So capable of doing comedy as well as drama and with an amazing versatility that has earned her an Oscar, two Emmys and 3 Golden Globes, the British Sarah Carolina Sinclair, popularly known as Olivia Colman, has become the figure that everyone wants to hire. both sides of the Atlantic. Always willing to jump in if there's a good role and a great script, the 49-year-old actress can be seen these days as an intelligence officer in the new Marvel series "Secret Invasion" and in the adaptation of the classic. Charles Dickens, "Great Expectations" produced by FX and airing on Disney, in which she plays Mrs. Havisham, a malevolent woman who will manipulate her adoptive daughter Estella (Shalom Brune-Franklin) and the young blacksmith who arrives for dark purposes to his (Fionn Whitehead) home to learn the manners of a gentleman.
Was this a dream role for you?
Not at all. I never thought of playing Mrs Havisham. I just heard that Steven Knight had done the adaptation of the novel and I found it very exciting. Also, I joined the team quite late. It's just that to tell the truth, she had been working non-stop for a long time and she felt that she needed a break, but at the same time she couldn't say no to something like that. The truth is that I don't think too much when making decisions. I just saw the script, I liked it, I was drawn to the idea of playing this woman and collaborating with this cast. It was as simple as that.
Was the script what convinced you?
Yes, totally. And I assume that the same thing happened to all the other members of the cast. If you read a script and it's bad, and you don't see how you can improve it, you just walk away. But in this case the script was really very good. I think I'm a rarity in that sense, because I never read "Great Expectations", the Dickens novel. He had seen several adaptations, so he knew what it was about. But to be clear, reading the script made me want to get into his skin, that was all.
To what extent were you able to participate in the design of Mrs. Havisham's amazing wardrobe?
I always say that if the hair is good, the makeup is good and the costumes are top notch, you have three quarters of your work done before you walk on set. Verity Hawkes, the costume designer, helped me a lot, because she was the one who told me that she didn't see him as washed out, but as someone who was rotting from the inside out. And I thought that was a brilliant definition. It's a shame the dress she wears is never seen in the sunlight, but she literally looks like she is. It's full of mold, and you can see that her heart is rotting, it's a detail that I love. That helped me a lot when it came to composing the character. The makeup men bleached my eyebrows. Mine are dark. And when I took off my wig, it looked like I had no eyebrows, which impressed my little daughter, who kept her distance from her until the shoot was over and I was able to dye my eyebrows my natural color. It was funny, for a few weeks she seemed like a crazy woman, but that aspect helped a lot in my performance.
Among the many themes that the story touches on, is there one that has particularly impacted you?
Yes, of course, it strikes me that it is still so relevant today that people see you differently depending on where you were born, something truly unfair. And that is why they do not have the same opportunities as those who were born in a different place. I didn't find much in common with Mrs. Havisham anyway, other than that I know what it's like to love, and I imagine the pain she must have felt when all that was over. It must have been very hard for her to keep what happened to herself and not talk about it with anyone. I think if she had had a good therapist, she might have had a different life. In truth, she would have done with having a good friend.
Although Mrs. Havisham hates men, she tries to teach Estella how to navigate a world dominated by them. Would she say that in her own way, she is a feminist icon?
Maybe. My idea of feminism is equality and not hate. She teaches Estella how to use her charms as a weapon to get revenge on men. She tells him that in a marriage, the woman is the one who wins if she is the one she doesn't love. In that sense, she is ahead of her time because she is determined not to need men, although that is not my interpretation of feminism.
Was he apologizing to Fionn Whitehead in between takes for the nastiness his character does to his?
Yes, I was sorry that Mrs. Havisham had never met a good man, and therefore decided that they were all just like Compeyson. She could have forgotten about him, and live a much better life with Estella. But it is also true that in those times, the patriarchy was in full force, and that is why they were stagnant, they could not work, they could not do anything. The only alternative was marriage and that is why the look that my character has on that institution is horrendous. Poor Estella was already doomed before she started. Maybe Steve could write another miniseries where she meets a nice man and they have a very happy life together.
The story talks about the dreams that one has in adolescence and how life destroys them. What was yours?
I wanted to be an actress since I was 16 years old. Before, I thought about being a doctor, although I did not have the intelligence that is needed. That's why I feel like my dreams have come true. I also wanted to have lots of children. I haven't had that many, but I still feel very lucky. As for the theater, at that age I did my first play at school. I was pretty mediocre at everything and that's where I stood out. A few years passed before I realized that I could work as an actress, because I thought you had to come from that circle. I met some people who didn't come from where I grew up who told me that if I worked hard, I would make it. I must have been 19 or 20 when I decided to try it. My parents were terrified because they thought I should do something serious, like be a secretary or something. But I was terrible as a secretary, even though I did it for quite some time. She was also a very bad waitress. She made him want to, but she wasn't good. At a certain point I understood that I couldn't dedicate myself to anything else, I had to continue insisting on this profession. Now I am happy that I did it, because I get to work with wonderful people. I couldn't be happier.
Is there a previous adaptation of "Great Expectations" that you liked?
To tell you the truth, I don't remember which was the last version I saw. I was scared that my friend Gillian Anderson had done this part, and it's not good to be compared to her, she did an amazing job. In any case, I prefer Steven's adaptation of the Dickens novel to all the previous ones.
You usually work with young actors, is it something you enjoy?
I hate them. They are always showing off their youth. It's maddening. That's why Mrs. Havisham is wonderful. She puts them in her place. Seriously though, I love working with actors of all ages. It's what I like about the work we do. One can work with a baby or with a 90-year-old. It is always a great pleasure and one learns from each person with whom one acts. Just look them in the eye, and no matter how old they are, they bring something different. I hope I never get bored of the experience. Working with Shalom, with Fionn and with Ashley was beautiful. I hope I can continue acting until I'm in my 90s...
