Conversation w/ Ashley Judd

You have been starring on Broadway for the last few months in Cat On A Hot Tin Roof and I couldn’t help but notice that you are performing right next door to your Someone Like You co-star, Hugh Jackman, who is in The Boy from Oz.
A.J. I know, it’s so funny that happened.

Have you seen his show yet?
A.J. I haven’t. I actually gave him a lot of grief because for Cat On a Hot Tin Roof during Christmas and New Year’s we did 13 shows in eight days. I think he only did ten shows in seven days so, na, na, na, na, na!!! But no, I have been so busy I haven’t had a chance to see him yet. We send notes back and forth to each other through our dressers.

On to Twisted; I thought you did such a spectacular job playing this cop who on the outside is as tough as nails, but inside she’s got a few "issues." How did you prepare yourself not just physically, but emotionally for this part? A.J. You’ve just got to show up and do it. I knew I was in really good hands with Phil Kaufman. He’s such a brilliant and sensitive director that if I lost my way, or if I got tired or whatever, I knew that he would bring it out in me. Doing the stunts and the tough stuff and being on the mean streets with the more psychological and vulnerable aspects was actually really fun. That’s what makes a role like this so appealing.

Did you get to hang out with a female police inspector to sort of model the character after?
A.J. I did actually. I spent some time with a really nice lady named Maureen and she was a Gemini and she literally told me that she thought she had a dual personality. She was a mother and a care provider at home and then she would go in and be a cop. She always dressed at work so it was like putting on her armor and taking on the other aspect of her personality. That enabled her to be a crime fighter and solver and helped her deal with the gruesome things that crop up in her line of work. She had this little plant that she took care of at work and she kept moving it and rotating it and placing it so it had enough sun and water so we actually put that in the movie because my apartment was really barren. So we put the little plant by the sink that I take care of and that’s my homage to Inspector Maureen.

You have two great co-stars, Samuel L. Jackson and Andy Garcia. That’s not too tough!
A.J. It was great; they are wonderful actors and really sweet men. Sam is so obsessed with golf it’s hilarious. He would play 18 holes, come rehearse, then run off during rehearsal and go play again. He’d sometimes fall asleep during rehearsals he was so tired. (Laughs). Andy gave me a whistle as a wrap present because he has daughters and when he found out that I like to go walking in the woods by myself he got very nervous and gave me a whistle so I could whistle for help if I needed to, God forbid!

You have a few more weeks on your run on Broadway?
A.J. Another month and that’s it. It’s been a fabulous experience playing Maggie in Cat On a Hot Tin Roof alongside Jason Patric and Ned Beatty. I have just loved my time on the stage here in New York.

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