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Catherine Keener must have an attraction to odd universes.
InBeing John Malkovich, she worked on the mysterious7 1/2 floor.
in the suburban afterlife alongsideMaya Rudolphand Fred Armisen inAmazonsForever.
I just knew that Maya Rudolph and Fred Armisen were in it.
No, I didnt.Oh, thats so cool!
Theyve been trying to keep the surprise going.
You did?Yeah, I went to a Catholic school.
I think it was one-page long and I called it a short story.
But it was about a town called Purgatory.
It was kind of a Western.
Its neither [heaven nor hell].
Its straight up the middle.
It seems like you are drawn to stories with an unreal quality.
Thats something to think about.
I grew up in a city called Hialeah in Florida.
Its in Miami and it is primarily a Cuban community.
Its like where Little Havana is.
Where I grew up, it was across from Main Street.
There were arms stores and a bowling alley and a K-Mart.
I had weird chores.
I would pick up the trash that would blow in from the wind in the front yard.
Do you remember the World Book Encyclopedias?
Yeah.We didnt have a full set of encyclopedias, we would get them every month.
They had the two volumes of dictionaries and in the back, they would have these vocabulary tests.
I couldnt wait for them to come.
I learned everything from the World Book Encyclopedia.
That was our internet.That was our internet, yeah!
I just felt, like, other in it.
Which is interesting, because you are right, that is sort of where I gravitate towards.
I also read you wanted to doForeverbecause of your friendship with Maya Rudolph.
Is that true?Ohhellyeah.
It is all about Maya, my God.
And Fred, Im crazy about him.
I dont know him very well, but he is just wonderful.
Even though they are sharp and completely irreverent, they come from a really good heart collectively.
Maya and I have been friends for a really long time.
Yeah, I would do anything for Maya.
With her, for her, whatever.
We learn a little bit about Kase inForever what her job was, how she died.
Scenes with [Forever], I worked on with Maya.
And the guys, Alan and Matt, are just amazing with that stuff.
If I am in a hole, they will help me out.
So for this, no, I did not create a big backstory.
Its your opportunity to correct, you know?
We all have the make the correction of opportunities in life, but sometime dont opt for it.
June, I think, didnt really recognize it.
Thats a kind of resistance.
Even though [Kase] is a lot of talk, she doesnt really know how to break that.
And then, she sees June and it is just utter love and and its unavoidable.
Forget hammering it to death.
Sometimes you just say love.
Do you think that Kases feelings towards June are romantic?I dont think they are classifiable.
I dont think she identifies yet.
I think she is craving somebody like that in her life.
If its the one, I think yeah, June is the one for Kase.
Even your soul mate, something like that.
But not with the sexual relationship.
I did not really see that much there.
When theygo to Oceanside, it seems like Kase really wants to stay.
Why do you think that is?Because Kase hasnt worked out her shit yet.
But sometimes you see that through and think,Oh man, that was a mistake.
But yeah, Oceanside is too weird for her.
For me, it is a little more … not immature.
It feels like a younger person than Kase, emotionally, would be into that.
Because it exposes you to the alternate.
She was so square in her previous life that its sort of,What is this world?
People are like this?
I have never seen anything like this.
She is looking for a way out, but there is no way out.
I dont know if they are ever going to be friends.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
