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Wicked debuted at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival to rave reviews, with John Cooper calling it an “exhilarating hybrid that continuously surprises and amuses” in the festival’s program. The thriller is a twisted tale of murder and incest with noir sensibilities and biting dark wit. The driving force behind the film is its stellar cast, who deliver complex, compelling, and sometimes shocking performances.
Directed by Michael Steinberg and produced by Frank Beddor, Wicked served as the breakthrough for Julia Stiles. The then-16-year-old is electric as Ellie Christianson, a troubled teen who despises her mother and has an unhealthy obsession with her father. Stiles won Best Actress at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in the Czech Republic, and her performance as Ellie led to her being cast in the teen classic 10 Things I Hate About You.
William R. Moses delivers a nuanced performance as Ellie’s father-turned-lover, Ben, while Chelsea Field is an excellent counterpoint as his doomed wife, Karen. Vanessa Zima exhibits uncommon depth for a child actor as Inger. Newcomer Louise Myrback is captivating as the Christianson’s au pair, Lena. Grammy-winner Linda Hart brings humor and soul as nosy neighbor Mrs. Potter, while screen veteran Michael Parks seems to step out of the ‘40s as the Bogart-esque Detective Boland. Melrose Place baddie Patrick Muldoon is a serial scene-stealer as quirky next-door neighbor Lawson Smith.
We recently digitized a treasure trove of onset interviews in which the cast discusses everything from their characters’ psyches to how they think audiences will respond to the incendiary subject matter.
This is Part 2 of a three-part series that will be a fascinating look at an actor’s process, how they handled the challenging material and the fulfilling experience of working on Wicked. Read Part 2 here.
*Interviews have been edited for length and clarity.
Working with the Cast
Everyone is just really great. I'm enjoying this so much that I feel guilty. It makes me sad to think about it being over. Billy (William R. Moses) is really nice. I thought maybe I’d feel weird doing some of the scenes with him, but he's just made it so easy for me. I think he might be more nervous sometimes.
Patrick is great. I’m not one to get very starstruck, but he's really cute. When he came to the set to meet Michael and Frank, Vanessa and I were checking him out a little. But he’s really funny. He cracks me up.
Vanessa is a 35-year-old in a nine-year-old’s body. She's really sweet and has some head on her shoulders.
Chelsea Field is perfect for Karen and a fantastic actress. She's really good and very nice to work with.
Linda Hart is hilarious and a good singer.
Working with Director Michael Steinberg
Saying he's a genius is an understatement. He's so nice and so brilliant. He really looks out for my interest and always asks me for input. I really appreciate that. I’d love to work with him again, and I'm not saying that to kiss ass.
Getting Involved in Acting
I had always wanted to be an actress. When I was five years old, my parents would let me stay up and watch The Honeymooners on Channel 11. I would stand in front of the TV and mimic whatever Alice Kramden did. I thought she was so cool, and she always stood up to Ralph. There was one time I was watching an episode, and the stage actually came apart in the corner, and you saw people trying to put it back together. I thought, “Wow, that's fake. That's so cool.” And I wanted to do that.
I did a lot of theater with a company called Ridge Theater in New York. It's very avant-garde, unique, and cool. They did stuff at La MaMa. It was a great learning experience.
New York versus Los Angeles
I could get used to it, but Los Angeles is so different. It’s very segregated, and a freeway separates everything. New York has so much culture, and I'm sure L.A. does, too. I just haven't had any time to go look around.
You always get into really interesting conversations with New Yorkers on the street and in the delis. I have always had really interesting philosophical conversations with people in Washington Square Park.
How Audiences Will Respond to Wicked
It will be hard to ignore it, and it'll appeal to them.
Working with the Cast
Julia Stiles is 15 going on 45. She's the most adult teenager I've ever met in my life. She's an incredible human being, incredibly brilliant, incredibly smart, and an incredibly wonderful actress. It’s a strange dichotomy working with somebody who, on a creative and professional level, you treat exactly as your equal, and on another level, she is 15. We sometimes forget because she's so mature and incredibly bright. She has an insight into life that goes well beyond how old she is. She's an amazing young actress and will be a huge star.
Chelsea Field plays Ben’s adversarial wife, Karen. She is amazing. I've known Chelsea for a while. She's a very solid actress, a very strong person, and very certain of herself.
Vanessa Zima plays my younger daughter, Inger. Vanessa is nine years old and scary good. She's a lot of fun as an actress. It’s fun to have this fresh face on set who’s always happy to be there. I tease her constantly, as I do with Julia, too. My pet project is to make their lives miserable while I'm here on the set.
Michael Parks plays Detective Boland. Michael's amazing. It's an education every time I've done scenes with him. It's been truly exciting in the most dynamic way. Working with Michael requires enormous concentration. He’s very free as an actor, very innovative, and very improvisational. He keeps you on your toes. Every millisecond is different and alive. He has one of the most exciting film techniques I've ever seen.
Linda Hart plays the neighbor, Mrs. Potter. Linda is a joy. She’s a tremendous talent and very funny.
