411mania Interviews: Elisabeth Moss From Mad Men Posted by Al Norton on 10.02.2009
411's Al Norton sits down for an exclusive interview with Elisabeth Moss, the Emmy nominated star of AMC's Mad Men.
Elisabeth Moss' performance as Peggy on Mad Men recently earned her a Best Actress Emmy nomination. Previous to that she was best known for her role as Zoey Bartlet on The West Wing. She also starred in David Mamet's Speed The Plow on Broadway last year.
Al Norton: Congratulations on the show winning the Best Drama series Emmy for a second year in a row.
Elisabeth Moss: Thank you so much.
Al Norton: How much different was the Emmy experience this year, being an individual nominee as well?
Elisabeth Moss: It was sort of scary and very nerve racking but at the same time, since we went last year, I did feel a little bit more sure of myself in some ways. In other ways it was still scary. It's a very surreal and bizarre evening that is really fun but really nerve racking. I was kind of glad when it was all said and done (laughing).
Al Norton: What's going through your head when you are sitting there listening to them announce your category?
Elisabeth Moss: It's almost indescribable. It's so surreal, it's like you can't hear anything, and everything is in slow motion. You're trying to smile and looked relaxed. I was sort of calm because it was so surreal. You can't believe it's really happening.
Al Norton: It's all of that, and you get to go through it on camera.
Elisabeth Moss: Exactly (laughing). Everyone is looking at you so you have to smile and act like everything is fine.
Al Norton: It still must be a thrill to hear your name called in that company.
Elisabeth Moss: Of course. I mean, it's crazy; Sally Field, Glenn Close…all of them, and then there's my face and name up there with them. I have in no way gotten used to it.
Al Norton: Can you think back to when you read for Peggy and what the little character description they gave you for her was?
Elisabeth Moss: When I first auditioned? Oh my God, I have no idea (laughing).
Al Norton: I ask because I was going to have you contrast who you thought she was walking in to audition for the part with who she is now.
Elisabeth Moss: That would be really cool if I remembered (laughing). I would love to find that slip of paper, I am sure it's hanging around somewhere in an email. I can still answer your question, though; I fell like she is absolutely no different than when I walked in for the audition. I mean she's different in that three seasons have past and she's grown and she's changed but I don't feel like I was wrong about anything when I auditioned for it. Nothing major has changed about who she is as a person. Part of the reason I think I got the part is that I had the right idea about her.
Al Norton: Has there been anything that has surprised you this season in terms of her development? Maybe something where Peggy's reaction was in character for her but it still surprised you a bit?
Elisabeth Moss: There is something really big coming up in the last episode but I can't talk about it yet. That is definitely going to be something that fits that description, but let me think of something else that I can talk about…I would have to say the pot smoking, The way she acts when she is high. I will go on record as saying I don't do drugs and totally disapprove of all drug use so it was a little hard for me to portray that but what I loved about the way that she was high is something that Matt (Weiner, Mad Men creator and executive producer) and I discussed; she's not high in a college frat way, she actually becomes more confident and maybe even a little smarter. She fully embraces who she is and becomes this swaggering, confident person and I loved playing that. To me that was something that was in character for her but still surprising.
Al Norton: The scene at the end of season two with Peggy and Pete is obviously a very pivotal one for her and I am curious if you knew that was coming ahead of time or did you just get the script for that episode and come upon it?
Elisabeth Moss: There were several ideas of how she would handle the secret of the pregnancy and there were also several idea of how her relationship with the Priest Colin Hanks was playing would go, and about mid-season Matt told me she was going to have this confession about the baby and it would be to Pete. I had no idea it was going to be such an amazing scene. Matt read me a very early draft of it and it brought us both to tears. It's such a great little speech that she has. I sort of knew it was going to go in that direction but I had no idea it was going to be that profound of a scene.
Al Norton: I read an interview with a group of your male co-stars and in talking about how everybody likes to joke around and give each other a hard time between takes they singled out you as a ringleader for that sort of thing so I thought I'd give you the chance to confirm or deny that sort of behavior.
Elisabeth Moss: Oh my God, really? That's so funny (laughing). One of the benefits of being on the show is I get to be surrounded by a ton of great actors. For three seasons now most of my work has been with these boys – most of my scenes are in the office with them. I suppose there is an element of trying to be one of the boys sometimes. They are all very funny and very sharp, and as dramatic as the show can be it's full of these great comedians and you have to try to keep up with them. I think what I try to do is show that I can keep up with them in the room, which can be hard because they are all so funny.
Al Norton: I know some actors say they hate to watch themselves but do you ever watch episodes of the show to see how the finished product looks?
Elisabeth Moss: I haven't seen any of season three yet. I don't watch it while I'm filming because that makes me too self-conscious and then after filming I need a little bit of a break, so usually about a month after we wrap I will watch from the beginning of that season. It gives me the distance I need to be able to enjoy it as a viewer. I just love the show! There are so many scenes I hear at the read-through's but never actually see so there is so much to just sit back and enjoy.
