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Amazons new seriesHomecomingis a chilly, intricately plotted conspiracy thriller for the modern age.
Over the course of the ten-episode season, Gloria becomes integral to illuminating the human weight of this conspiracy.
Vulture spoke with Jean-Baptiste about mastering the accent for her Haitian-American character and whyHomecomingsSam Esmail is an actors director.
Gloria in many ways feels like the beating heart of a series that veers more toward the cerebral.
Did you listen tothe podcastfor any research?I did not.
So, Okay then, I wont.
What is the casting process like withHomecoming?Im not really party to that.
I just got an offer to play this role.
And it was a page-turner.
Did you know any Haitian Creole before this?
But I worked with a really good coach.
I did some YouTube tutorials, University of YouTube as you call it.
And just doing basic Creole sounds and stuff like that.
And I do have a couple of Haitian friends.
So that was fun, playing with that tweak.
Hes such a joy.
It was really lovely to just work like that.
We also bonded over things we liked to eat and music.
He was easy to impose that mother-son relationship on.
It was really funny because there was all this stuff about Haitian Creole and speaking Haitian.
And then the Heidi character comes in, and of course Gloria I really dont wanna see you.
I dont wanna hear what youve got to say.
I need to get my boy.
The uncomfortable energy, but also wanting to do the right thing.
We had a really good time, I think.
Youve worked on television before.
You have to know the entire play to perform it.
WithHomecoming, did you have a long rehearsal time?Not particularly, no.
But we did discuss.
We would sit and talk about stuff and then we would shoot.
Nobody was saying, Im gonna do this or that.
But [Sam Esmail] is an actors director, I would say.
Hes constantly tweaking and refining, and asking questions of you as an actor.
It was really good.
Its a surprising show of simple human error.
Gloria is such a fascinating character because she has so much dimension.
I went, Thats a challenge.
And it turned out to be a lot more than just her being Haitian.
Thats what my process is.
She felt that it was damaging and dangerous.
You still worry and want to protect, and that sort of justifies mistrust of the Establishment.
I hope that people are able to pick up on all those little details that Gloria has.
Its not on the nose.
Can we expect a larger role for Gloria in season two?I dont know, in all honesty.
Maybe a couple people know.
