‘ Unforgettable’ Heigl, Dawson thrilling in psych- out drama
Actresses go all out to play obsessive women
Think you know relationship drama?
In Unforgettable, Katherine Heigl and Rosario Dawson are upping the ante. In the new thriller out Friday, a psychotic chess game of love takes hold, thanks to the Stepford ex- wife and bohemian new girlfriend dynamic played out by Heigl and Dawson, respectively.
It’s a rather delectable turn for Heigl, 38, who calls it “oddly freeing” to lean into the crazed Barbie- style perfection of Tessa, an obsessively manicured mother out for Julia’s blood. “For me, it was mostly about saying, ‘ Hey, let’s take a look at how far this could go,’ ” she says.
Dawson plays it straight as Julia, a San Francisco professional who bites the bullet and moves across the state to live with her fiancé David ( Geoff Stults), who shares custody of his daughter with Tessa.
“It’s interesting how saying someone is ‘ crazy’ is easier to deal with than actually talking to them and dealing with the crazy,” says Dawson.
And in the R- rated thriller, Julia is hiding things, too. “These are both women who had troubled paths,” says Dawson, 37, whose character suffers from a history of domestic abuse.
While Heigl and Dawson acknowledge concerns about perpetuating the stereotypes of women catfighting over a man, “I think ( those stereotypes) exist for a reason,” says Heigl, sitting down for tea with Dawson, who sips a bottle of kombucha. “Because it does go on and it does happen.
Women have a weird tendency to get way too competitive with one another about stupid ( stuff), like a guy.”
Driven by jealousy, Tessa becomes compulsively violent as Julia settles into her role of stepmother.
And though Julia becomes suspicious of the manipulative ex, she ignores the warning signs.
“So often in abusive relationships, you kind of excuse so much because you just want what’s good about it and the things that you get out of it,” says Dawson, who recently began dating comic Eric Andre. ( Andre revealed the relationship in a sweet Valentine’s Day post, calling her “the undisputed most gorgeous being on the planet.”)
Even strong women can fall prey to the patterns that develop, says the actress, who will resume playing Claire Temple in Netflix’s upcoming Marvel show The Defenders.
“You can stay in something so long,” says Dawson. “Because you know you’re not perfect either and because we have such insecurities about how much more we could be doing, we end up taking blame that sometimes isn’t ours.”
Today, the two relax in front of tea sandwiches and macarons.
“Oh, that’s nice,” says Heigl, exhaling while sipping her tea. The new mom, just off a short run of CBS’ canceled legal drama Doubt, gave birth to her third child, Joshua, with her singer/ songwriter husband Josh Kelley in late December. “I need the caffeine.”
These days at home, she says, her two daughters, Naleigh, 8, and Adalaide, 5, adore their new brother. “They love to tell me how to mother the baby.”
But he won’t be raised as a prince. “The goal is adore him and play with him and kiss on him. I love it — but let’s not spoil him. Let’s not teach him that women are going to do this his whole life,” she says.
When baby Joshua “is an adult, I want him to wash his own dishes.”