Erin Richards – Gotham

By starrymag | October 19, 2015

By: Lisa Steinberg

 

 

Q) You often attend fan conventions like Comic Con and New York Comic Con. Why is attending these events important to you?

A) I love attending those events. Just getting to meet all the fans is the reason we do the show. We wouldn’t be there without them so it’s nice to be able to shake their hands and hear their stories. I like to hear the storylines they are enjoying and the panels are like a hint of all those people in one room enjoying it together. That’s kind of why we do that.

Q) Barbara has had a shift this season. How do you feel a bout this new diverse side to your character?

A) It’s amazing! To be able to bring a character from a place of goodness into badness is such a joy because you get the time to do a whole range in one show, which is really rare. In terms of playing a villain, it is so exciting because you get to have fights and go to more extreme places of the duality. I love playing her as a villain. It’s a real joy.

Q) Did the writers approach you to discuss this new change in Barbara?

A) We talked about this from the beginning. She had these dark elements to her like the drinking and drug taking. Her relationship with Jim (Ben McKenzie) was always was rocky and those were the early warning signs. She would spiral down and then murdering her parents was this gateway into the new dark Barbara.

Q) You have gotten more involved with fighting this season. Talk about taking on stunts this season?

A) The first fight scene I had was with Morena [Baccrin] (who plays Dr. Leslie Thompson). We were having an amazing day of doing the fight together. Norman is our fight director and he is fantastic. He’s always on set and looking out for us. It was a really brilliant first fight scene to do on “Gotham” because Morena and I get along so well. I explained it to someone that it is like dancing because you are looking after each other even though you are looking like you are ripping each other a part. You are carefully choreographed dancing with someone. It is a really fun, enjoyable thing to do. I love doing fight scenes. In Episode 8, that is a really big episode for me and there is a lot of stunt work in that. I have a fantastic stunt double, Nikki! I can’t say what she does, but it is incredible!

Q) What is your favorite moment of Barbara going from good girl to bad girl?

A) I would say Episode 8 because the whole episode was a joy for me. I can’t reveal what happens in it, but there is some incredible stuff between me, Ben and Morena. It’s the Barbara, Jim and Leslie love triangle and the outcome of that is pretty shocking.

Q) You have talked a bit about the transformation, how has the feedback been from playing this mischievous character?

A) The feedback has been great! People found it hard to sort of understand who Barbara was in season one and I understood that because she didn’t really have enough of a motive. I think people were confused as to what she was about and that confusion was understandable because she didn’t really know what she was about. She wanted to be with Jim, but there was obviously this incredibly dark personality hidden under what she was portraying to the world. So, I think people didn’t really latch on to her because they didn’t really understand her. Now, the fans have really kind of responded to what happened to her and who she is becoming. I really feel grateful people have really stuck by her and love her as a character. It was kind of hard when people didn’t like her because I liked her so much and saw the potential in her. I am grateful to the fans who have stuck with her all this time and, hopefully, now they are getting something out of it that they can relate to a little bit. It’s kind of been a really amazing ride and being at New York Comic Con kind of helped me meet all the fans and hear their feedback about that. So, it was really lovely.

Q) Were you sad the storyline with Montoya ended so abruptly?

A) Vicky [Cartagena] was such an incredible actress and we had a really great time together. I think the unfortunate thing with this organic story telling is that sometimes some characters don’t organically fit in. I know that from acting in other shows where you may not love the character and other times may be a fantastic addition to the show. Sometimes the storyline just doesn’t facilitate the character moving on. We were really sad to lose Vicky, but that is how it is in TV, unfortunately.

Q) Is Barbara’s motivation solely Jim or can she successful bring out the dark side in him?

A) I think her motivation is to basically bring Jim into the dark side she is inhabiting and kind of enjoying. Her relationship with Jim is strong because she feels like there is something there even  though what they were acting out before may not have been completely truthful to both of them. She was in there and she saw in him the darkness that she is now kind of inhabiting. First of all, she wants to bring Jim in and then after that she’ll make it her mission to bring the whole world into that dark place.

Q) Talk with relationship with Theo and Tabitha. Is there genuine affection or an underlying motivation?

A) Right now that threesome is playing out because each of those people can gain something. So, from Barbara’s point of view, her super power (if you will) is that she can sense and play off of anyone’s weakness. So, when she meets Galavan (James Frain) she knows straight away that he wants to be on top. He wants to be the new king in Gotham. She wants to play off that weakness and use it to her advantage. The same with Tabitha, she is using her, but if you were to pick one of those characters that Barbara is more intrigued by it would be more of an affection and infinity for Tabitha that she is a strong woman she can learn from. With Galavan, it’s more like she’ll use him until he is no longer necessary. It’s a really fun one to play and Jessica Lucas and James Frain have been the most fantastic people to have this new relationship with. I love working with them.

Q) Do you think that Barbara can be redeemed?

A) Killing your parents is pretty dark. I believe anyone can be redeemed and everyone deserves redemption. I think the hard thing is that once you are redeemed, you can still go backwards.

Q) Who have been some of your favorite villains on the show?

A) Well, we have some big villains coming out this season. We have the introduction of Firefly, which is a fantastic new villain. We have Mr. Freeze coming. Mad Hatter is coming. There are so many villains coming this season because obviously it is the rise of the villains storyline. There is a lot to look forward to!

Q) You are a part of social media. What has it meant to you to get that immediate fan feedback?

A) It’s fantastic! We always live tweet during the show. Seeing how fans instantly react to things on the screen is just wonderful. I’m able to reply to any comments they make and we like to have little banter between the cast. I think everyone enjoys it and it is a really fun way to engage with the fans.

Q) What have you taken away from working on the show?

A) I think the biggest thing I’ve taken away is the family we have created. I know it might sound a bit cheesy, but I just love and respect our cast, crew and producers so much. They look after us and everyone works so well together. It’s a very well oiled machine and it’s just such a pleasure to be a part of. Every day is a real joy to go and work there.

Q) Is there anything else you want to be sure we share with fans about Barbara this season?

A) Episode 8 is a huge one for Barbara and fun for people to watch if they are enjoying her development. I read these scripts and like every single week…When Jerome (Cameron Monaghan) was stabbed, I stood up and threw my script on the floor and screamed, “No Way!” It was just such a shock. I think we did a really good job last year, but I think this season we knock it out of the part. Every single week and every script is amazing. I would say look forward to everything!