The American fantasy television series, Resurrection returns for a 2nd season, packed with more shocking discoveries, bigger mysteries and unexpected surprises.
In the new season, of Resurrection, we see Omar Epps reprise his role as J. Martin Bellamy, Kurtwood Smith as Henry Langston and Landon Gimenez as Jacob Langston. The new season will also see “Game of Thrones” star Michelle Fairley play Langston’s formerly deceased grandmother.
Bellamy was left shaken with the shocking
discovery that he himself is a returned. He struggles to understand how
this is possible, and what it means on a personal level to discover he
has died and come back. This little town and Bellamy must now live in a
new reality, but not without one more surprise, the return of Margaret
Langston.
Read what Michelle Fairely has to say about her role as Margaret Langston, her thoughts on the series and views if resurrection was real!
Resurrection Season 2 airs ever Monday, 10pm on Lifetime! (StarHub TV Ch 514)
(Interview transcript courtesy of Lifetime)
Qn: You have played some incredibly strong women/mother roles recently. Can you talk a little bit about your character in Resurrection? Is this a running theme that’s draws you to be a part of?
Michelle: I don’t think that I necessarily go after these roles; I don’t search in particular for strong women roles. I’m just fortunate enough that’s the roles that I get tend to have strength within them. Whether it’s strength for mothering, a strength for nurturing, a strength for getting their own way or a belief is a strength so, women of conviction.
That’s Margaret Langston in Resurrection. She’s one of the returned and she comes back with a mission. Her life when she was alive – she was married and she had two kids. She had Fred and Henry and a husband who ran a business. In the times that she was living, it was very much a men’s world where the men did the work and the women took the backseat. Within her life, then, was completely stifled and felt very unfulfilled. But in reality, she was a very intelligent, strong businesswoman who never actually got the chance to practice it. She was the strength behind her husband who was the manager. But what she really wanted to do was to be in her husband’s shoes and run the business. So she comes back, with the passion and the drive that she left the world with.
Qn: Did you watch the first season and what did you think of the series then?
Michelle: I was fortunate. It hadn’t been shown in England so I think it’s just been aired there within the last month, so I was given the DVDs when I was approached for the role. I absolutely loved it! I loved the quality of the production, the acting is fantastic, and Frances Fisher you know. The entire cast was wonderful and the production value was incredibly high as well as the writing. Omar, the main lead, he finds the show an incredible acting incredible performances and an incredible production. What I love about it is that it regresses to all generations.
Qn: Your character was formerly deceased in the show, how much of the mystery do you know for this season?
Michelle: That’s a very good question but I can’t answer you as I would give the plot lines away. When I was approached about the part, I had several long phone calls with the writers and the producers to discuss the arc of the character and how they saw the character progressing with the world – to the living world with a family. I mean there are so many ways to go with it. She’s coming back, she’s younger than her children, and she has a grandson who is also a returned so there’s a connection there. She’s the mother in law; she come back to a world that has changed rapidly since her death. Yet she expects things to be the way they are, the relationships to be the way they are and also she expects to be respected the way she was as a matriarch as well.
Having the long conversations, the episodes are written as we go along so as an actor, you may not know what’s going to happen from one episode to the next. That’s part of the excitement and the longer you stand in these characters, you sort of have the interactions with the other characters that you’re lucky enough to work with the sons, Henry and Fred.
Qn: Would you think that if whatever happens in Resurrection could happen in real life? Do you see that as a good or bad thing that it could actually happen in real life?
Michelle: I mean resurrection… that’s a very funny question. I wish it could happen in real life. I think it does if you believe in reincarnation. A lot of people do and there are certainly some people you meet in life that will feel like old souls and that they’ve possibly have been here before. A lot of them are unexplained, unfortunately. I think medically, it’s impossible but I think that you may not be yourself when you come back. You can believe in reincarnation but you can be somebody else with knowledge of certain things, which helped you in your new life. Whatever gives you solace, whatever gives you strength and whatever your belief is.
Qn: Your character Margaret returns with a dark secret. How would you describe her story’s effect on the bigger picture?
Michelle: She has a dark secret, definitely and its up to her to use that knowledge wisely carefully and some might say kindly. But it depends and kindly refers to the way Margaret thinks but it may not be accepted. It may not be interpreted that way by other characters. She’s an incredibly strong woman with an incredibly strong will and she’s determined to see it through and get her own way.
Qn: In the first season, Henry and Jacob relationship - a father losing his son at a young age that provided an emotional call to season one. Will your relationship with your two sons provide that emotional call in season two?
