Michelle Obama lookalike? U-NEXT's "First Ladies" is a dramatic drama series about the fate of "the President's Wives."
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"First Lady". Many people know that this term refers to the wife of the President of the United States.
Many films have been made about the "truth" of past American presidents, such as "JFK" (1991), "Bush" (2008), and "Lincoln" (2012), but what about films with First Ladies as the main characters? There are very few, such as "Jackie" (2016). From another perspective, First Ladies are a treasure trove of "untold material."
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"It's true that I had some big fears about playing Michelle."
The new drama series "First Ladies", which shares its title, focuses on three First Ladies: Michelle Obama (44th First Lady), Betty Ford (38th First Lady) and Eleanor Roosevelt (32nd First Lady).
American First Ladies are famous worldwide, but the show focuses on three trendy and distinctive women whose dramatic destinies unfold simultaneously. There are even moments of synchronisation across time.
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When an actor plays a real-life person known to many people, one of the things that matters is how much they resemble that person. Regarding Betty Ford and Eleanor Roosevelt, few people, especially in Japan, immediately conjure up images of them.
However, everyone should be able to picture Michelle Obama's face.
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The actress who plays Michelle in "First Lady" is Viola Davis. She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in "Fences" (2016) alongside Denzel Washington. She has been nominated for the same award twice before and is a highly talented actress who has also won an Emmy and a Tony Award.
Viola is surprisingly integrated into Michelle Obama's image. Her resemblance is undoubtedly at the highest level, even compared to previous examples of famous actors playing real people.
Playing Michelle Obama must have been an enormous challenge, even for Viola Davis. We asked her this question.
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That's true. I indeed had a lot of anxiety going into the role. For example, many people's memories may be vague, whether it's someone from 50 years ago or even ten years ago.
But everyone can vividly picture the Obamas. Also, Michelle was trendy, so if I played her with a solid political stance, there might be a risk of backlash. Also, unlike the Roosevelt and Ford eras, there is a lot of news on the Internet, so I thought I might be swayed by confusing information... I felt I was putting a lot of restrictions on my acting.
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"I feel like I've become a robot to impersonate a real person (laughs)".
So, is it easier to play someone from the distant past? Eleanor Roosevelt, the oldest of the three First Ladies, died in 1962, so those who remember her in real-time are probably in their 70s or older.
Gillian Anderson plays Eleanor. She is well known for her role as Agent Scully in the X-Files series (1993-1994, etc.), but she also played Margaret Thatcher in the drama series The Crown (2016-2020), and it seems she has a knack for playing real people.
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Although it was long ago, I asked Gillian what approach she focused on when playing Eleanor Roosevelt.
Of course, the most important thing is research. The more material you have to draw on, the more it helps your acting. In this case, I started by researching Eleanor's life in detail and memorising it. That's how I found the "voice" of the character I was playing.
When I arrived on set, I was aware of that voice, and as I talked to the co-stars in front of me and moved around, it felt like a person was being completed. At first, I felt like a robot trying to become a natural person (laughs), but I slowly got used to it.
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Gillian's words indicate that actors must research and create different characters, whether real people or fictional characters. How does Viola Davis feel about this?
You must follow a minimum set of rules when playing a natural person. For example, the general facts they faced when President Obama was inaugurated, down to details like what Michelle Obama called her children, are essential. But what about the private conversations between Michelle and Barack?
No one knows the exact exchanges except the people involved. This part tests our ingenuity as actors. It was a process of recreating the situation accurately and then filling in the gaps behind the facts with fictional expressions.
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"Even now, after stepping down as First Lady, she still has great influence".
As "First Lady" shows the three main characters moving back and forth between their respective eras, there are no scenes with Viola, Gillian or Michelle Pfeiffer, who plays Betty Ford. Gillian Anderson also laughs, saying, "It was the first time we met until we were interviewed like this. "
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And "First Ladies" conveys that their achievements may have been as outstanding as the President's. In other words, it is a work that gives excellent courage to people who live in the shadows and are often underestimated. Gillian, who played Eleanor Roosevelt, said she felt strongly about this.
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When President Roosevelt began working on the New Deal to recover from the Great Depression, Eleanor turned her attention to low-income people and encouraged her husband. At a time when few women were involved in politics, I think she was an exception.
She lived a privileged life in the White House, and as the President's 'wife', she was, in a sense, an accessory. Regardless of her circumstances, Eleanor is still talked about today because she was a politically conscious woman, which was rare for a First Lady at the time.
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On the other hand, Viola Davis said that playing Michelle Obama made her realise how much more critical the role of a First Lady is now, unlike in Roosevelt's time.
Frankly, I think Michelle was more popular with the public than Barack (Obama) (laughs). In the past, First Ladies were the unsung heroes who supported their husbands.
Still, Michelle earned a law degree from Princeton University on her own, worked as a lawyer and devoted herself to the practical work of a non-profit organisation. Of course, she has supported Barack's dreams and policies, but I think, as Gillian said about Eleanor, Michelle has found her firm way of life.
That's why she has the support of so many people, and even now, after stepping down as First Lady, she has a great deal of influence.
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In "First Lady," the male actors also perform well, with Kiefer Sutherland as President Franklin Roosevelt, Aaron Eckhart as President Gerald Ford, and O. T. Fagbenle as President Barack Obama. However, the female actors' moments are highlighted with Elle Fanning as Betty Ford's daughter Susan and Ellen Burstyn as Franklin Roosevelt's mother.
Again, This series has many moving moments and makes you respect the brilliance of people who were not just "behind the scenes".
Michelle Obama lookalike!? U-NEXT's "First Ladies" is a dramatic drama series depicting the fate of the "president's wives."
https://www.banger.jp/drama/84036/
The drama "First Ladies" depicts the unknown and turbulent lives of three First Ladies who changed the course of American history. The show portrays their bold and charismatic lifestyles in the East Wing of the White House. Specifically, it has been revealed that Oscar-winning actress Viola Davis will play Michelle Obama.
This drama is told from the perspective of the First Ladies, who live with the pressure of being the head of the country and the risk to their lives, including that of their families, and is characterised by its vivid sensibility.
"The First Lady" depicts women who influenced American history. The three leading actresses talk about the secrets of playing the role of the First Lady.
https://moviewalker.jp/news/article/1103702/
"The First Lady" REVIEW
https://www.tst-movie.jp/hh-drama/firstlady.html
"First Lady" trailer <Exclusively available for unlimited viewing
Depicting the unknown and turbulent lives of three First Ladies who changed the history of the United States
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BECceBFmR7Y
The First Lady - TV Series (2022) 7.2/10
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13223570/
First Ladies of the United States
https://www.nps.gov/fila/learn/historyculture/first-ladies.htm
"A position where I can do the most good..." - Eleanor Roosevelt
Over 50 women have held the role of First Lady as of today. However, not all those who served as first ladies were spouses of the presidents. If the president was a bachelor or widower, or if his wife was unable or unwilling to perform the role, other female relatives or friends were called upon to carry out the first lady's official duties; thus, there have been more first ladies than presidents. For more information and biographies on each of the first ladies, visit the National First Ladies Library.
5 Influential First Ladies
Bruce Crumley takes a look at U.S. history’s most fascinating First Ladies
https://artsandculture.google.com/story/5-influential-first-ladies/ngXxT13eFevnKw?hl=en
