Candace Bushnell, one of the most popular TV writers of the last decade after penning Sex and the City, returns to fill the void with Lipstick Jungle, starring Brooke Shields, Kim Raver, Andrew McCarthy and Lindsay Price.
Monsters and Critics got a chance to speak to Kim Raver, Lindsay Price and Andrew McCarthy on a recent conference call to learn about their ensemble work on the new NBC series, how the show will be different than "Sex and the City", and the many challenges women face in today's fast-paced society.
The show premieres this Thursday, February 7 at 10:00 ET/PT
Lindsay, your character is a fashion designer. Did you think that this show could be that sort of trendsetter that Sex and the City was? Kim, your thoughts too.
Lindsay Price: You want to go first, Kim?
Kim Raver: I think its definitely going to be, you know, a comparison. But I think the interesting thing about our show is its really reflective of the show of it being very wearable and real wardrobe as opposed to the extension of it being very fantastical.
I mean, its definitely - its that fantasy of the, you know, the gorgeous, sort of perfect outfits. But I feel like its much more accessible in the sense that its not stuff so much that you see on the runway, that you feel like you cant wear.
Amanda Ross is so good at what she does in pulling together fabulous designers, but theyre really reflective of my character for example -- Nico Reilly as an Editor in Chief -- and its just very sophisticated, very sexy, sort of high-powered. And the way shes bringing accessories into it is also, I think, could be a big trend the way shes bringing a lot of different sort of necklaces and ****tail rings.
Lindsay Price: I think that were incredibly fortunate because of the anticipation of our show being such a fashion-heavy program. We are - we have access to the most amazing designers and were able to really have the luxury of creating these characters with nice resources.
But I dont think that anyone was interested in letting it be a fashion show or letting the clothes take over the scene in any way. We wanted to make sure that these women were dressed like they would be in their professions and in a world where they have the means to make their own fashion dreams come true.
Victory is a designer and maybe most designers dont go to work everyday wearing a dress and four inch heels. I mean, there is definitely the fantasy element. And - but they are just impeccably dressed women with, I think, more style than fashion on their mind.
Andrew McCarthy: From a guys point of viewI have to say, its sort of - the ladies all look lovely, but its - theyre wearing the clothes and the clothes arent wearing them.
What is your favorite thing about your characters?
Kim Raver: For me, with Nico I love that shes not afraid to speak her mind. Shes unedited and she doesnt apologize for who she is, which I think thats, you know, a main key in who she is.
Lindsay Price: I think the thing I like the most about Victory is that she is successful in the business world but she doesnt make any apologies for wearing her heart on her sleeve or being an emotional person, or maybe sometimes not being the most censored or reserved with what she has to say.
She doesnt make any apologies for her femininity also - being in a competitive, sort of cutthroat business.
Kim Lindsay, have you ever gotten a guys phone number the same way that Nico did in that great scene with Robert Buckley?
Kim Raver: No. Couldnt you tell by my face? No I have not.
Lindsay Price: Strangely, I have.
Lindsay, the other two ladies are having male problems and youre having career problems. Does that switch around later on - a couple episodes down the line or does it stay like that for the whole season?
Lindsay Price: Well, it does switch around but thats the thing with life. You know, sometimes one area of your life is going smashingly well and then, you know, something else kind of takes a backseat or maybe just circumstantially its not as great.
But with any relationship, it has its twists and turns. And Joe and Victory are great for each other in so many ways, but they certainly have their obstacles to overcome.
Kim Raver: I think thats actually whats interesting about these women. You know, on the surface they can sort of seem like everything is going great and theyre doing really well and - but yet theyre flawed and vulnerable, and complex. I think that thats definitely an asset to our show - that these women are going through things and working through them, and working through them together. And hopefully, thats the journey that people will tune into.
I think, thats also what makes them accessible is their complexities.
Andrew - if you were as insanely rich as Joe Bennett, would you choose to live the same way or would you have other plans?
