She may not be as mainstream as some of the other cast, but Laila Robins makes a formidable entry as Martha Boyd, the US ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, in Homeland, writes Debashine Thangevelo.
A VERY graceful person, Laila Robins (pictured) walks into the interview room exuding an air of confidence.
Going by that, it was obvious why she fit the bill for Martha Boyd.
Sharing her thoughts on the show’s sway with audiences, she offers: “I think it’s the authenticity of the show. It’s very realistic, almost like a documentary. The suspense is amazing. I know when I was watching previous seasons and it was absolutely riveting – not just the storyline, but also the calibre of the acting.”
On playing a role that’s not entirely fictional – as that job exists in the real world – Robins notes: “Well, I read some books that were recommended by Alex Gansa. My parents are actually from Latvia so I have a connection with a Latvian ambassador. I really wanted to know more about the daily life of an ambassador, the ups and downs and the challenges on a human level. How difficult is it to sustain relationships going from one country to another because your term usually lasts about three years? I explored the human aspects so I could bring an authenticity to her life instead of just playing an ambassador. You fall into certain traps when you play an idea so I wanted to humanise it.”
Most of her scenes are with Carrie (played by Claire Danes).
She shares: “My first scene was with Claire so that was a nice baptism into the show. I’ve had a scene with Mandy (Saul) and one with Rupert (Peter – a CIA black ops SOG/SAD operative). Lately, I’ve been having more scenes with the actor who plays my husband, Mark Moses (Dennis – a political science teacher at Islamabad’s Quaid-I-Azam University) and also another new actor on the show, Michael O’Keefe (John Redmond – a CIA deputy station chief in Pakistan).”
Peeling back the layers of her character, she offers: “Sometimes when characters are described initially, it’s an idea and once the actor starts playing the role, they wed their personality to the idea and it morphs. Then the writers start writing for you and what you bring to the party as an actor. Which is a wonderful thing because it’s a collaborative effort between the writers and the actor.
“Sometimes it’s fun to play a difficult human being, but type A is not something I’m playing. It’s nice to have a hint of a person who is very dedicated to her work. I suppose I would put it in more positive terms. As an actor, you can’t judge the character. You have to figure out why somebody does the things they do and have sympathy and empathy for them.”
What aficionados will enjoy is watching Martha juggle her professional and personal life and keep the two from colliding.