Michelle: Absolutely. Margaret comes back; she wants her family to be together. An umbilical cord that she hasn’t touched with her family. She wants that as strong as ever. It has been severed but she wants to mend that. Her strongest mission is to reunite the family. To reconnect that umbilical cord, to get the brothers back together again. To get the family, father daughter relationship going as well and that s exactly what she’s about. She comes back to reunite the family and to make the Langstons strong and proud.
Qn: You had this legion of global fans ever since your role in game of thrones, have you consider your star power, you know the people that stop you on the streets and that kind of thing?
Michelle: That’s a very generous phrase you used but I don’t see it like that. I see myself as somebody who acts for a living. I am incredibly fortunate to be working in wonderful productions, working with wonderful directors and writers, actors, the opportunity to travel with it as well. So from the point of view of an actor, you know when something is good, you read this character and it grips you. And if you’re lucky enough to get the role then you work incredibly hard. If it’s liked and loved, that is an extra bonus. I’ve been incredibly fortunate, in that the jobs I’ve done have been that.
When I do get approached, It’s always with love and respect and people are so friendly and lovely. I think it’s probably the nature of the role. They possibly might be scared of me. That would be too much. But they’re always lovely, it’s a delight to be thanked and told how much they love the show and the shows. It’s affirmation of a job well done.
Qn: With what’s going on with online and your fans, do you know that there’s a video compilation of all your laughter tracks on YouTube and it got more than 25,000 hits?
Michelle: I have no idea about that! I have an apple computer at home but I have never googled or searched myself. I don’t use social media or anything like that so I actually have no idea. Sometimes I find things out through other people but I didn’t know that. Thank you for telling me.
Qn: You’ve worked with a lot of younger people. How do you feel working with a child actor?
Michelle: Oh he is wonderful, Langdon is wonderful. He’s an absolute natural and he has an incredible family around him as well. His mother was with him at Atlanta and his sister. He is incredible well looked after and respected by the company that he is working with and the actors that he is working with. He is a wonderful young boy and he just a natural I can say. Actually working with him, it’s fabulous to watch him because I can watch and learn from him as much as I can learn from anyone else. There is just a lovely natural instinct quality about him which is a gift basically. He is incredibly professional, always knows his lines and he is very interested with what goes on around him on the set as well. He is lovely to work with and an absolute joy.
Qn: Can you share with us what mainly attracted you to this show?
Michelle: It’s the complex nature of Margaret Langston. That’s exactly what attracted me to the show. Having spoken to Arron and the writers and the producers, Michelle and about how they wanted the characters to progress possibly the aspects where she will go on which is an organic thing that will change that is their ward. Also when I was sent the DVDs to watch the production value of it – the quality of it. And its something that makes working with the actors here in Atlanta. They’re wonderful and I’ve been incredibly fortunate. I’m very privileged to be in the position that I am working here in Atlanta in such a wonderful show with amazing actors.
Qn: How would you like to remembered? Everyone wants to be remembered for different things when there is the returned especially. For yourself personally, how would you like to be remembered?
Michelle: I honestly really didn’t know how to answer that question. Especially in the light that I very recently lost a very good friend as well. I don’t know, I think the one thing you want to remember – the one thing I remembered about my friend is kindness, love, fun, generosity and just a very good friend. It’s about being a good human being, to other people. That’s what you want to remember somebody by. I don’t know but in terms of your friends, what you want from your family is to remember you with love and warmth.
Qn: Coming from your love for theatre and doing so many big shows right now, do you have a dream role? And if its, so what is it?
Michelle: No, I don’t have a dream role. The dream role I think is the one that challenges you, the one that makes you think and wrestles your brain and your heart and your body as to why, what’s going on in here. You know, I don’t want anything to be easy; I want to work hard for what I do. If that means walking for hours, telling myself how to work my mind into the mind of my character. What is this person doing, I want to know that I want to understand that. So anything that pushes me and keep’s my interest and teaches me something – I want to learn as well. It just brings such a joy to your heart and your soul and your head while working on something like that.
Qn: How do you feel about your career path right now?
Michelle: I’m a working actor and at this point of my life, I’m employed and to me that is a success. I am incredibly fortunate and lucky. Luck does play a part in this world. I hope it continues, as I love what I do and I want to continue doing it. I understand the way life works and even though I might not accept it but sometimes I have to. I’m very fortunate at this point in my life. As sometimes when women get older they don’t necessarily work. I have I don’t take any of that for granted and I work very hard and I respect the people I work with and I care about my job mentally.
Resurrection Season 2 airs ever Monday, 10pm on Lifetime! (StarHub TV Ch 514)