Al Norton: One of the things fans of Mad Men enjoy so much is the attention to period details, from fashion to furniture to food. Is that as much fun for the cast as it is for us?
Elisabeth Moss: Absolutely. Sometimes you see January (Jones, Moss' co-star on Mad Men) all dressed up in a beautiful gown and her hair all styled and it's thrilling. I personally love that style of furniture so I love the way the office is decorated. It's cool when you sit down at your desk and you open a folder and there is a very authentic looking typed letter from the Coca-Cola company. It's such a fun game of pretend to be on set.
Al Norton: How much of a shock to your system was the Broadway work schedule?
Elisabeth Moss: It's pretty crazy. I am not super theater experienced – I hope to do more soon – and it was shocking. They say that on both you do things over and over but I don't know why they say that about TV because in theater the discipline you need for that level of repetition is so different. Doing 150 performances of something just blows my mind and I still only have a tiny grasp of it. I did the play for six months and some people do things for two years. It's a shock to the system but for an actor it's a bit of a dream because when you film something there is always that feeling when you get home of "it's gone forever, I hope I did a good job, why did I make those choices?" but with theater you get to go home and go, "guess what? I get to do it again seven more times (laughing)."
Al Norton: You mentioned wanting to do more theater; is that something that you are working on?
Elisabeth Moss: We just finished filming this season of Mad Men so I am new to the job market. I am not working while I plan my wedding...
Al Norton: Congratulations, by the way.
Elisabeth Moss: Thank you so much.
Al Norton: Not asking you what it is but do you have a set date? Are you at that level of planning?
Elisabeth Moss: Yes, we definitely do. We've had a set date for some time now, and while we are not saying what it is, its' really soon so we are deep into wedding planning and taking a break from work while we are in it. Hopefully I will be back on the boards again soon. I'd love to do theater because then I get to stay in New York.
Al Norton: Some actors wait a lifetime to get on a TV show that is considered one of the best of it's time and you've managed to be on two in a decade.
Elisabeth Moss: I know, it's kind of crazy (laughing). I don't know what it's a testament to, probably a number of factors, one of which is that it's kind of a renaissance for television right now. Also it was the luck of me being the right fit for those two projects. Television is as good or better than film right now and it didn't used to be like that; television used to be a step down from film and now it seems like every movie star is on a TV show. I am just happy to be a part of that, of that good work that is being created.
I love being on television. I love TV series and am a huge fan of TV and to me it's an honor to be a part of two great projects like these.
Al Norton: At any point have any of your actor friends asked you to pick your scripts for them?
Elisabeth Moss: No (laughing), but there is a little bit of a rumor that I am a bit of a good luck charm. As long as it keeps getting me work I am happy to keep those rumors circulating (laughing).
Al Norton: You mentioned that you are a fan of television, which is great to hear since so many people I interview say they don't actually watch. What are some of your favorite shows?
Elisabeth Moss: My fiancé (SNL cast member Fred Armisen) and I watch TV shows the way people read books; we are very dedicated to them and try to see everything. Usually we are a little bit behind. Let's see, obviously Breaking Bad we're huge fans of. We watched all five seasons of The Wire, which was unbelievable. I'm a huge fan of Friday Night Lights; I think Connie Britton is one of the best actresses around. The British Office and Extras are incredible. We just watched the first season of Damages and that was pretty addictive and amazing.
Al Norton: This segues perfectly into my next question; every single actor I ask which other TV show they'd love to guest on says Mad Men, so now I get to ask someone on Mad Men which show they'd want to be on.
Elisabeth Moss: They do? That's great! I would say Breaking Bad. It's funny because if everyone else is saying they want to be on Mad Men, everyone on Mad Men wants to be on Breaking Bad. We're all campaigning to get on that show. Of course AMC isn't going to do it because we're on Mad Men so it's a lost cause but all of us want to go on the show.
Al Norton: Tell me about Did You Hear About The Morgans?
Elisabeth Moss: It's a great movie and had such a funny script. I play Sarah Jessica Parker's right hand man, her assistant, and she has always been an idol of mine and was so sweet. Hugh Grant is the male lead and he can do no wrong. It's a real, old fashion screwball comedy from the 30's. It was a lot of fun to make.
Al Norton: So what are you allowed to tell me about the rest of the Mad Men season?
Elisabeth Moss: I know I am biased but it's so good. There are some pretty incredible things coming up, some surprises and some things that are just plain brilliant. I've heard Matt say it, I've heard Jon Hamm say it, and I agree totally; this season is about change, it's about this period of time when we were really starting to leave something behind and go into a new time in the country where things were much, much different. You can really see that this season on the show.
