The art of the con:
New comedy centres on a cunning con woman.
“Ican understand wanting to escape your life and be someone else,” says Inbar Lavi.
“Growing up I felt a little bit invisible. I used to just go up to strangers and tell them really elaborate stories about who I was and where I was from and try to spice my story, which I didn’t think was very exciting at all.
“That gave me a sense of life, a sense of excitement – but I don’t do that any more,” she adds, laughing.
Instead, she channels her creativity into her work. Now 30, the Israeli-born actress has racked up a list of credits, including Sons Of Anarchy, The Last Ship, Prison Break: Resurrection and, now, as the lead in Imposters.
Already picked up for a second season, Imposters is a dark comedy about a beautiful con artist, Maddie (Lavi), who seduces both men and women into marrying her – before running off with their money. However, her work becomes complicated when three former targets – Ezra (Rob Heaps), Richard (Parker Young) and Jules (Marianne Rendon) – realise they have been scammed by the same woman and team up to track her down.
Lavi understands the need for revenge, admitting that, like many people, she too has been conned.
“It’s never fun when you trust someone and that trust is betrayed,” she says.
“I think it is more hurtful when it’s someone you care about and you don’t see it coming. I was really hurt by this person and I think probably another reason why the show has been so well received is because a lot of people can relate to being deceived.”
However, she has sympathy for the enigmatic Maddie as well.
“I think that we all can be a bit conniving, and I believe we all put on an act for different reasons, and I also can see the desire to escape your life,” Lavi says.
“There’s all these different aspects of Maddie that make it, not acceptable, but understandable for why she makes her choices. I think that she desperately craves a kind of life that is different from her own.”
Maddie reinvents herself whenever she moves on to a new victim, changing not just her name but her appearance and mannerisms as well.
“I think that was probably the most challenging part, constantly going in and out of wigs and makeup but it really helped with getting into character,” Lavi says.
“I was very lucky at work to have the most glamorous wigs and makeup that studio money could buy, but in real life I’m kind of a tomboy. As soon as I got home it would be like Birkenstocks (sandals) and my PJs.”
But there are no complaints from the actress who left her homeland at 17 to seek acting work in the US.
“It was really scary and it felt impossible to be quite honest. I didn’t even know where to start.
“I didn’t know anyone in the States and my accent was kind of rough and I had no acting experience,” she says.
“I got really lucky with this project. I feel very, very grateful for that but it’s been a struggle for sure.”
Lavi admits to being totally star-struck when Oscar nominee Uma Thurman joined Imposters in the recurring guest role of the take-no-prisoners Lenny Cohen.
“It was incredible. It was surreal. It was a dream come true,” Lavi says.
“I don’t think there’s anyone that hasn’t seen her perform in
Pulp Fiction and not been affected by it. She has paved the way for strong, female characters for years and I’m just in awe of her work, of her choices, of her ability to be a phenomenal woman, actress, mom, human being.” Thurman is an old friend of
Imposters’ executive producer Adam Brooks and asked for a role after she screened the pilot during a dinner in her home for their friends.
“She said, ‘If you have anything for me, I would be absolutely honoured to be part of the show’.
“I heard this and I threw up with excitement,” Lavi says, “and the next thing I know, I’m on set with this incredible woman. I feel like the luckiest girl in the world.”
“It’s never fun when you trust someone and that trust is betrayed.” – Inbar Lavi