Gillian Anderson: From ‘X-Files’ to ‘Hannibal’

Bert B. Sulat Jr.

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‘The X-Files’ star on how sweet it is to be on ‘Hannibal’s’ casting menu, plus the most crucial role of her life and more

DOCTOR DOCTOR, GIVE ME THE NEWS. Gillian Anderson is a radiant addition as a psychiatrist in the dark TV series ‘Hannibal.’ All photos from AXN Asia and the ‘Hannibal’ Facebook fan page  

MANILA, Philippines – “I was convinced that it would be really cool to join them.” 

Thus explains London-based American actress Gillian Anderson, via a long-distance conference call with Rappler and other Asian media, about her recurring role in the suspense thriller “Hannibal,” a US-made NBC series whose maiden season airs locally via AXN

Many would say Anderson, who turns 45 this August, is back where she’s best seen: the small screen. For nearly a decade, she portrayed FBI special agent Dana Scully on the science fiction-horror drama “The X-Files,” an iconic TV gig that earned her acclaim and awards (an Emmy and a Golden Globe included) and still endears her to countless viewers worldwide long after the show ended in 2002. 

Grateful as she is for her “X” stint (“I’ve been doing Comic-Cons this year for its 20th anniversary,” she says), Anderson has long strived to diversify her acting portfolio, landing TV and movie roles far removed from her high-profile turn as a skeptical investigator of criminal oddities. 

Hannibal’: Feast for eyes and brain

That means, aside from being Scully in two movies with “X-Files” partner David Duchovny and besides stage and TV productions, Anderson has had a few lead and several supporting turns in films. These include cast-headlining turns in the little-seen likes of “The House of Mirth” and “Boogie Woogie” and smaller roles in the more-prominent “The Mighty,” “The Last King of Scotland” and “Johnny English Reborn,” among others.

“I wasn’t keen on doing network television again,” Anderson continues, “but after a couple of conversations, Bryan Fuller [the writer-producer who developed ‘Hannibal’ based on the Thomas Harris novel ‘Red Dragon’] convinced me to join. I realized he was right. This was a fun thing to get into with its good-quality actors.” 

A ROSE AMONG THE... Anderson at an overseas press conference for ‘Hannibal,' with co-stars Hugh Dancy, Mads Mikkelsen and Laurence Fishburne virtually behind her

In “Hannibal,” Anderson plays Dr. Bedelia Du Maurier, an FBI-affiliated psychiatrist who, despite her retirement, is still sought by Dr. Hannibal Lecter (played by Mads Mikkelsen), himself a shrink — and a psycho, given his secret life as a murderous cannibal. Anderson’s “Hannibal” role is a recurring, guest-starring one; following her debut in episode 7 (whose uncredited title is “Sorbet”), she has been and will be seen in episodes 8 (“Fromage”), 11 (“Roti,” which airs in Asia this Monday, June 17), 12 (“Relevés”) and 13, the season finale (“Savoreux”).

“[Dr. Du Maurier] has been Dr. Lecter’s psychiatrist for a long time,” Anderson relates. “We learn that she’s retired but he’s still her patient. Right now, the way she’s been written, the audience doesn’t know what she’s thinking or what she knows about him, and that mystery is what’s intriguing about her.” 

This fresh gig brought Anderson back to Toronto, Canada — “The X-Files’” own shooting locale — but just for 3 days. This meant that “I worked on my dialogue on my own, in my hotel room. I didn’t really have time to talk much to Mads before shooting,” she says of her primary “Hannibal” co-star. 

She goes on to describe the Danish actor as “incredible, amazing to work with and fascinating to watch, filled with so many emotions.” Now, “if anyone thinks of Hannibal” — whom actor Anthony Hopkins had famously brought to infamous life — “it’s Mads who will be thought of.”

Mads Mikkelsen takes stab at ‘Hannibal’

As for any larger preparation for her role, Anderson points out that “I’ve been on therapy at various times in my life, so I’m familiar with the process, with the dynamic between therapist and patient. The bigger question was what kind of professional and what kind of woman would she be.” 

PSYCHED. Gillian Anderson as Dr. Bedelia Du Maurier is the psychiatrist of fellow shrink Dr. Hannibal Lecter (played by Mads Mikkelsen)

Given that both “Hannibal” and “The X-Files” involve America’s Federal Bureau of Investigation and (fictitious) serial killers, have similarly eerie atmospherics and practically share the “Files” motto “Trust no one,” are Agent Scully and Dr. Du Maurier comparable?

“Bedelia and Scully are very different people,” Anderson attests. “Scully was not a psychiatrist.” The actress took the opportunity to stress that “I play a lot of different characters, and each requires a different amount of preparation, a different type of thinking.”  

One also wonders why someone of Anderson’s clout and pedigree has not had a greater amount of lead-star work, notwithstanding her headlining gig of late: as a detective superintendent in BBC Two’s “The Fall,” which has begun airing in the US via Netflix. She readily supplies a personal answer, one indicative of her most serious role ever. 

“There have been many such offers but they did not interest me. I have 3 children [Piper Maru, age 18; Oscar, 6, and Felix, 4] and we live in the UK, so I prefer a balance between finding work that I like and being away from my kids for as little time as possible.” (“The Fall” itself is rather manageable for her at just 5 episodes per season.)

SOMETHING TO SMILE ABOUT. Anderson’s guest-starring turn in ‘Hannibal’ will go on, given its renewal for a second season

Following “Hannibal’s” impending hiatus before Season 2 airs next year, Anderson can be seen in at least two 2014 movies: heading the cast of the drama “Sold,” about a Nepalese girl who yearns for freedom from a brothel in India; and “Our Robot Overlords,” a sci-fi adventure co-starring Ben Kingsley and which is being shot, like “The Fall,” in Belfast, Ireland.

“I wish to be remembered for a lot of things about my work,” Anderson muses. “‘Hannibal’ is a sweet thing to have in my work roster. I’m glad it’s part of the whole.” 

Here is a preview of ‘Hannibal’ featuring Gillian Anderson (viewer discretion advised): 


As for Dr. Bedelia Du Maurier’s fate, “I don’t know what’s next.” The actress jokingly speculates that “I intend to be there until Hannibal eats me.”

And if it were up to her, what type of Hannibalistic dish would she be? “Hmm… Maybe some kind of pudding. He can turn her into some kind of desert…a tofu pie, a Bedelia pie.” 

In the context of “Hannibal’s” culinary perversity, that sounds like a tasty ending.  Rappler.com 

 

‘Hannibal’ airs in the Philippines via AXN every Monday at 10pm, with replays on Mondays, 11:50pm; Tuesdays, 3:30pm; Fridays, 10:55pm; Saturdays, 9:55pm and Sundays, 1pm. 

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