The real deal:

Comedy star talks about her most controversial role to date.

Acclaimed actress – and gay and abortion rights activist – Martha Plimpton sees the irony in playing the quintessential Catholic matriarch in The Real O’Neals.

“It’s true Eileen and I do not have a lot in common,” says Martha, of the fiercely proud and devoutly Catholic mother who is struggling to cope after learning that her son, Kenny (Noah Galvin), is gay. Eileen and her Chicago cop husband Pat (Mad Men’s Jay R Ferguson) have three kids – Kenny, Jimmy (Matthew Shively) and Shannon (Bebe Wood). All of them have secrets that are revealed as the series unfolds. “Eileen is very concerned with making sure her family is right with God, that appearances be kept up. She’s very conservative and she really doesn’t want her kids going to hell,” Martha says. “Eileen’s got an idea of hell. I’m not so sure. I sometimes think the closest we’ll get to hell is if Trump gets elected.” The outspoken New Yorker – who has never married and has no children – is almost as well known for her activism as she is for her acting. A member of stage and screen aristocracy – she is the daughter of actors Keith Carradine and Shelley Plimpton – the 45 year old found fame in her own right, in movies such as The Goonies, The Mosquito Coast and Parenthood. She is also a regular on stage and TV, winning an Emmy Award for her guest stint as Patti Nyholm on The Good Wife. She also scored many award nominations for her four years as Virginia Chance in Raising Hope.