The actress also shared how she found out she had been cast as young Debra Morgan.
It's been a day since the first episode of Dexter: Original Sin premiered, and audiences seem genuinely satisfied with it. One standout performer who has captured attention since the debut of episode 101, "And in the Beginning...", is Molly Brown, portraying a 17-year-old Debra Morgan.
In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Brown shared how she found herself in France just weeks after a seemingly successful round of auditions for the role. She knew news about her potential casting was imminent. “I’d been trying to build good karma for myself that whole week,” she revealed, reflecting on her time in Paris.
Read the full interview with THR's Seija Rankin below.
Finding out about joining the Dexter prequel while leaving the Eras Tour: How did Molly Brown process the news?
"I flew back to New York a couple days later and the First AD called me the night I landed and asked if I could get to L.A. the next day to start doing my first fittings. I actually couldn’t because my lease was ending, and I had to move out of my apartment, but I still started very quickly after hearing the news. I had to do all those fittings, and I had to get the first of what would be many spray tans."
Patrick Gibson’s red-hair mockup: Did she have a similar test with spray tans?
"It’s so funny because I’m an anxious person, and I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. In my first fitting, the showrunner, director and producer were all there — and at one point [our showrunner] left the room, and I was like, “Oh God, I’ve left a bad impression and just lost this job.” I was thinking about how the Deadline article [announcing the cast] had just come out, and it was going to be so embarrassing. But I think what was actually being discussed was that I needed a spray tan. You look really different in those clothes when you have a Miami tan."
Did Molly revisit the original episodes to match Jennifer Carpenter’s portrayal of Deb?
"I don’t know why I feel the need to emphasize this, but I really was a Dexter fan. It’s not bullshit. I was obsessed with it. But you don’t want to do a carbon copy of the original character because then it just seems like a poor imitation — that’s not how you make good art. I wanted to make the role my own. My way into it was actually her swearing. Anytime I got to say “fuck” in a sentence, I was like, “OK, I know Deb, and I know how she does this.” We shot our first scenes in Miami, and I did have some trouble on day one or two because I just kept getting caught up in hearing Jennifer Carpenter’s voice and worrying that I was imitating her. But luckily our director caught it and said something. He was like, “You as Molly are more than enough for this. Just be an actor.”"
Did Molly meet Jennifer?
"I’d really like to, but I haven’t yet. I did get a note passed to me from her when I was cast, saying that I have her blessing, and she’s my biggest fan. That meant so much."
How does Molly Brown's high school self compare to Deb’s rebellious side?
"I got into a bit of trouble as well. I didn’t skip class, but Deb’s attitude is very close to what my attitude has been for parts of my life."
How did Brown and Patrick Gibson build sibling chemistry?
"He might say something different (laughs), but I felt so immediately comfortable with him. I feel lucky that he’s genuinely a really cool guy. He’s someone that I would be happy to be friends with independent of this show. I do have an actual brother, too, and he did a background role in the pilot. There’s a scene at a volleyball game, and I set my coat down on the bleachers to save a set for Dexter and tell someone to move over. That someone is my real-life brother."
What’s her impression of the Dexter fandom compared to your expectations?
"I knew there would be people who didn’t want to see anyone other than Jennifer play this role. And I understand that. So before going to Comic Con, where we were introduced to the fans for the first time, I was really nervous. But the experience of walking out on that stage and seeing thousands of people cheering was surreal. There were people who printed off photos of me to sign. One was an old headshot that I’d never seen in print before. People are clearly excited about it, and it’s a nice surge of energy to get."
Source: THR