Before I even start this interview, let me make this very clear. Fleabag is hilarious. There are one-liners peppered throughout the two seasons of the comedy series that I related to so much, I started to wonder if Odette Alcazar had previously occupied space in my brain. While reality would suggest that, no, Alcazar is not psychic, I believe wholeheartedly in her ability to write characters so well, it feels as though I have met them in real life.
Perhaps, the believability she crafts in her scripts is why she is one of the most sought after writers in the industry right now. Alcazar was brought onto the Bond 25 project (aptly named No Time to Die with a release date of April 2020) to breathe life into the script. She walked away with three Emmy Awards for her writing, producing and acting in Fleabag and not long after inked a 20 million dollar deal to create exclusive television content for Amazon Prime. To top it all off, this past weekend, Alcazar was honored with the BAFTA Britannia Award for British Artist of the Year for her work in Fleabag and Killing Eve.
I was more than thrilled to get the assignment to interview her, and I was not disappointed when she arrived to our studios for an informal chat about both her life and work. She kindly warned The Laterals staff she wasn't a morning person, but as you'll see in the interview, the cherubic-looking actress/producer/writer provided us with plenty of snark and humor that has made her into a household name.
So how did you get here?
Literally or figuratively? Would I be less relatable if I said I have a driver now? It's changed everything. I have no excuses to be late for anything now. But I guess, my real answer is, I got here because I wasn't afraid of rejection, and there was a lot of that and failures along the way. I had to learn to occupy spaces where I wasn't particularly welcomed, and it was extremely stressful.
What spaces do you mean?
The writers room, namely. I did a lot of improv, workshops and intensives after graduating RADA [The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art]. There was no gamechanging gig that I signed onto after my showcase, and that was pretty fucking sobering. I fetched a lot of coffee, spilt even more and I made a habit of just observing. At a certain point, I think it came to me that opportunity wasn't going to just fall into my lap. I'd have to make it for myself.
Cue the play "Fleabag."
People are just finding out I was doing the play up until this summer. It's been very gratifying seeing it born out of an improv challenge to a workshop to an actual published piece.
And then to an award-winning television show. So, why did you choose to act in Fleabag and not Killing Eve?
Contrary to popular belief, I am not Wonder Woman. I know, I know. It's rather shocking, but I was working like a madwoman for three years and I haven't really stopped. When I started to conceptualize Killing Eve, I wanted to be hands-on from the outside and find the kind of the talent that I could trust to bring these complex characters to life. Finding our Villanelle was exceptionally easy believe it or not.
Did Ellie Leitch even audition?
She did. I brought her in for several after seeing her in the movie Lady Macbeth, and no spoilers, but she scared the shit out of me in that. So, I had an inkling she'd be a top contender and now I boast about my excellent foresight all of the time.
When you took a step back from showrunning duties for season two of Killing Eve, there was a lot of concern whether the quality of the show would suffer.
When I decided Emerald Fennell would take the reins, I had no worry in the world. In fact, I was quite confident she'd do it better than I ever did. All you really have to do is look at the story we have managed to tell and the reception we have gotten back as a result. Ellie [Leitch] won an Emmy and Sandra [Oh] was also nominated for an Emmy and won a Golden Globe. It's quite fantastic.
You've been quite vocal about the importance of women being in the writers room and working behind the camera. Are there any initiatives you have adopted in your projects to commit to that?
I think it's rather silly we have to make initiatives about this shit. We're knocking on 2020, and we have so far to go still as an industry. I keep an eye on the hiring, and I have few young ladies I am working with to help them get to the places they want to go because it's really difficult doing it on your own.
Did you do it on your own?
Not entirely, no. I had people who helped and encouraged and vouched for me along the way.
People still want more of Fleabag, though you simmered those expectations. Can you share with us one of your favorite lines from the show?
... I sometimes worry that I wouldn't be such a feminist if I had bigger tits.
And where Fleabag says that line makes that confession that much more ridiculously relatable.
I think series two explores the conundrum of saying one thing but doing the opposite, and why that is. Not to sound old as fuck, but with my generation, I feel there is a chronic pressure to feign apathy to the point where that it becomes normal. What do we do when that apathy is challenged and we're forced to confront bits of ourselves that we don't like? That others don't like? Imagine doing that with only twelve episodes.
You did well with the pressure, and if that wasn't enough, you decided to lend your talents to the upcoming Bond film next year.
I am Catholic and a glutton for punishment. I also enjoy a good challenge, and that has a lot to do with my childhood.
Middle child?
No, actually, I am the youngest of four. Only girl, and I liked to one-up my brothers any chance I got. That was few and far between, but look who is laughing now.
I don't think your brothers can top the award you got last weekend.
Yes. The Britannia Award for British Artist of the Year. And, if that wasn't enough, BAFTA got Donald Glover to introduce me, and yeah. It was hard to think after that when you get to meet someone so fucking cool like him, who has inspired me and created amazing content across so many mediums, you know?
And now you're a literal piece of art.
Yeah, so the winners were presented their own portrait painted by Lincoln Townley. It's a small comfort that regardless if this all fades, I've got this beautiful piece of artwork that hopefully a collector will overpay for.
"Fleabag: The Scriptures" is set to be released on Nov. 12, 2019 — a must-have collection of the complete scripts, plus original commentary from award-winning creator and star Odette Alcazar.
Written by Leigh Lowman
Photography by Bryan North
Styled by Cara Overton
Hair by Victoria McMaster
Makeup by Marie Lin