Andrew McCarthy: Well Id certainly have the plane and the cars. Yeah, I think he has a nice lean style of living for someone who has access to anything he wants whenever he wants it.
Where does his money actually come from?
Andrew McCarthy: Oh, you know, Im one of those people where my money makes money. I think hes like - works a lot in the stocks and real estate, and hedge funding.
Andrew, what turned you on to this show and this character? What made you want to do this?
Andrew McCarthy: Well I was a big fan of Candaces sort of world and her voice. And I thought it was a really interesting show that treated women with a real regard, that I dont see on television too much.
And the character, I thought, was just somebody I dont see very often on television played the way I would want to play him. You often see these rich, powerful guys as sort of sharks.
I just thought of him more as a man with a real sense of delight in the world by the tad and knows it, and enjoys that aspect of, you know, today is better than yesterday. Tomorrow will be better than today.
I just thought all of this group of people coming together - it was a no-brainer, you know. And I love working in New York. I lived here so I thought that was a great aspect of it.
Kim, do you have the kind of friendships in real life that the ladies in the show have?
Kim Raver: We actually do. And, you know, I know that may sound corny but it really - we really enjoy each others company, you know. When were filming scenes and they call cut, were still going at it and talking, and catching up.
And I think also theres a real, I dont know, difference. Theres that stereotypethat, you know, cat fights and women tear each other down. And I think were such different sort of characters and playing different characters that theres a real support of one another and in our successes.
I mean, I really enjoy when Lindsay and Brooke are doing well, and look beautiful and the scene is going well, and that theres not that old stereotype of us kind of stabbing each other in the back.
I love spending time with the two of them.
Lindsay Price: I just want to add on to what Kim was saying about the female friendships. We were actually just talking last night, Kim and I, that I think, you know, its possible that Ive been more heartbroken by my female friends than any, you know, boyfriend that Ive ever had.
You have such a bond and such an intimacy with female friendships, but there is that thing where women seem to feel so competitive and generally someone else cant be successful if - or, you know, you cant be successful if someone else is more successful or theyre gaining their success.
With Kim, Brooke and I, we all come from a similar place that weve been working in the professional world since we were kids. I think the average age someone was saying was maybe three when we all started.
And theres just a basic level of respect where we come from a similar professional standpoint. But once you commit to a set that has that sort of respect and care for one another, its the warmest place to be.
Thats where you can be creative because you dont feel threatened or sort of inhibited. So we know that were only going to be better by respecting one another and supporting one another.
Which is exactly what our show is about. So its kind of perfect that way.
Kim. This one is for you. Wearing such super glamorous outfits, how much pressure did you feel to get back into shape after you had your baby?
Kim Raver: You know, I had really mixed feelings. I mean, for me Im nursing my son and I, you know, was very steadfast in not getting caught up in the whole, you know, trap. And it was important to me to keep on a certain amount of weight because in order to nurse you have to.
And there was definitely a push/pull. That was my mindset going into it. And then, you know, you go to a five-hour fitting and youre squeezing yourself into sample sizes which are tiny.
So I didnt feel pressure from anyone at work. There was an amazing support from all the producers and especially my cast. I mean, there were definitely moments when I would lean on them to kind of help me get through figuring out the body that I was in, that I wasnt used to just after having a baby.
But I was constantly reminded by them and it was about supporting my son for the rest of his life which is, for me, far more important than getting into a size whatever. I didnt feel pressure from anyone and we were able to work around it, and also nurture and nourish my son.
How tough is it kind of with the schedule you get for a drama with having a new baby?
Kim Raver: Its extremely difficult. I mean, I, you know, for the first three months I, you know, we were working 16-hour days and I just would bring my son on set with me.
But it also gave me a great perspective. While I was exhausted and sort of delirious just trying to memorize my lines and nursing at the same time, you also keep this amazing kind of schedule to keep - sort of move forward and take care of yourself. And even though youre tired youre looking down at this new person thats just come into your life. So the perspective while I was working, I think only added to my work.
