When she was given the opportunity to play a college dropout turned NASA trainee in the romantic comedy Space Cadet ( Infiltrated in NASA), welcomed the change of tone.
“This film “It feels a little bit nostalgic, a little bit early 2000s in a way, but also fresh and fun,” Roberts said in an interview.
Roberts executive produces and stars in the film, which premieres Thursday on Prime Video. Her character is Rex, a young girl who dreamed of becoming an astronaut, but in her adult reality has taken a different path. Rex is working as a waitress when she is accepted into a NASA apprenticeship program. The film co-stars Tom Hopper, Poppy Liu of Hacks and Gabrielle Union.
The leader gives the record to Roberts Private Benjamin (Recruit Benjamin) y Legally Blonde (Legally Blonde), and was excited to play: “the underrated female character who ends up surprising people in unexpected ways.”
Return to comedy
It was his previous work in American Horror Story which made screenwriter and director Liz W. Garcia confident that Roberts could play Rex.
“The genre itself may be horror, but she always has a wink to it,” Garcia said. “It’s Hollywood blondes and playing into that archetype. Emma really liked the idea of having a Goldie Hawn moment for herself, leaning into physical comedy and something a little more elevated. It turned out that was really brilliant.”
In an interview, Roberts spoke further about Space Cadet and other topics, such as being a mother to a boy, production, and her book club. Answers are edited for clarity and brevity.
AP: With box office numbers down and a general cutback in new television shows, have you found it a difficult time to get things going in Hollywood?
ROBERTS: Yeah, I feel like we’re feeling the effects of the strikes more now than we did last year, which is ironic. Between the strikes and COVID, we’ve been living in strange and unprecedented times. I’m so grateful for the TV show that I executive produce, Tell Me Lieswhich has just finished filming its second season. With Space CadetI’m excited to put something out there that I think will make people smile and laugh and hopefully feel a little inspired.
AP: What can you say about season 2 of Tell Me Lies? The premise is based on a book by Carola Lovering. Does the series stay close to that plot?
ROBERTS: I’m really excited for people to see Season 2. It’s more unexpected than people think. Our executive producer, Meaghan Oppenheimer, is incredible. She really took this show to a new level. With TV shows, it’s fun, especially in a second season, to turn everything on its head. I think we definitely did that and I can’t wait to see people’s reactions.
AP: You have a young son. Does he like outer space?
ROBERTS: We love space. Our thing is that he puts on his pajamas and then we go outside and look at the stars before he goes to bed, and he says, “There are so many stars.” There’s this childlike wonder about space at any age, but I don’t hear a lot of little girls say they want to be astronauts. I’d love to hear more little girls, or even young people in general, say that.
AP: You grew up in a home with your mother and sister. What is it like to be a mother of a boy?
ROBERTS: My mom has a sister. I have a sister. I mean, we’re all like sisters, mothers, daughters. There are so many girls around. I was convinced I was going to have a girl. I was like, “I know. It’s intuition. I’m going to have a girl.” They said it was a boy, and I was like, “Huh?” But I love it. I’ve definitely had to brush up on my basketball and soccer skills. I was a little rusty, so I’m trying to dig deeper. I will say that I’ve saved a lot of money on clothes being a mom of a boy, because you just put whatever on him. I see little girl stuff and I’m like, “Oh my gosh.” I would be broke if I had a daughter because everything is so cute.
AP: You recently co-starred with Kim Kardashian American Horror Story: Delicate and you received positive reviews. Were you surprised by her acting skills?
ROBERTS: I was very impressed by her. I’m still impressed by her. I mean, everything she does is impressive. She’s a mom. She’s a businesswoman and now an actress. She also has a The Kardashiansthat I see. The item I’m wearing under my dress is SKIMS. I just love it. We’re doing a series called Calabasas with (the creator of Pretty Little Liars) I. Marlene King, and we’re all executive producers. We’re both from Calabasas, California, which is a lot of fun. She’s a lot of fun. She’s up for anything, and I’m really excited to get to work on something else with her.
AP: You’re one of Ryan Murphy’s regular call-ons for his projects. How does that work?
ROBERTS: It’s funny. You never know when he’s going to ask you to do something, which I love about him, and then you see his name on your phone and you’re like, ‘Okay, what are we doing?’ It’s always a yes for Ryan. His stuff is always so inspired and the worlds he builds are so uniquely his own.
AP: You also have an online book club called Belletrist. As a lifelong reader, it must feel good to recommend books and interact with your followers.
ROBERTS: It’s been seven years and it’s been amazing to see the community grow. It really makes me happy when people stop me on the street and say, “Emma!” And I’m like, “What are they going to say?” And they’re like, “What should I read?” I love picking out books to read, even for my friends, especially in the summer or when they’re going on a long trip. I’ll say, “Okay, where are you going? What’s your vibe? How long is the flight? I’m going to recommend three books for you to take with you.” It makes me so happy.
AP: Will you ever write a book?
ROBERTS: You know, I would. I’ve thought about maybe short stories or something. Maybe when I’m like 70, and I don’t care what people think, I’ll write a memoir. (laughter) Yeah, I’d love to do that. I want to write children’s books. My mom and I have talked about doing that together, and I think it would be really, really fun, especially now that I have a son who loves to read.
AP: In the age of screen time, it’s great that he appreciates books.
ROBERTS: You can read Goodnight Moon from start to finish, and I’m very proud. My biggest achievement so far is that he likes to read. That makes me happy.
FUENTE: AP