Patrick Muldoon and I had a couple of scenes together, and the characters don't like each other very much, so it was interesting working with that kind of dynamic. It was fascinating to work with him, and very creative. The scenes we did were, by nature, disjointed, so it was one of those experiences where you go, “Whoa, that was weird.” But he's great, and young ladies seem to find him quite attractive.
Ben and Ellie’s Relationship
Ben feels tremendously close to Ellie. They have a very special relationship. Ben has a great need to be loved by women in general, a particular need to be loved by his daughter, and to be thought of as the hero. His need to be seen as the hero and to be loved creates dysfunction in that relationship.
Ben and Inger’s Relationship
Inger is the second in line and less affected by the dissolution of Karen and Ben's marriage. She's left more alone, which is probably healthier. But she becomes entwined in the family's dysfunction and then entwined in the dysfunction between Ben and Ellie, which is an offshoot of what happened with Karen.
As a Suspect in Karen’s Murder
There are reasons to believe Ben might be happier without Karen around. The audience will think because of Ben’s great love for his children and Karen’s willingness to take them away, he might be willing to do something dire. He's a man who lives under tremendous pressure and can be quite erratic at times.
Playing Ben
Every actor is different, but with Ben, it was from the inside out, creating the belief in the circumstances that would generate this amount of guilt in a human being. As an actor, he's interesting to play because he has a great deal of emotionality. He's so riddled with guilt, anxiety, and rage. He presented an image of himself; the image was what he believed he was, but who he was in the interior spaces was different. In terms of playing a character within the structure of a murder mystery, you play the character from his emotional reality. Then, through the structure of the script, he's so guilt-ridden about the dissolution of his marriage and because his wife died. He probably didn't really want her to live. He's never really been a father before, although he thinks he's been a great father, but he never really has.
How Audiences Will Respond to Wicked
I don’t know. When I first met with Michael and Frank Beddor, the producer, I said, “I understand there are elements of comedy in here. But I'm a father myself, and I don't quite understand how this becomes what it becomes.” I don't want to give too much away, but the process of creating and living in that reality has been the most mind-bending experience I've ever had as an actor. For those people who are roller coaster aficionados, this will push them to at least a 96% of maximum, I'm sure.
On Her Character
Lena is Swedish. She comes to America to study art and needs extra cash, and her friend, Mrs. Potter, is friends with the Christiansons. So, she ends up working for Ben and Karen and falls in love with Ben. He's established, has money, is good-looking, and is funny. It’s easy for her to fall for him. Lena is a powerful person, and she knows what she wants. She wants to stay in the U.S. so, unconsciously, the green card is a reason why she gets married to Ben, which she probably wouldn't have done otherwise.
Her Audition
When I came in for the role, it was originally written as a French au pair. Many of my relatives live in France, and my sister was engaged to a French man, so we speak a lot of French. I thought, “I can play French too.” But I'm very blonde and I look very Swedish, and I guess they liked me anyway.
Working with the Cast
Everybody's been great to work with. I'm so fortunate. Bill (William R. Moses) is just an amazing person. He's a brilliant actor. Vanessa and I have so much fun together off-camera, which is why we have such a good relationship on camera. Michael Parks is a great guy. I love the cast. It's going to be so sad when the movie is over.
Working with Director Michael Steinberg
It's been great. I've never done a feature before. I've done a lot of theater. But I feel the same way as with the cast. I'm so fortunate. It’s very easy to understand what he wants. He’s a good communicator. You feel safe.
Relationship with the Christianson Children
Lena is great with Inger. She's a great girl, and they have a lot of fun. Ellie is more difficult. Obviously, she doesn't want me there, and I feel that, and I want Ben. I can see myself in Ellie. There’s not a huge age difference between us. We have our arguments, and I don't like her because she wants to be the head of the family, and that’s what I want. In a way, I want to be like a mother to the girls. I want them to love me because if they do, Ben is going to feel good about that and everything is going to be much easier.
Relationship with Karen
I can see that her relationship with Ben isn't very good. I can sense that Karen isn't really in love with him anymore. I don't hate her. I just feel that they're not good together, and therefore, I think it's better if they divorce. I've never really made Karen one of my friends because she's not interested in that either. She treats me very businesslike.
Lena as a Suspect in Karen’s Murder
I might be a suspect because I want Ben, but he's unavailable. Some people do anything to get what they want. I had a lot of things to gain by getting rid of Karen. I want to stay in this country, and if I don't marry Ben, nobody's going to sponsor me. I'm better off without her, and she’s not a very nice person. Once, she kicked me out of the house, and Mrs. Potter and Ben and Inger had to force her to take me back.
Acting in Her First Feature Film
At the start of shooting, I was more careful. That's good because the cameras catch everything. But I always question myself and think, “Would she have reacted in a different way?” It’s scary to do that because you do it once, and you're not going to come back to the scene again. It's stupid to do what I'm doing sometimes, but I think that makes you work with your inner life and your character and work on your craft as an actor. For that reason, it's important you do that.
How Audiences Will Respond to Wicked
I think they're gonna think it's a funny movie. It's fun. It's scary. Hopefully, they can recognize themselves in some of the parts. Some people who are in the same situation as Karen and Ben may think it over a little bit more.
Watch Wicked on the following streaming platforms: Amazon, YouTube, Apple TV, Google Play, Vudu, Plex, and Tubi.