Interviews
Maggie Lawson – Angel From Hell
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By: Nicole Smith
Q) How did the “Angel From Hell” script come your way?
A) It was last pilot season and it was one of the first pilots I read. I remember, of every pilot I read, I was like, this [“Angel From Hell” script] is great. It was one of the best scripts I’ve read in a while, especially for a comedy, and I just thought it was so smart. I had never met Tad Quill [“Angel From Hell” creator] before and I was really impressed with his writing. It was just so well done and then I knew they were, for a while, trying to figure out who would be cast as the angel. When I heard Jane Lynch was doing it I thought, “Oh my goodness, this is special!”
Q) For people that don’t know all the details about pilot season, how many scripts typically come your way and how many do you actually go in and read for?
A) It’s tough. I feel like I read probably twelve [last season]. I mean, I think there were more, but when it came down to doing a pilot in the midst of planning a wedding and everything else, I had the thought, “If I don’t do one this year, its OK.” So I didn’t read as many as I usually do, but I was excited to read this one. It was kind of like a no-brainer, which made it easy. Overall, in pilot season, it can be up to twenty. It’s wild.
Q) You and Jane said in an interview that this was the best script you had both read in a long time. For you, what made it so special?
A) I liked that we were doing something with a spiritual element in a comedic way, but I also thought, character wise, that it was very clear from the pilot who everyone was and their relationship. Pilots are so hard because you have to set up so many relationships and characters and sometimes it can get a little muddy because you want to get so much information out in one episode to draw people to the show and there was a flow to this that didn’t feel forced. It was just smart, it was thoughtful, it had heart, which I feel like in comedy sometimes can get a little lost, especially if the jokes focus so much on getting people to laugh that you lose some of that actual relationship dynamic. And this one was powerful to me. It made me emotional and it made me laugh out loud and that’s rare.
Q) Your character (Allison) is going through a lot. She’s lost her mom and she’s in a bad relationship. With this show being a comedy, how are you finding a balance between the heavy stuff and still making people laugh?
A) Well, what I love about the writers of this show is that I feel like they’re writing some sort of real life circumstances and situations and not writing just for a joke. I mean, my character is going through a lot and this crazy person [Amy] kind of turns everything on its head. Whenever that happens I feel like, even in real life, a lot of stuff comes up and we deal with that on the show some – letting go, allowing yourself to feel, allowing yourself to be angry, to go crazy, to have all those feelings and I feel like it’s very true to life. There’s comedy in everyday life. Life can be very funny. [laughs] And also this drunken angel, crazy person is around all the time and she kind of (in her on way while trying to teach positive lessons) seems to also mess everything up. It’s silly, but the relationships to me feel very real and so I feel like the emotion and the comedy come out of that. I feel like everybody can use a little crazy. We can all use somebody who’s our greatest super champion, following us around, wanting us to live our best lives and also making us have a little fun and lighten up a little bit.
Q) And it seems that your character is a little uptight.
A) Oh yeah. [laughs] Allison lives by a very, very strict schedule, down to how much sugar she has in a day or when her spin class is. I think that set of rules keeps her in a very wound up state and she often doesn’t allow herself to have a good time. She feels like she’s failing or she’s leaving something on the table if she just says, “I’m going to enjoy this day and be present.”
Q) You worked with Jane years ago on “Psych”, but now that you’re working with her on a daily basis. What is the greatest thing you’ve learned from her?
A) It’s a blast. She’s always making light of every situation, always laughing and smiling. She has such a great energy and it’s constant. She has these beautiful, random acts of kindness that she does. I feel like a lot of times people, especially celebrities, can do that and there’s a lot of attention on it. Not to say that takes anything away from the great they’re doing, but sometimes I feel like there is that element – the picture taking element. I feel like Jane lives her life in not needing to do anything like that. She’s just a great person. Going to work every single day, no matter what, no matter if we’re standing near the ocean in Santa Monica and it’s 50 degrees outside and the water is cold or whatever, we’re still laughing our asses off and having a great time. I see the whole crew feed on that from her and me too and the cast as well. I feel like I’ve learned a lot from her, but that stands out – her leadership that way and the kind of person she is. Also, she can belch on cue.
Q) What is it like being able to share your love for animals with Jane?
A) Oh man, that was one of the first things that we bonded over. It’s a daily thing. We’re ridiculous. We share photos of our animals all day. If Ben [Koldyke, Lawson’s husband] sends me a photo or one of the dog walkers at this dog park sends a photo of the animals I show her and we melt and talk about how precious our animals are. It’s as if we’re parents of these children and sharing photos all day. It’s hilarious, but there’s also great relief in it. She’s been very interested in the rescue [The Tiger Frances Foundation], but she does so much work on her own as well. For us to have that bond that, to me, is unbreakable. We always come back to that, as animals always force us to do anyway — that kind of love — so yes, we spend a lot of time awing over each other’s photos.
Q) What particular scene has been the most difficult to prepare for?
