(Source: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images North America/ZIMBIO)
*If you’re looking for a new binge-worthy series, you might want to consider the CIA spy thriller Berlin Station Season 2, which is airing on EPIX.
EUR caught up with Keke Palmer this summer to discuss joining the sophomore season, which also added Ashley Judd to the cast that includes Richard Armitage, Rhys Ifans, Leland Orser, Michelle Forbes, Tamlyn Tomita and Richard Jenkins.
Judd plays B.B. Yates, Berlin’s unapologetic new station chief, and when EUR correspondent Ny MaGee sat down with her in Beverly Hills and asked about the dynamic between B.B. and her male colleagues, she says, “The men in Berlin Station have absolutely met their match in B.B. Yates and in particular, the American Ambassador who is a political appointee. He’s not somebody from Diplomacy in the State Department. He has met his match. He really wants to step on my toes and step on CIA business and I seem to let him but I don’t really. I’m subversive in my own way, and the CIA, in a really unexpected twist, becomes the site of political resistance. And I think that the Leland character accepts me quite breezily — that’s easy for him.”
OTHER NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED: Keke Palmer on Her ‘Black in Berlin’ Experience for EPIX Spy Drama ‘Berlin Station’ [EUR Exclusive]
B.B.’s dogged approach most certainly pisses off “the boys club,” but Judd notes that “there are a series of episodes in which we get more to the vulnerability and tragedy” in B.B.’s past.
“I think the other characters I have played over the years, that vulnerability and loss were always close to the surface. Whether it’s ‘Kiss the Girls’ and being the victim of a sexual assault to ‘Double Jeopardy’ and being framed for a murder I didn’t commit to losing my son (in) ‘Missing’ — (or) ‘Bug,’ who’s such a damaged character. A part of what’s so cool about doing a ten-episode series is that we get to the vulnerability and the tragedy a little bit later because we’re a long-form format. We don’t have to show that at the very beginning.”
As a series newbie, the actress and political activist revealed that joining a cast that’s already clicking was not as challenging as one might think. In fact, she described it as “easy.”
“I have to give my cast mates credit because they were so warm and welcoming,” Judd says. “Whether it was the great big hugs or fining our way with performances that are spontaneous, inventive, unpredictable —- particularly with Leland Orser and Richard Jenkins, who has this uncanny way of being so grounded in reality in his performances. It’s been very delightful. I’ve also really enjoyed that so many women are on screen together at the same time and unlike movies, we’re not talking about a boy or some kind of romantic relationship. We’re talking about really substantial, globally important things.”
Ashley Judd has become an international activist on issues such as AIDS, global sex trafficking, and child abuse prevention. Producers of Berlin Station reportedly watched Judd’s TED Talk in January about the online harassment of women, which prompted them to hit her up about joining the show. She was “delighted” by the offer and read some historical fiction by David Downing to prepare for the role.
“I learned so much about the Second World War and in particular Berlin in the Second World War and then the beginnings of the Cold War. The books were a compulsive read — particularly book 6. There were six in total, 2000 pages and I’m fairly confident that even though I like to read non-fiction and I’m interested in history, I would not have piled 2000 pages of history books with the same readability as I did these David Downing novels.”
Additionally, Berlin Station “has a consultant from the CIA who was with the agency for decades” who helped authenticate her character.
“The writers also compiled an 800-page research packet and I can’t say I’ve read it all but I’ve read a lot of it,” she reveals.
Most recently, Judd became one of the first actresses to publicly accuse film producer Harvey Weinstein of sexual harassment. Her voice, as well as the accusations from dozens of women across the globe, led to Weinstein being fired from the company he founded with her brother. He’s now under criminal investigation in New York, Los Angeles, and London.
“I know there will be consequences for my female leadership,” Judd tells EUR. “I know that I will be retaliated against for being a woman with a voice and who uses that voice. I think that might be a way in which B.B and I differ because B.B. just seems to not give a crap about the retaliation.”
When asked in what ways young, female activists can be inspired by B.B. Yates, Judd says by “showing up and suiting up and knowing that I have every right to be in this traditional male space.”
Berlin Station airs Sunday at 9 p.m. ET/PT on EPIX. Get caught up by streaming episodes at epix.com.
We Publish News 24/7. Don’t Miss A Story. Click HERE to SUBSCRIBE to Our Newsletter Now!
