00:00Whatever, as you can imagine, the tenacity that it would take to even rise, to be able to sit behind that desk,
00:10even have the idea that this were possible and to go for it, probably, when many thought otherwise.
00:22My name is Oakley Jones with Essence Magazine. Hello, Ms. Bassett. I hope all is well.
00:27Hi there.
00:27For my first question, I wanted to ask you, you've played so many commanding roles throughout your career,
00:35but now you're portraying a sitting U.S. president.
00:38What aspect of President Mitchell's character resonates with you the most,
00:43specifically as a black woman in this powerful position?
00:45I think her calm demeanor, calm, cool, her intellectual capacity to hold so many thoughts and ideas and concerns,
01:01you know, within, in the palm of her hand.
01:07As you can imagine, the tenacity that it would take to even rise, to be able to sit behind that desk,
01:14whatever strength, the strength that she had to develop or that was innate, that she could withstand, you know, slings, arrows, barbs,
01:25and, and still persevere, even have the idea that this were possible and to go for it, probably, when many thought otherwise.
01:37I wanted to add on to that question a bit regarding your past roles.
01:42Films that come to my mind is, Olympus has fallen, London has fallen, and Mission Impossible to a certain extent as well, too.
01:50For you as an actress, what's so intriguing about these political thrillers?
01:53Well, I, you know, like anything, it's just, it's another genre, um, uh, it's something that it's, you know,
02:03usually, because politics plays such a big role in, I guess, in our daily lives,
02:09especially now that we have a 24-hour news feed and CNN and, and all the like, it's like, it's, it's, it's on, like, on television all day long,
02:19like, you know, as well as other forms of entertainment, you know, we have cast of characters, you know,
02:26that we shake our head to or that we, you know, buy into, um, who resonate with us or those who do not.
02:34Um, so it's, um, interesting to see this and just get a, you know, it can, uh, we can scream at the screen,
02:43you know, like, it's incredulous what you're saying, and so this is just, you know, another form forming it in a
02:50entertainment sort of package, um, and it, uh, and we have, we come to a sort of a conclusion
02:57and wrap it up at the end so we can be satisfied, whereas in real life, maybe it's ongoing and ongoing
03:04and far-reaching.
03:07And I believe this is your second time working with Robert De Niro.
03:10Um, what was it like collaborating with him on this particular project?
03:14Oh, gosh, it's been 24 years since we worked together and, uh, and, you know,
03:20seeing each other from that time to this, so it was really satisfying to have, you know,
03:26his first foray into television, you know, into television with the six-part miniseries
03:33and for it to be called to join, come aboard, join, um, with incredible writer, director,
03:41um, just a cast that's just stacked with notable, notable talent.
03:47Um, it was just really an honor to be involved, to sit across from him, sitting president, former
03:53president, you know, to dialogue with him in the scenes.
03:56He's still as generous an actor as he, as I found him the first time, but, you know,
04:02I had far less nerves this time.
04:06Well, Ms. Bassett, it was a pleasure and an honor to be speaking with you, and I really
04:10appreciate you.
04:11Thank you so much for your time.
04:13Appreciate it.
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