Oscar winner Mary Steenburgen has been popping up in memorable supporting roles on television a lot lately, including the first season of HBO’s “Togetherness” and now a regular spot on Fox’s postapocalyptic comedy “The Last Man on Earth,” on which she plays a woman who finds solace from loneliness with a CPR dummy. She took time from filming the second season to talk about her current acting crush, surprises on set, and re-creating scenes at home.
Tell us about Season 2 of “The Last Man on Earth.”
There are definitely surprises in store for audiences. One of the things about the show, which I find to be one of the most original projects I’ve worked on, is that those of us who are on the show are constantly stunned by what’s around the bend. Often in television, we’re used to something being safe and formulaic, and there’s nothing safe about this show!
What has it taught you about your acting?
I think as an actor, you’re constantly confronted with your fear of sticking your neck out. And “Last Man on Earth” really requires that of all of us. Most of it is scripted, but there’s always this underbelly of improv that’s there, and there are twists and turns that occur that we don’t expect.
How did you get your SAG-AFTRA card?
I got my SAG card on my first movie, “Goin’ South,” with Jack Nicholson in 1978. I was cast as the lead in the movie and I somehow got my card!
What do you wish you’d known before you started acting?
You mean about how difficult it is? [Laughs] There wasn’t anything else in the world I wanted to do as much. And all these years later, it still brings me so much delight and joy. One of the things about “Last Man on Earth”—I did a scene Friday night that was so funny that when I came home I had to re-enact the whole scene by myself just because it filled me with such delight that I had to tell [my family] about it. And that’s a really cool thing to feel after all these years in the business, that you’re still absolutely entranced by what you’re doing. So I just feel grateful and lucky. I know there are so many people who want to do this, and I still find it amazing that I’m one of the ones who get to make my living this way.
On whom do you have an acting crush?
My son’s girlfriend, Rooney Mara. I know her so well, and I’m used to watching people in movies I know well and I was still stunned by her work in “Carol.” And also my friend Jason Segel, whom I just saw in “The End of the Tour.” I thought that was a brilliant performance on his part.
What was your worst survival job?
I was a waitress for six years in New York. I actually got fascinated to see how fast and how good a waitress I could be. I was doing it, so I tried to do it as well as I could. But I did all kinds of crazy things, like be the girl at the boat show. And I worked in a bank where if you opened a $25 savings account you got a free wig. I had to help women choose what wig color was best on them. In a bank!
What is your worst audition story?
It’s not really an audition story, but I used to wait tables in New York and every Wednesday night we would have a special of chicken parmesan and spaghetti. And there was a woman who would come in every week for a couple of years with her brother, and they would order chicken parm and hold the spaghetti. And my friend at the restaurant said, “She’s a huge casting director, you should tell her you’re an actress.” And I said, “I don’t want to bother her.” So I never told her. And every Wednesday night, because it was the special, she didn’t leave me a tip. So cut to: I start making movies, I win the Academy Award, I go to this Hollywood party, and this woman comes up to me and says, “Oh my God, I’m such a fan of yours. I feel like I know everything about you.” And I looked at her and said, “Chicken parmesan and hold the spaghetti.” And she turned white. Because she had never looked at the waitress who had waited on her for two years!
Which of your performances has left a lasting mark on you?
All of them, but for me they’re not the end result. I know that people look at them and like them or don’t like them, but I don’t really see them or experience them that way. I would say that the things that have really left a mark on me have more to do with my family and my children’s lives, rather than a film role. Some of them have certainly taught me things. The part in “Philadelphia” where I represent the law firm that’s firing Tom Hanks, that was a hard part for me because I lost one of my best friends to AIDS, and it was hard for me to play a part that wasn’t sympathetic to someone with AIDS. That part was interesting to me because my head and my heart were at war. And I had someone come up to me on a plane, a flight attendant, who told me she was a part of a very conservative family and her brother announced he was gay and he was no longer embraced by the family. And then, [after] a year or so without seeing him, they got a call saying could they come see a movie with him. He took them all to see “Philadelphia,” and it was his way of telling them he had AIDS and that he was dying. She said “We were all there when he passed, and we wouldn’t have been without that movie because we didn’t have that experience in our lives.” When you get told something like that, you think, My God, I was a tiny part of him being surrounded by those he loved. So you feel lucky to be a part of something like that. But I have more people thank me for “Step Brothers,” which endlessly makes them laugh. And it is ridiculous and funny and I feel really lucky to be a part of that too. I think this career is just one of those things [for which] you can’t ever forget how lucky you are. There are certainly more important things in the world, but it’s nice to be a part of something that makes people think more.
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