411Mania Interviews: Amy Brenneman
Posted by Al Norton on 04.30.2009
411's Al Norton sits down for an exclusive chat with Emmy and Golden Globe nominated actress Amy Brenneman.
Amy Brenneman is a Harvard graduate and a 5 time Emmy nominee for her roles on NYPD and Judging Amy. She has also appeared in such films as Heat, Your Friends and Neighbors, and 88 Minutes. She currently stars in the ABC drama Private Practice, which airs its season two finale tonight at 10 pmt.
Al Norton: Congratulations on getting renewed for a third season.
Amy Brenneman: Thank you!
Al Norton: Not that you and the cast spend a lot of time talking about such things but are you all hoping you continue in your current Thursdays at 10 pm, post-Grey's Anatomy time slot?
Amy Brenneman: Yeah, yeah. I think that worked out really well, actually.
Al Norton: Do you think that because the show was a spin-off of a huge show, and because you were being asked to anchor a night of programming, expectations were just at unsurpassable levels when you premiered?
Amy Brenneman: Yes, I would say yes. Not that the show wasn't ready to go but I think you described it perfectly. If you are a mere mortal such as myself and you want to get a show on the air, you have to pitch it a lot. And then they give you a lot of notes, which are horrible. But along the way it gets more and more specific in your mind and I think the good news, bad news when you're in Shonda's (Rhimes, the series creator) position is that we just didn't have time to prep it. Now If you go through the process of a pilot, it's not particularly fun but it is sort of vital to the creative process.
Al Norton: You're two seasons in now; how much does the show in general and Violet specifically resemble what you thought you were signing on for?
Amy Brenneman: When it's Shonda, and I knew this from watching Grey's, you literally sign on for the ride. In my position I knew I wasn't going to be one of the producers so it was, "ok, are you going to go on the ride with this woman?" There's going to be stuff you connect with, stuff you connect less with, but it's always going to be fresh and weird and wild. In that way the show has happily met my expectations.
And then in a kind of boring, prosaic level, I really hoped I could be on a show that was really good but not suck all my life away because I have an 8 year old and a 3 year old. I came into Judging Amy with no children and I came out with two. I feel ridiculously blessed that I get to be on a show like this but it is an ensemble so you get to share the burden, which is a joy.
Al Norton: And look at who you get to share that burden with.
Amy Brenneman: Exactly. You've got an amazing team you can depend on.
Al Norton: Do you have an opinion about who Violet should be with, whether it's Pete or Sheldon or maybe Cooper?
Amy Brenneman: What is it that Pearl Young talks about, how people symbolize or mirror the different aspects of your own personality? I think Cooper is absolutely the most intimate. That would be the relationship where if that went away, she would really sink. That's why the adjustment to him having a girlfriend was so huge but they did move through it.
In part because of who she is, because she has rape in her past, to marry intimacy with sexuality is really hard. I think she is a sexual person so she's not completely shut down in that area but as the relationships with Pete and Sheldon become a possibility, she's got to work through some stuff. I think that's one reason in retrospect she clung to Alan so much. I don't think any of the other characters know about her rape. Ming Na Wen did that episode and I really bought into that, that they had been there for each other in that way. Violet is therapised enough to know she didn't cause the rape but at the same time with any intimacy I'm going to have to tell the story and am I up for that. I think Alan knew my history and all the comfort and safety that go with that.
Al Norton: I know everyone always talks about how great their co-stars are to work with but having Tim Daly, Brian Benben, and Paul Addelstein to play off of must be a dream come true.
Amy Brenneman: It's awesome, it's totally awesome. And sort of like the characters, each person is different and fun in their own way. With Brian I just laugh my ass off all day long. And Tim and I are so intimate; I've known him and his family for a decade now, so there is that level. And Paul…if I was a boy I'd basically be Paul (laughing). There is something very, very effortless about hanging out with him.
Al Norton: Between NYPD Blue and Judging Amy and your other projects over the years you've worked with some impressively creative people; where does Shonda Rhimes rank in that list?
Amy Brenneman: She's way up there. Two years ago when I was open to doing a pilot and was getting offered different things, it's sort of like having been in a great relationship because I was thinking, "I'm going to have to be with some pretty great because my standards are so high." I think Shonda really, really broke the mold because a lot of the show on ABC right now, she sort of set the tone for. Grey's Anatomy was the first show that created that vibe that know feels like the ABC brand. They're very funny, very sexy, very intimate, ensemble dramas. I think she created the ABC feel with her vision and that's the kind of person you want to be with.
Al Norton: There is currently a storyline on the show with Addison getting involved with the husband of one of her patients that is polarizing a lot of fans. Have you ever been in the situation where you are reading the script and you get to a point and say, "my character wouldn't do this"?
Amy Brenneman: It depends. You hit on the central, really interesting thing about co-creating someone; it's not really my character, it's not really Shonda's character. I think you try to stay open. Paul Addelstein has a really interesting point of view; he said, "you don't know what your character would do. You may not like what they do but it doesn't make it less believable."
Shonda came to me after the pregnancy for Violet was first coming on the horizon and asked me, "do you think Violet would want to know who the Daddy is?" and I said, "of course." Who wouldn't want to know the Dad?!!? Even for things that are boring but important like prenatal care, genetic history. She didn't say yes or no but I started getting these scripts where it made it clear that Violet was not finding out and I thought, "this is absurd, I don't buy this at all." I kind of went along with it and what was interesting was that by the time of the episode where I articulate to the guys why I didn't want to know, I was really with it.
It's an evolving process and as with any collaboration, you don't want to draw a line in the sand. Sometimes you get on the soundstage – not with big plot things but with lines or smaller scenes – and you try and do it and it doesn't work and everyone knows it, and in a way those are the best because it's not a matter of opinion.
What's interesting about the Addison story is that when this was first emerging, we were coming out of a read through and Kate (Walsh) asked me a few people what we thought, saying she was really worried about it because it painted her in a bad light. Back in the day I engaged in all sorts of bad behavior (laughing) so I was like, "oh no, it's really great." I was all for it but know watching it I have all sorts of different feelings about it, partly because Amanda (the character of the pregnant wife) is so appealing, which is exactly the type of conflict Shonda wanted the audience to have. It's a real dilemma but that's what so great about what she does, she goes to such an uncomfortable place sometimes.
Al Norton: Can you give me a preview of tonight's finale?
Amy Brenneman: I checked in with Shonda about it to find out what I could say without her killing me and what she said, which I think of as a great description, in terms of Violet, there is something that occurs that is big enough that it makes the question of who the Daddy is secondary. The question has been let go of but there is a big thing that comes along that Violet has to deal with. I just watched the episode the other day and it's really good, and the stakes are high for all the characters.
Don't miss the season finale of Private Practice tonight at 10 pm on ABC
