Julianna Margulies wants you to know that she's capable of being funny. We know what you must be thinking: The woman who currently stars in the hit CBS drama 'The Good Wife'? The same actress who has won an Emmy and multiple Screen Actor Guild awards for her dramatic work on shows like 'ER'? Yep, that very same Julianna Margulies can be and wants to be a comedic actress, which she proves in her new film, 'City Island.'
"I loved that ['City Island'] was a comedy," Margulies said. "I rarely get offered those."
The film opens March 19 in Los Angeles and New York, and features Margulies as Joyce Rizzo, the crass wife of Vince (Andy Garcia), a prison guard from the small Bronx, NY, fishing village, City Island. Vince has secretly been taking acting classes behind his wife's back, which makes her suspicious.
"It's a movie about a dysfunctional family ... that spins out of control with its lies and ends up finding its way back to each other," Margulies said.
In the film, Margulies plays a mother of two, Vinnie Jr. (Ezra Miller) and Vivian, played Dominik Garcia-Lorido, Garcia's daughter. But don't expect Margulies to appear on screen with her 2-year-old son, Kieran, anytime soon.
"Listen, whatever he wants to do I will support wholeheartedly, but I hope he doesn't want to become an actor," Margulies said. "I love what I do, but it's not easy."
"I think for most people it's not an easy profession, and certainly a very difficult profession to break in to, so if he does want to be an actor, then at 18 he can make that choice," she added. "Until then, he's going to school."
Margulies made her film debut in 1991's 'Out for Justice.' She then shot to fame as Carol Hathaway on NBC's 'ER' and appeared in numerous stage and screen productions, including the seminal classic 'Snakes on a Plane.' She currently plays Alicia Florrick on CBS' 'The Good Wife.'
Margulies filmed 'City Island' after the birth of her son, and said she welcomed the change of pace, so much so that Joyce Rizzo has become her favorite film role so far.
"I had just had my baby, and it was so good to be out of my own skin for a minute, and get back into acting and to sort of find my identity again as an actor," Margulies said. "And to be able to play someone so out there, it was just fun to disappear."
While being a mom and working on a weekly TV series keeps Margulies pretty busy, she does have a wish-list of actors and projects. The raven-haired actress said she'd love to do more dramatic films, but she also has her eye on comedies and action flicks.
"I would love to do something with Ricky Gervais, I really would," Margulies said. "I would love to try out some more comedy. I really would love to be able to do that."
Also on Margulies' list? Meryl Streep.
"I know it's corny, but just one scene with Meryl Streep ... I would take just one," she said.
Add your comments