During those initial years of 鈥淢ad Men,鈥 Elisabeth Moss worried what kind of roles she might get when it was over.
Then Jane Campion鈥檚 鈥淭op of the Lake鈥 came her way during a hiatus and put her on a new course. 鈥淚t settled any fear of what I do next,鈥 she says. 鈥淚 realized I could do things at the same time during a job and it didn鈥檛 really matter.鈥
Enter: 鈥淭he Veil,鈥 a spy thriller by Steven Knight that finds Moss as a veteran MI6 agent traveling from Istanbul to Paris with a woman who may not be telling her the truth.
Moss鈥 character 鈥渒nows how to get what she wants and how to get something done.鈥
鈥淚 love this genre,鈥 she says by phone. 鈥淭o get to be that woman in that space was just really exciting. It fulfilled all my expectations.鈥
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And it gave her an opportunity to play something other than a controlled woman 鈥 the role that won her Emmys on 鈥淭he Handmaid鈥檚 Tale.鈥 鈥淚 wasn鈥檛 planning on doing a television project because that鈥檚 my day job,鈥 Moss says. 鈥淏ut then I got the script and it was like the best thing I was reading鈥 had to go for it. And it always comes down to that.鈥
To play a spy, Moss did plenty of research (鈥渟omething I never usually do鈥) about British agents. Among the insights: Don鈥檛 be the one who鈥檚 always asking questions. Get the other person to speak. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a very old tactic, so I think I鈥檓 probably a little less calculating.鈥
聽Elisabeth Moss, left, plays Imogen Salter and Yumna Marwan stars as Adilah El Idrissi in "The Veil."聽
Traveling with a woman who could be lying requires a great deal of trust.
鈥淭hey go back and forth all the time,鈥 she says of the characters she and Yumna Marwan play. 鈥淪ometimes someone is telling the truth and the next thing they say is a lie. And sometimes they鈥檙e being honest with each other and sometimes they find out that none of it was ever true.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 the core of what (writer) Steven Knight wanted. It鈥檚 like a chess game. They just go back and forth.鈥
In addition to starring in "The Veil," Elisabeth Moss is also one of the series' executive producers.聽
Moss, conversely, errs on the side of believing the best in people. 鈥淎t this point, I鈥檝e encountered some people who were not as trustworthy. You learn a little bit more about you鈥nd how you lead people. I can鈥檛 be a Method actor. I get bored.鈥
While making the series, Knight told Moss about a woman who, when she was 65, revealed to her family, 鈥淚 just retired and I鈥檝e been a spy my entire life.鈥
鈥淚t鈥檚 not an easy existence by any means,鈥 Moss says.
While filming, the cast and crew of 鈥淭he Veil鈥 had to deal with a polar vortex in Turkey, rain in Paris and fog in the United Kingdom.
鈥淚 usually winter in Canada (where she shoots 鈥楬andmaid鈥檚 Tale鈥), so I was fine with it. Everybody was so cold and I was like, 鈥極h my god, please don鈥檛 even start.鈥欌
Producing (which she does on 鈥淭he Veil鈥) has been a life changer. She got that title and started directing on 鈥淗andmaid鈥檚 Tale.鈥 That aspect will be hard to leave. Still, as the hit series nears its final season, 鈥淚 do know what her journey is. I do know where she鈥檚 going and, timing wise, it鈥檚 kind of the right thing to do. At the same time, if they said, 鈥楧o you want to do 10 more years?鈥 I鈥檇 probably be like, 鈥楽ure, why not?鈥欌
鈥淭he Veil鈥 emerged from the idea that there was friction among various intelligence agencies when dealing with new threats. Knight went to Europe to research the likelihood and gathered stories. 鈥淲hat I wanted to do with this was take huge issues and boil them down to two people in a car, driving through the snow and the nature of the conversation affects the outcome for thousands of people,鈥 Knight says.
Elisabeth Moss stars in "The Handmaid's Tale" on Hulu.聽
To help separate her character from others she has played, Moss uses a British accent. 鈥淚 worked on it probably harder than I鈥檝e ever worked on anything,鈥 she says. 鈥淚 started in September and we started shooting in February. I didn鈥檛 want to be thinking about it. I wanted to do the material justice.鈥
Knight described the character as a 鈥渟hapeshifter,鈥 able to play different roles and then let them go.
鈥淲hen she鈥檚 playing a character, she鈥檚 not lying. She actually more truthful than she can ever be,鈥 Moss says. 鈥淚 said, 鈥楽o she鈥檚 an actress鈥 and he said, 鈥榊es.鈥 And I said, 鈥極K. Got it.鈥欌
More seasons of 鈥淭he Veil鈥? 鈥淚 felt we just scratched the surface of who she could be.鈥
鈥淭he Veil鈥 airs April 30 on Hulu.聽
Elisabeth Moss first came to prominence as Peggy Olson on "Mad Men."
