Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Kate Winslet shares the ‘agonising’ event she imagined for her character’s backstory in Mare of Easttown

Award-winning actor fleshed out her character with tragic details

Annabel Nugent
Monday 07 June 2021 12:06 BST
Comments
Mare of Easttown trailer starring Kate Winslet

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Kate Winslet has shared how she prepared for her role in Mare of Easttown by thinking of tragic details to add into her character’s history.

Winslet won widespread acclaim for her portrayal of small-town detective Mare Sheehan in the hit crime drama by HBO.

The complex character had a mournful backstory in which both her son and detective father had committed suicide.

The actor has since opened up about how she went about constructing Mare’s tragic history in her mind.

“She was a daddy’s girl,” Winslet told IndieWire. “So much so that I felt that probably [her mother, played by Jean Smart] was a little envious of the connection that her husband had with Mare, because she couldn’t relate to Mare in the same way.

“And I decided that on the day that Mare’s father had killed himself, that she had found him and that actually they were going to a daddy and daughter’s dance at her school the next day and she had a special outfit she was going to wear and she was all excited to dress up in, and he chose that day to take his own life.”

The 45-year-old added that the event would have “left [Mare] -feeling that she wasn’t enough”.

“I had to create something as upsetting as that, that in the moment when she talks about it, it would trigger all this off the visual that I’d created,” she said. “This little girl who probably didn’t even wear dresses very often and this dress that she had picked out for herself and was all excited to put on and proud to go to school, this dance with her dad.”

Kate Winslet in Mare of Easttown
Kate Winslet in Mare of Easttown (© 2021 Home Box Office, Inc. Al)

Winslet continued: “I had to create these agonising things that I could rely on that were absolutely clear to me. They became little realities for me in the planning of this part.”

As well as leading the series and serving as an executive producer, Winslet was also responsible for securing two of the show’s other stars.

Apple TV+ logo

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days

New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled

Try for free
Apple TV+ logo

Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days

New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled

Try for free

Both Guy Pearce (who played Mare’s love interest Richard) and Julianne Nicholson (Lori Ross) agreed to sign on to the series after being urged by Winslet.

Last week, creator Brad Inglesby cleared up the confusion as to why Pearce agreed to star in the minor role.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in