into a character like Carla Limbrey in Outer Banks?
E: It was actually kind of a lovely transformation because she’s an angry, sad and bitter person and to have something where you are always physically in pain, you know, always unable to find a safe spot to rest, unable to find a way of feeling comfortable in your own skin can make you angry. Don’t get me wrong, I know many, many people in my family who live with pain and they’re not terrible. They’re lovely. They’re the kindest, most angelic people you can meet, but in this case, with the way that she already sees life, that little bit of pain only fuels her feelings of entitlement, her feelings of “why can’t I have this? I should have this. You shouldn’t have this, I should have this.” It only fuels that ugliness that was already inside. So, I liked the physical transformation of having to be bent over, of having to have assistance to walk up the frailty, of not being able to be in her own body in a comfortable way. I really love that I got to do that. I thought it was really interesting.
Acting
Q: Your favorite medium to work and act in is the theatre, so what’s your favorite play if you have one?
E: Oh my goodness, I have so many favorite plays. I have so many that I would really love to do. I would love to do Lady Anne in the Scottish play. That would be amazing. Probably. I really enjoyed doing “Three Sisters”. It gives you a chance just to be there. I kind of explore those things with other actors. I love improv . Loved plays and I loved being onstage in general. I loved it when it worked and loved it when it didn’t because then I learned from it. I found that the gratifications to be instant and the sorrow when you haven’t gotten it right to be instant. To fail was just as interesting to me as succeeding. In this television and film world, you do something and then like, you know, two years later it’s out and everyone’s giving you their opinion, but you’ve separated from the emotion of it, right? Like, it’s no longer immediate. So you can say to yourself: Oh, I wish I had, but I’m not much into that. Because why would I wish I had, you know, something two years ago, there’s nothing I can do about it. Right? So I think that that’s what theater is fun for. You know immediately when you fail or when you succeed. You kind of just do it for the doing and then you let it go.
Q: You’ve come in to play pivotal roles in later seasons of a few shows like Lost or The Expanse. How does the experience differ joining an established cast versus being part of a project from the start?
E: It is a little hilarious that I seem to come into so many good shows later where everyone else has already made them a success. I think the big difference is my mindset when I come into a show that is already successful. I just come in with a great deal of respect and the understanding that I am a guest in someone else’s home. You know, they set their rules, the way that they see things. I’m there to support them. I am a supporting actor and I actually quite like that. I don’t mind that. When you have a little bit of hubris when we think that we’re the bee’s knees, the work isn’t as effective. But if you go into a situation, with humility, and with the need to learn from everyone around you, I think the work is better. So in some ways, those are my favorite because it’s not my idea who set it up, right? I get to go in and play and everybody else is in charge. And then when I am in charge of a show, when I start from the beginning, I have a tremendous responsibility. I want to set the tone for what’s happening offstage to make sure that every actor and every crew member feels respected and that they’re in a situation where they can create to the best of their ability. So, that’s what I do when I start a show. That’s my main goal, to be a team player, but to also be a team leader and to make sure that people feel seen and heard and that they are appreciated and that they feel safe. So, I suppose those are the two things. One is, I’m a guest in someone else’s home and the other is that it’s my party. I’m throwing the party and I make sure that people are treated the way that they would in my home, which hopefully is with respect and dignity and curiosity.
Fan Questions
Q: Is there a specific role or moment in your career that you’re especially proud of having done or having been part of?
E: You know, I was really proud of Juliet in “Lost”. I did appreciate every moment of it, but I just had a baby. I was breastfeeding my baby. Being exhausted. I was beyond exhausted. So when I found out that people quite like Juliet, I didn’t know that for years. But I remember the first time when someone told me that it had an impact on them. I was like, oh, wow, that’s amazing. I had no idea. The other is probably Gia because I played this amazing character, Linda. After I played her, I had young women coming up to me in tears, hugging me, holding my arms and shaking, telling me their stories. That was a really big deal. Right. So, that felt big to me and important because as a motherly person to have affected people’s life in that way. It was a very big deal.
Q: Do you choose projects rather based on the role or the story as a whole?
E: Always the role and really dependent on who’s behind it. I like to go with young talents, young emerging talents. I like to go with people who I know are kind and go to their actors and their crew. However, I will not work with people who are not so I turned down things when I know the person is less than kind, no matter how talented they are, because simply life is too short.
Thank you so much to Elizabeth Mitchell for answering my questions, there’s quite a lot of us here at FANdemonium Network who are very excited to see Witch Hunt when it’s released. If you want to check out Elizabeth Mitchell’s other work, Outer Banks is available on Netflix and you can watch Lost on Hulu.
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