A) I had a really emotional scene, actually. Originally, we were going to air in November so it was our Thanksgiving episode and it was very, very early on. It was real emotion. It was like I was touching base on something after my character’s mother’s death. I’m watching something that sort of brings up a lot of memories and I remember just thinking about the scene and how we do that a lot, right? We hold everything in and sometimes it’s a song, a video, a photo or something that triggers a memory. It was wild because I had had a moment recently about Tristen [Lawson’s dog who passed in early 2015] like that and when I went in to do that scene, I remember putting myself sort of back in that situation of watching something from the past. I think about Tristen all the time, but letting myself totally go into the emotion of it is an everyday fight. So given permission to just go for it was beautiful, but it was really hard. And I love that I got to do it in a scene that was so similar. I know it’s acting, but you touch on real life emotion a lot and that was a big one for me.
Q) I’m sure that was hard to do though.
A) It was also really nice. It was also one of those moments where I thought, “Gosh, that felt good.” And then it’s very exposing to sob your eyes out in front of that many people.
Q) I think there’s kind of a parallel there because you said your character’s having a hard time letting go and in a way you were able to let go through acting.
A) That is how I felt that day. I left and I did feel like I let myself just go into the emotion and it was awesome.
Q) Let’s take a step back to when “Psych” ended. You worked on “Back in the Game” and then “Two and Half Men,” both network shows. How was the transition from cable to network?
A) For me, I guess I didn’t feel the difference so much just because I’m happy to work and obviously “Psych” will be one of the greatest experiences I have in my life. I enjoy working so much and the people that there really wasn’t a big difference to me. I guess maybe network is a bit more competitive. Like I do feel like on cable sometimes you get more of an opportunity for a show to succeed in that they tend to give them a little more time. So with something like “Back in the Game,” it was a pretty quick decision that that show wasn’t going to go any further. I’m so grateful for the experience for so many reasons, but I would say that’s probably the biggest difference I feel. But in terms of the work and budget, I don’t really pay attention to that too much. I try more to just pay attention to the actual characters, but it is competitive. Network is very competitive.
Q) Is it more demanding too, in a sense?
A) Yeah, and just again, there’s a pressure to come out of the gate with very high ratings whereas in cable – because it’s cable – the numbers are naturally less so there is less pressure there.
Q) A lot has changed since “Psych” ended. You got married in August.
A) I did!
Q) That was, of course, to your costar from “Back in the Game,” Ben Koldyke. What’s the greatest reward in marriage for you and what do you want to accomplish together?
A) Oh we want to accomplish so much together. To name one reward, that feels very hard to do. I would say, just overall, getting to wake up every day, go to sleep every day and get through every day with my best friend makes me so happy and I feel really lucky. There’s just such wonder and peace in that. How two people find each other, it’s just mind-blowing. [laughs] So, I’m overall so blessed and then what do we want to accomplish? Oh my goodness. I know animals are priority for us, looking out for and taking care of animals, rescuing animals and using our land in New Mexico that way, as well. We want to expand The Tiger Frances Foundation to the ranch.
Q) Speaking of The Tiger Frances Foundation (a pet rescue Lawson co-founded with her friend, Jude McVay), what are some things you guys have in the works?
A) Obviously, continuing to do the work that we’re doing with Love on Paws and expanding that, as I know we talked to you about before. I think that’s our overall priority. That program is so important to us. We are also developing a show with Spectrum Television, a production company known for “Dr. K’s Exotic Animal ER” and its numerous programs with animal expert Jack Hanna. We have been working for over a year, meeting and pitching a show that embodies all the things we stand for at The Tiger Frances Foundation. It’s all distilled down to one concept: Do your research and take your time and anyone can find a pet that will enhance, improve and generally make your life more fabulous. When we met Daysun Perkins and the Spectrum team, we knew that Spectrum was the place for us. Daysun is a rescuer himself and he immediately got what we were going for and we knew he was the guy. We are very excited about this. We have our foster house that has recently expanded and we want to keep that going and take in as many gremlins as possible. And we take them into the schools and make them all a part of the Love on Paws program. Let’s see, we have Beatrice and Monkey [kittens] who are our new additions and Buttercup, our iguana. So, we’re constantly moving and expanding and, hopefully, we’ll double the programs we have Love on Paws in now.
Q) To circle back around to “Angel From Hell,” if someone said you have a guardian angel, who do you think it would be?
A) I can’t answer that in saying there’s one guardian angel because I feel a lot of that around me. I feel it in animals. I feel it sometimes within myself. Jane always talks about this sort of feeling of weighing a decision, weighing something out in your mind, and you know how you kind of have these moments where you have clarity and you just know what to do, but you don’t know how you got there? Those are the moments I feel like there is this sort of energetic force at work. It can just be that, but I do feel like I am connected to animals that way, as well. So, to say one, I can’t. I feel like I have many. I feel like we all do.
Angel From Hell premieres Jan. 7, 2016, at 9:30 p.m. EST on CBS. For more information on The Tiger Frances Foundation, visit www.tigerfrances.org.
Maggie Lawson can be found on Twitter (@maggielawson) and Instagram (@maggielawsonkoldyke).
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