But it definitely is tricky. And I think thats also interesting what were going through as women in sort of society today. And I think its definitely part of the climate in our society of juggling - thats part of that juggling it all thing.
I also felt very fortunate that my producers were so supportive and my cast was so supportive of me to be able to bring - the fact that I could bring my son to work with me every day was amazing.
And Im noticing that more and more - that there are women in really high positions and that theyre making room where women can pump in big corporations.
I think thats really important. I think its really important to be able to nurture a child and also to have a career. And that it shouldnt be separate from one another.
Now youre on Lipstick Jungle. Does that mean Jack Bauer is destined to be a lonely heart?
Kim Raver: You know, you never know. Somehow Audrey and Jack Bauer always manage to come through, whether shes there in a Chinese prison camp for, you know, a year or two. You know, well have to see. Well have to see.
It is interesting how theyre developing your characters villains - each one of you. Nicos is her male co-worker who is trying to undermine her. Lindsay - your ex-assistant is stealing your designs. Brookes is Lorraine Bracco as the ruthless editor who is planning to upend her life. Can you talk about your individual villains and how much fun it is to be working on this show?
Kim Raver: Lindsay, you take this one.
Lindsay Price: Well I get to work with the amazing Kerry Butler who is, you know, she just is a Broadway star. Shes starring in Xanadu and she was in Hairspray. And she is - one of the luxuries of working in New York City is we get to work with these amazing, well-trained stage actors.
And Kerry plays this character, I think, so well. I really like the idea of being somebodys mentor and then having, you know, your heart broken and your business threatened by someone that youve nurtured.
I think theres something very complicated in that. And maybe also, you know, because its a female relationship I think this character really considers her like a little sister to her. It goes even deeper than the professional wound.
But its great fun because the fashion world, everyone, you know, says its so cliché how backstabbing and nasty it is, and the fur is always flying. But it does make for some interesting drama and storylines.
Were not going to go quite that far with it, but its a realistic thing that could happen to Victory.
Kim Raver: I think whats really interesting with Mike Harness and Nico Reilly is that its sort of somewhat commenting and maybe thats what were sort of doing between the lines.
You know, I dont know if youve seen the second - I dont know what episode it is, but theres a scene with him and I where, you know, hes trying to undermine me by having meetings without me.
And I come in and I start salting his salad and just as a practical joke, you know. And I think, you know, sometimes amongst men theres a lot of - well I mean now among - I mean, women too because we just played one on Lindsay.
But a lot of that practical joke kind of things where I think you see it more with men. Theres constant kind of things of that - I just - I guess what Im trying to say is that Nico is coming into that world and shes going to play ball with them.
But what I like about Nico is shes not succeeding as a man and shes not doing her job as a man, but yet she can come into that world and play that game if she has to. And she can one-up him and she can do better than him.
But the comment of their relationship is that it is competitive but yet I like that Nico is succeeding or trying to succeed on her own terms as a woman. So, you know, sometimes when you say oh, its, you know, a woman in a mans world.
But by watching their competitiveness and how they have kind of these practical jokes and playing these pranks on one another to try to kind of get the other one - she can do it on those terms, but she can also come in and look sexy, and be wearing a skirt and showing her legs, in heels and succeeding as a woman but also know how to play a game.
Andrew, your character starts out a bit pushy and presumptuous and then you turn into this really complex, nice character and a very solid support for Victory. I was wondering if you were going to be through the series up to the very end or is your character going to come and go like Mr. Big in Sex and the City?
Andrew McCarthy: Yeah, youd have to ask the producers that one. You know, Im here now. I dont know that he starts so vile, though. I think hes - actually people presume people that have money and power are unpleasant.
I think hes just direct, you know, and follows his own sort of agendas without being encumbered by anything that society would put on him because thats what money does. It buys us freedom from having those constraints.
