For Julia Louis-Dreyfus, ‘Veep’ is not some also-ran role
Another Emmy could be just a heartbeat away
Julia Louis-Dreyfus is No. 1 when it comes to playing No. 2.
In the past two decades, she has been nominated for 13 Emmys: seven (and one win) for supporting actress as second-banana Elaine in Seinfeld; five (one win) for best actress as a second-rate ex-spouse in The New
Adventures of Old Christine; and, last year, a win for best actress in her latest role, second in line to the leader of the free world, in Veep.
She’s Vice President Selina Meyer in the HBO comedy series, which returns for its second season Sunday (10 p.m. ET/PT). Viewers pick up her story during midterm elections as she is making speeches at rallies for congressional candidates.
Louis-Dreyfus knows better than to take the role too seriously: “To me, the best thing is to tap into her narcissism and frustrations combined. It’s just a really yummy area to tell stories and good jokes.”
Political party affiliations remain obscured on purpose, but the issues she and her staffers face are familiar: foreign policy, a hostage crisis and a government shutdown.
In its freshman term, Veep averaged 1 million viewers for original broadcasts and 4 million per episode after factoring in DVR and ondemand viewing and repeat airings. This season, two new actors join the cast: Gary Cole (who played the vice president in The West Wing) as an antagonistic White House senior strategist, and Kevin Dunn as White House chief of staff.
Louis-Dreyfus knows exactly what her character is about: “Selina Meyer is a political animal. She is someone who has been in politics for 20 years. She’s hugely ambitious. She’s very driven. She has had many disappointments along the way, and successes.”