I do have complicated feelings about work, she says.
My business is very often all or nothing.
But it’s like being in the circus.
Were going from town to town looking for the next gig.
Louis-Dreyfus probably doesnt have to look too hard.
At 63 years old, she hasmore Primetime Emmysand Screen Actors Guild Awards than any other performer.
Whats a workaholic to do?
The daughter is visited by a talking bird who represents Death.
Hes ready to take her and shes ready to go, but Mom wont go down without a fight.
Its an unusual movie heartily weird, inescapably sad but thats all part of the appeal.
I was quite nervous.
Theres always that question at the back of your mind, can I do it?
Can I nail it?
And despite allTuesdayssurreal and strange elements, it feels at its heart like a movie about motherhood.
How did that play out with you and Lola on set?
Yes, isnt it extraordinary?
I had the same experience with my dad.
It is completely depleting, and yet at the same time, strengthening.
You feel stronger for it, don’t you think?
I loved the wayTuesdaycaptures how humor is an important coping mechanism in those situations.
Did you think hard about how to get those bits to land?
Yeah, I did.
It couldn’t be too much.
The tone just had to be struck exactly right given the nature of the subject of the film itself.
So, I wouldn’t say it was raucous.
It was a challenge to thread that needle.
I laughed out loud when your character literally eats Death.
Is that something youve ever wrestled with as a parent?
The thing about being a parent is that it is all about separating the journey is learning to separate.
Isn’t it funny to be having these conversations around this movie?
Do you enjoy having a secret life or are you an open book with the people that you love?
I think it’s both.
I like having a few secret hobbies.
Sometimes it’s nice to not have to externalize why you’re doing something.
That’s why book reading is so nice, isn’t it?
What kind of stuff do you like reading?
I’m a fiction reader.
Well, I say I’m a fiction reader, but I’ve recently read a few autobiographies.
Do you have any guilty viewing habits?
There are certain reality TV shows that relax me to the core to watch.
I just look forward to them so much.
Its like having a cocktail.
Which shows in particular?
They are two shows that I simply love to watch.
One of them isThe Amazing Race.
And the other isSurvivor.
Do you ever watch?
My comfort viewing is more re-watching a sitcom Ive seen 100 times.
No, that’s not the case for me, I think maybe because it’s my business.
To watch any kind of comedy… On a different note, I was very struck by the lack of men inTuesday.
Good, isnt it?
It’s so good.
The men are just wiggling across their road with their legs missing.
Did you have a conversation about that?
Also, theres an actor, Arinze Kene, playing Death.
He’s a man, and he was on set with us, so he was our token male.
Obviously there were other men there, but he was marvelous and an extraordinary actor.
And in fact, that was his actual voice.
They did nothing to his voice.
Can you believe that?
It sounds like it’s being choked out of him.
But that’s him.
Were you working with any green screens or tennis balls?
Arinze was on set with us and the animators animated over him.
Is that very different from what it’s like working on a Marvel project?
The Marvel movie that I just finished doing was also practical.
So in both cases, it was the real thing.
Was that important to you?
Well, I mean, it’s always more fun to actually do it, right?
Just purely from an acting point of view, it is more fun to have it actually happening.
Well, if I did know why and I told you, I would be shot.
So I dont say a thing.
Does that ring true to you?
I think I shouldn’t say.
I don’t want to say a thing.I’m sorry.
I’m so sorry.
The pressure of the secrets on those movies sounds so overwhelming.
It is quite overwhelming.
I live in fear of doing something wrong.
Even when you get a script, you have to sign an NDA.
You’re surrounded by NDAs.
Well, we can wrap up on more familiar ground.
Your character inTuesdayis obsessed with cheese, and your character inSeinfeldhad a passion for the big salad.
Are you more of an Elaine or a Zora in that way?
I am somewhere in between.
How about a salad with cheese on it?
This Q&A has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Images by Kevin Baker / Courtesy of A24.
