CATE BLANCHETT
MRS AMERICA ACTRESS CATE BLANCHETT OPENS UP ABOUT FEMINISM AND FAMILY LIFE
The past few years have seen huge progress in the battle for gender equality in Hollywood. But back in the 1970s, one woman was fighting against feminism in the USA as strongly as those battling for it.
In brand new US drama Mrs America, currently airing on BBC2, Cate Blanchett plays anti-feminist activist Phyllis Schlafly. Although they have little in common when it comes to their beliefs, one aspect of the character Cate can relate to is her role as a mum.
The actress and her husband of 22 years, Andrew Upton, share sons Dashiell,
18, Roman, 16, and Ignatius, 12, as well as daughter Edith, who they adopted as a baby back in 2015. Of their home life in the East Sussex countryside, the 51-yearold jokes, “It’s a mess. I don’t know how else to describe it. It’s a wonderful, wonderful mess.”
While the pandemic has forced many of us to slow down, it appears that Cate is busier than ever. Stateless, her six-part drama on immigration, has just landed on Netflix. Cate executive produced the project, as well as starring in it. She’s also set to play Lucille Ball in upcoming Amazon film, Lucy And Desi.
Here, the Australian star talks about the changing landscape of the film industry and family debates over the dinner table...
What do you consider the toughest aspect of being a parent?
I think the hardest thing is having to let go. My mother always used to say it to me and I’d roll my eyes. She would say, “You’ll always be my child, so you have to forgive me because I don’t mean to treat you like a child – but that’s just how I will always feel about you.” I now completely understand that, and it drives my eldest son nuts. It’s very hard to let go.
‘I don’t want to step out Into the world again and step backwards’
‘Women are being much more open about roadblocks or difficulties they have faced or moments of failure’
What funny anecdotes can you share about your experience as a mother?
A fun thing happened when my boys started at their all boys’ school. Their surname is Upton [Cate’s husband’s surname], so I’m down on the register as Cate Upton. Now, there’s another Kate Upton who is a rather attractive young swimsuit model and the boys at my sons’ school asked, “Wait… is your mum Kate Upton?” They said, “Yeah.” And so, when I showed up on the first day to pick them up, I could see the utter disappointment on these 12-year-old boys’ faces. I thought, “What have I done?” The disgust and disappointment was incredibly real. They were so looking forward to those play dates!
Kids often attempt to run away from home when they are young. Did you ever do that?
At the age of three, I did run away from home. I was very ambitious. I went to the next-door neighbour’s house. But for some reason, my neighbour didn’t tell my mother and I was missing for six hours. Can you imagine my poor mother? Thankfully, she found me. I was always running away. I thought I was a girl detective, so I would be out of the house solving mysteries for many hours, with my mother not being able to find me.
Mrs America explores feminism and equal rights. How much change have you seen in Hollywood with regards to these issues after the Time’s Up and #Metoo movements were launched?
I’ve noticed quite a bit of change. I think women have been separated from one another for far too long in our industry, but that gap is now closing. And it’s not just in the film industry. Women are being much more open about roadblocks or difficulties they have faced or moments of failure. I take a little picture whenever I go to work on a new set; it’s just something I do for myself. It’s a picture of who is behind the camera. On some sets, I would notice how I was the one woman to 35 men. I would think, “I’ve been doing this for 20 years and that figure hasn’t changed.” Well, it’s changing now. I’m seeing far more women behind the camera, which is great.
Do you think the positive outcome of the Weinstein case has changed things in
Hollywood? [The film producer was sentenced in March of this year to 23 years in prison for rape and sexual assault.]
I think it’s about moving forward without repetition; with genuine progress. I don’t think anyone involved in the Weinstein case, and the myriad of cases going on, thinks that this type of thing just happens in our industry. It’s every single industry where abuses of power happen, sexual or otherwise. But no one’s interested in vengeance, they are interested in justice and genuine change. We need to keep moving forward.
What did you learn about feminism during your research for Mrs America?
I was very conscious of the feminist women’s movement – I loved how active, mobilised, public and passionate they were. But I was not aware of the parallel movement, which was the conservative women’s movement. For me, that was absolutely revelatory. That’s the movement that was led by Phyllis Schlafly. I was blown away by her ability to inspire, galvanise and mobilise people through a variety of different tactics. Some would call these tactics dubious; some might celebrate them. Either way, Phyllis Schlafly was absolutely a force of nature. I wanted to understand what terrified her about the notion of equality.
Some might say that the older we get, the more rigid our opinions become. Would you agree?
I definitely think that, as one gets older, our opinions can calcify – that’s why I am so grateful to my teenage children for keeping me current. Our family meals are a time for very robust and challenging discussions – and we welcome that. We push back [at the children] and they push back at us. It’s wonderful.
The world seems to be opening up again after lockdown. What are you most looking forward to doing when it’s safe to do so?
I’m looking forward to the world not being taped together in a pale resemblance of its dysfunctional previous iteration. I’m looking forward to emerging into a new world that is sane and inclusive and rational and forward-thinking. I think there are a lot of challenges that face us all and a lot of voices that need to be continually heard and listened to – and these voices need to be folded into the societies that we need to re-forge and remake. I don’t want to step out into the world again and step backwards, that’s for sure.
There were rumours recently that you were involved in a chainsaw accident. Are you okay?
[Laughs] I’m totally fine. Oh, the gossip mill! We live in the countryside and we’ve been gardening a lot during this lockdown. To be honest, I didn’t realise it was an Olympic sport, but we’ve been gardening for England over the last couple of months. We were out with a chainsaw and I was standing in the wrong spot, but I’m totally fine. Thank you for asking.
MRS AMERICA IS ON WEDNESDAYS, ON BBC2. STATELESS IS ON NETFLIX .