But, you know, I guess well just have to see where it unfolds, you know. I think thats the thing about television until you - certain relationships and certain dynamics start to work, and so then theyre written for.
And other ones work less well so they sort of phase out. And its just sort of a movable feast always.
Lindsay, Andrew - what do you think about your characters relationship with each other?
Lindsay Price: I think exactly what you said is what we strive for in relationships where you do for the other person what you would probably like to be done for you. You know, its the old kind of women always want a man to sort of read their mind. They dont want to have to ask for the grand gestures or even the small gestures, for that matter. Theyre just - Joe and Victory are inspired to, you know, be together and by each other.
And I think its also, you know, in a world where theyre both very successful and they sort of run with a success - in a successful crowd. They find this real simple caring for one another and maybe make each other even better than they already were.
Andrew McCarthy: Well I think for Joes part, I know hes certainly taken by surprise about the element of care that develops. And theres a difference between care and concern. I think care is sort of like loving. Concern can be debilitating, you know. And I think Joes certainly sort of present enough and a good enough businessman to know to nurture someone and then let them be them, to do their best work. And I think he sort of approaches his relationships that way, too - to sort of nurture who they are and let them be - let her be who she is.
And if thats going to work, that will work. But to try and sort of manipulate it and control people, disaster. And shes adorable, so its easy.
Lindsay Price: I think, too, you know, with everything that Joe has in his life, maybe hes not the best at these types of relationships. And not just with women, I mean, but, you know, the intimate type of relationship that Joe and Victory have and will develop.
And theres something about him thats almost boyish and a little bit underdeveloped where everything else in his world is so successful. Maybe shes his, you know, weakness and hes hers.
With that common ground, that common understanding that theyre both vulnerable in this situation that sort of bonds people together.
Andrew McCarthy: Gee, that was good Lindsay.
Andrew, what do the women in your real life think of you kind of appearing on this girl power show?
Andrew McCarthy: My mom likes that Im staying in town and, you know, I think they think its great, you know. I mean, its just any show that sort of approaches women with a certain respect and regard that - and allows them to be powerfully themselves without trying to be men, I think is in everybodys best interest. You know, I think theres a little less jealousy at home than I would like when I tell my loved one Im off to do a love scene.
Kim, how different is Nico actually than your character Audrey on 24, as in Audrey?
Kim Raver: I think theyre similar in the sense that theyre, you know, very good at their jobs, very smart, very competitive, very sort of striving for the best, you know, job that they can do.
I think Audrey was much more vulnerable. Nico is much - kind of coarser. I think Nico is much more unedited. You know, Audrey worked in Washington. She was all about sort of talking around things in a very political way.
Nico is about saying it like it is, and a little too loud sometimes. But yet, I think both were very complex and both striving to be loved. You know, really kind of missing that in their lives.
Lindsay, in real life, which of your pals takes on a specific "friend" archetypes and characteristic?
Lindsay Price: You know, its kind of startling how the root of us as women -- as Lindsay, Kim and Brooke -- is just kind of similar to our characters. And I dont know if its art imitating life or life imitating art, but we do kind of have this older, middle, younger sister dynamic.
And I am single and Kim and Brooke are not. And we have a certain something thats sort of naturally built in. But as far as personality traits go - whos the funniest and whos the most fashionable, none of us could even say it.
Kim Raver: I think we all - its like - Im interrupting you. I think we all encompass all of them at different times which is really nice. And theres a really nice allowance for one of us to kind of be the funny one in the moment or one of us to kind of be the, you know, caretaker in the moment.
Those roles sort of change, and thats whats kind of interesting about having sort of this sisterly - its when one needs something the other one kind of steps up. You know, if one is having a hard day and vulnerable then that person kind of steps up and is like the older caretaker sister. If one is kind of on a roll and being funny, then I think the other two sort of let them shine.
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