Jessica Biel has been drawn to psychological thrillers as of late.
“I’ve been [interested] in most of these initiatives with difficult people, exploring the query: Why do individuals do the issues that they do?” Biel tells The Hollywood Reporter. “We’re all able to goodness and evil — it’s all within us — so it’s laborious to say, ‘Properly, I might by no means do this,’ as a result of possibly I might.”
Noting she typically turns that query on herself, asking, ” ‘What if I used to be on this state of affairs?’ ” Biel provides, “I like exploring [those ideas for myself] in a secure place the place no person truly will get harm and no person’s life is definitely ruined.”
That desired self-examination is mirrored in her most up-to-date TV initiatives: In 2022, she starred in Sweet because the real-life Sweet Montgomery, who was accused of killing her greatest pal with an ax in 1980. This 12 months, she’s again on TV screens in Craig Gillespie’s The Higher Sister, an adaptation of the e-book of the identical title that focuses on estranged sisters (performed by Biel and Elizabeth Banks) and the way their lives intertwine when considered one of their husbands is murdered.
However there’s extra to the Prime Video sequence than simply homicide and deceit, says the actress, whose credit additionally embody The Sinner and seventh Heaven. “The present we made is about these two sisters,” Biel provides. “The attention-grabbing factor about my character, Chloe, is that she’s actually so many issues without delay, type of like all of us are: her publicly dealing with persona and who she is privately … and I like that rigidity inside of somebody, the place two issues are pulling on her without delay. That’s intriguing to me.”
Who Chloe is privately is a lady who would do something for her son. Being a mom to 2 boys herself, Biel may immediately relate to the character and the work-life steadiness Chloe grapples with. “It’s coping with your individual guilt and disgrace of being away, but in addition understanding that that’s vital to you and also you need to present your child that it’s vital to be out on the earth. … Every part she does is all completed for Ethan [played by Maxwell Acee Donovan], and I feel each dad or mum can relate to that on some degree.”
Defending her son, regardless of the fee, will get examined when — spoiler alert — Ethan will get accused of murdering his father, Adam, performed by Corey Stoll. Because the present unfolds, extra secrets and techniques get revealed, leading to emotionally and bodily taxing scenes for the actors.
“We rehearsed rather a lot with something that was bodily or re-creating violence, so there was an actual understanding of what was going to occur, and a deep belief was constructed with all people round these moments,” Biel, who additionally served as an government producer on the sequence, explains about getting ready for the extra arduous sequences alongside Banks and Stoll. “Corey is an incredible actor and unimaginable scene accomplice who, despite the fact that he’s a very large individual, you’re feeling actually secure with and know that he’ll help you, it doesn’t matter what occurs.”
Biel with Elizabeth Banks, who performs Chloe’s sister, Nicky.
Jojo Whilden/Amazon
Outdoors of rehearsals, Biel says, the actors received into the proper psychological state for his or her characters individually. And after the scenes wrapped, Biel would discover herself in her automobile after a protracted drive house from work, her exhaustion taking up. “I might hearken to meditation or my bizarre frequency music that I’ve on Spotify, and I might simply shut it down till I received house, as a result of as soon as I received house, I needed to be a mother.”
Biel is reteaming with Stoll on the upcoming Matchbox, based mostly on the toy model of the identical title. The film, which additionally stars John Cena, Sam Richardson and Danai Gurira, will probably be launched in 2026. Manufacturing wrapped a couple of months in the past.
When requested whether or not she has Stoll on velocity dial now, Biel says with fun, “We do, mainly, additionally as a result of our sons fell in love. They didn’t know one another till Matchbox — his youngsters have been in class after we have been capturing The Higher Sister, and for no matter purpose, they only by no means frolicked. However then after we have been in Budapest, Corey introduced his entire household, and our boys are actually good associates. Now, we’re like dad or mum buddies and we name one another so our children can speak to one another on FaceTime … it was such a pleasant shock, after having labored collectively for a very long time in the summertime, to then know that we’re going to proceed to be associates … it’s simply good to repeat work with individuals that you just belief.”
The actress, who’s now in preproduction on Batso reverse Ethan Hawke and Daniel Radcliffe and Ursa Main alongside Child Cudi, says Matchbox supplied a type of refresh after having completed two psychological thrillers in a row.
“I really feel prefer it’s time to department out slightly bit, as a result of you may’t do the identical factor without end, proper?” says Biel. “Matchbox felt actually cool and enjoyable for me to do one thing utterly exterior of the psychological advanced state of affairs. So sure, I need to do different stuff, however I can’t assist however at all times love to look at and discover a psychological drama.”
This story first appeared in a June stand-alone challenge of The Hollywood Reporter journal. To obtain the journal, click here to subscribe.