Original-Cin Q&A: Holland Taylor talks Netflix's Hollywood and listening to Patti LuPone sing through trailer walls
Hollywood is an upcoming American drama miniseries created by Ryan Murphy (Glee, American Horror Story) and Ian Brennan, that is set to premiere May 1, 2020, on Netflix.
The show follows a group of aspiring actors and filmmakers in post-World War II Hollywood as they try to make it — no matter the cost.
Each character offers a unique glimpse behind the gilded curtain of Hollywood's Golden Age, spotlighting the unfair systems and biases across race, gender and sexuality that continue to this day. ... Hollywood exposes and examines decades-old power dynamics, and what the entertainment landscape might look like if they had been dismantled.
It’s a star studded series which includes Darren Criss, Patti LuPone, Rob Reiner, Dylan McDermott and Holland Taylor
(Click HERE to read Jim Slotek’s review of Hollywood.
Holland Taylor is movie exec Ellen Kincaid, who’s the power behind studio boss Dick Samuels (Joe Mantello)
Our Bonnie Laufer spoke with Emmy Award winner Holland Taylor who plays studio executive Ellen Kincaid about working on the series and the genius that is Ryan Murphy.
ORIGINAL-CIN: How are you? And how are you coping in quarantine?
HOLLAND TAYLOR: “I'm coping pretty well. I guess I'm very much aware of the enemy everywhere. It’s a strange time, that’s for sure.”
OC: That is for sure, but we have this wonderful series to look forward to and I have to tell you I binged it in one seating.
TAYLOR: All seven episodes?
OC: Yes, I loved it so much I couldn't get off my butt! I was riveted and after it ended at seven I was looking at my Netflix queue for more!
TAYLOR: “Well hats off to you for watching! I wanted more too. It's absolutely heartbreaking that there aren’t more episodes! We were all really sad when it ended. I was talking to my amazing co-star Joe Mantello (who plays studio boss Dick Samuels), who I have many scenes with in the series, and we were saying that we all wanted to go on playing those characters and live in that world.”
OC: What was your immediate reaction to the storyline? Although based on some truths in Hollywood during that era, I found it so innovative and fresh.
TAYLOR: “First of all to be given a role by Ryan Murphy means everything. The man is meticulous and if he’s chosen you to be in a role it means he's thought about what you can do and what you would bring to it. He has very special talent when it comes to casting.
“I was enormously flattered as I thought this character had a lot of depth and and a lot of qualities that were attractive. As Ryan would constantly say to me, she had a lot of moxie.
“She also has a lot of charm which I saw as tremendous goodwill. She had tremendous affection for people and wanted them to know it. Here she was, a woman of power in the studio system, and she was a person who tried to make people feel good about themselves. That was such an endearing quality for me and I felt very connected to her.”
OC: What a cast! This is not only star-studded but we also meet some very talented up-and-comers who are going to be break out stars once this airs.
TAYLOR: “Without a doubt. So much talent in one series, it was ridiculous. Plus I’m not going to lie, I was excited to be working side by side with the great Patti LuPone. I’ve known her for about fifty years, but we've never worked together because I am not in her musical world.
“So to work with Patti LuPone was just unbelievable and also to have the room next to her trailer and hear her warming up in the morning. She would be singing every day. I kept turning my head to listen closer. I thought I was going to get whiplash. That’s Patti LuPone, right next door! This is crazy!”
OC: I am insanely jealous! You were saying earlier that it is an honour to be cast by Ryan Murphy. What is it about that man?
TAYLOR: “There’s no explaining genius. It’s a quality beyond smart, I suppose you could also be dumb and be a genius at something. (laughs)
“However, Ryan simply has a genius for storytelling and knows how to tell a story. He completely has the audience engrossed, and sometimes you aren't even necessarily sure why. He also has a very special touch when it comes to casting. He likes to work with a lot of the same people. And if he thinks someone who he has already worked with would be perfect in an upcoming project, he casts them.”
OC: He really does have a great track record.
TAYLOR: “He also has a quality for knowing when somebody can tease something out of themselves to fit a role. That is why it was so flattering to be offered this one because this character is unlike anyone I have ever played before.”
OC: What I love about this series, aside from the fabulous costumes and sets is that it is a “what if” story. It poses a lot of questions and deals with issues which Ryan always tackles so well, like discrimination, gender, and sexuality. At the end of the day Holland, when somebody sits down and watches the series what would you love for them to take from it?
TAYLOR: “A sense of that we are all just human beings who have agency to make things happen. Even one person can make something happen.
“I think what makes it so special is setting it in the ‘40s, in this world that we all have feelings about. It is wonderful to see. Watching people actually making something happen, seeing them shape a movie and getting what they want seen on the big screen.
“I want people to see people doing things where difference is made..While it's not a perfectly accurate story about discrimination in Hollywood, what it does give you is a sense that maybe there were people who privately felt a certain way about discrimination, and did whatever they had to do to try to make it not be so.
“It’s just a very enlightening story and fascinating to watch all of the things that happen in the plot of the show and everything is there for a reason. Even if it just kindles feelings, that we've done our jobs. To see somebody in the 40s fight for something that was not typical at the time, I found it very moving and at the same time extremely important.”