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"Sarah Clarke" Galore Germany (5/28/2004)

by Andreas Renner
[Translated by Lu]

Sarah Clarke is an actress and became known to a wider audience through her performance as Agent Nina Myers in the TV show “24”.

Mrs. Clarke, the concept of the TV show “24” is that of twenty-four one-hour episodes per season picturing one complete day in an agent’s life in real time. When you heard about the idea for the first time, were you able to imagine how this was supposed to work?
Sarah Clarke: Not really, it’s an absolutely innovative concept that hadn’t been done before. I was wondering at first whether you would actually follow the actors to the toilet or film then while they were sleeping. But then I was instructed: agents who are trying to avert an assassination attempt don’t think about stuff like sleep or food. (laughs) They are under immense pressure.

In what way were you able to influence what your character, Nina Myers, was going to be like?
Clarke: When we shot the pilot episode I didn’t know anything about Nina Myers’ character. The writers actually didn’t really have an idea where the story was gonna go. The only thing that was for sure was that Nina would have an affair with Jack Bauer, played by Kiefer Sutherland, who is, however, inclined to go back to his family. Everything else was pretty much open because no one knew if the show was gonna get picked up. So, it was really just as we went along that we actors got an idea where things were gonna take us. And, of course, as an actor, such conditions are a dream because you get a lot of room for initiative on your own to bring into your character. With every episode we were shooting we got more aware how the story might turn out. It was really all very secretive.

How long in advance did you know what was waiting for you and your character in the course of the script?
Clarke: We only got two scripts at a time. What was gonna happen the episodes after that was guarded like a state secret. We really had no idea! I didn’t even know if I was gonna be back for the second season. I was only informed that they had been including me in their planning for the second year on a very short notice. It was pretty exciting. Very uncommon in any case, so, it was a lot of fun to be a part of it.

But didn’t the crew - despite all the secrecy – try to get some information about how the show was going to continue? After all, it was each and every actor’s job-related future that was concerned.
Clarke: Of course, I mean, everybody was curious how things were gonna turn out and if they could keep their jobs. Due to the setting of the story in this agent environment it was, of course, possible at any given moment that you were assassinated. But there was really no way to pry anything out of the producers.

Were you able to bring your own ideas into the story?
Clarke: The writers would at least listen to any suggestion that the actors would come up with, and they did adopt some of them. I think they actually really appreciated us showing some initiative because due to the complexity of the storylines errors in the logic of the order of events can really creep in easily.

Did you protest at any point against the way in which Nina Myers was supposed to be portrayed?
Clarke: Oh yes, there were a couple of issues! For example, time and time again, there was the idea to revive the romance between Nina and Jack Bauer. I was objecting to that because I didn’t want Nina to be portrayed as a weak woman who would surrender herself to a man whenever he feels like it. I actually pushed that through.

When did you learn that you were going to be the mole who’s working against the US government and backstabbing Jack?
Clarke: About six episodes from the end of the first season I was told that Nina Myers is going to be revealed as double agent. But I actually thought it’s fantastic. (laughs) I mean, in this show it’s always all about the guys and the bad guys. So, as a woman, I was really happy about getting to play such an important part through the detour of being a villain.

The show also constantly captivates with its provocative staging. What’s still utopia in the United States is normality in “24”: a black US president. How did especially the American audiences react to that?
Clarke: We actually got a lot of response to that, mostly positive. Lots of people sent letters to the producers expressing their hopes that we will soon reach this point where the race or sex of a politician doesn’t matter anymore in a presidential election. I admired the courage of the producers to integrate issues like that into the show. I really hope we did some educational work here and that people start getting used to having a president with a darker skin color.

Do you think that America is ready for a female or a black president?
Clarke: Let me put it this way: if we had a female president we wouldn’t be at war. That’s my conviction. But if the majority sees it that way – I doubt that.

How far did the success of “24” influence your career?
Clarke: Well, first of all the show was responsible for me moving from New York to Los Angeles. And I met my husband Xander Berkely at the set. That kind of turned my life completely upside down – in a very pleasant way. For my career, the success of “24” undoubtedly meant a step forward and opened up some doors. My face has become more known and many casting directors know my work better thanks to the show. On the other hand, the part of Nina Myers involuntarily put me in a thematic corner I never wanted to be in. Many of the offers I’m getting now are about playing an agent. I’m determined to counteract that because I really want to work in a wide variety of fields. Not only regarding my parts – I also want to shoot with many different directors and experience new ways of working. With Sophia Coppola for instance, and definitely with Martin Scorsese. He has such a great visual eye and he’s a complete film fanatic. And, of course, with the Coen Brothers, I’m dying for a part in a comedy. Oh and, that German film maker, what’s his name again? The one who did “Lola runs”…

Tom Tykwer.
Clarke: Right. I’d love to shoot with him some day, I love his work.

Did you and Xander Berkeley hit it off right away when you met for the first time at the set?
Clarke: Yes, I was immediately taken by his huge charisma. I fell in love with his voice first and with his eyes. When I got to know him better then, I was a goner.

You kept your relationship a secret for six months. Why?
Clarke: (thinks) I was new in town, Xander was one of the few people I knew in Los Angeles. We spent a lot of time with each other, it was just wonderful to have something we didn’t have to share with anyone. And we didn’t want our relationship to become a part of showbusiness. So we kept quiet and enjoyed. Somehow the whole mystery-mongering even fit with “24”. In line with the show, we were leading a double life even in private. (laughs) When we finally officially told everybody at the set we were given an off-the-cuff party.

Did your “outing” had any effect on you working together on the set?
Clarke: No, not really. We were finally able to hug when we had a break which, of course, was much nicer than playing hide and seek in the checkroom.

You did two movies together with Xander Berkely after “24”, “The Third Date” and “Below the Belt”. You don’t seem to be desperate to separate your professional from your private life.
Clarke: I love working with Xander, whenever there’s an opportunity we’ll keep doing it. Aside from being my husband, Xander is one of my absolute favorite actors. It’s so much fun shooting with him, and I learn a lot from him on top of that. I think Xander has a great career ahead of him as a director, that’s his next goal. Hopefully he’ll cast me in one of his movies from time to time. (laughs) Xander and I have been authoring some ideas for scripts together. It’s a dream of ours to get to make a film based on one of our own stories. Sometimes one of us just starts telling a story, and the other one writes down his version of it, how we imagine the story could go on. This form of creative idea-finding is really productive. We really are tuned to the same wavelength there.

Marriages between actors don’t seem to have a long lifespan in Hollywood. How do you fight this ‘marriage curse’ in show business?
Clarke: It’s a shame that so many marriages in Hollywood break up. And, of course, that gets me thinking. Life in Hollywood can be quite destructive if you let yourself get absorbed by it. It’s important that you create your own little world based on personal philosophies within this artificial show business. For me, my relationship always takes priority over my career. Hollywood, with its often very immoral rules, is only a part of my life when I work My husband and I both love to travel, that’s an advantage. Whenever we get the chance we’re drawn out into the country or away to other civilizations. It’s important to turn your back on Hollywood from time to time. We’ve also agreed upon that wherever one of us is working on a project, the other one is coming along too. That way we can combine passion and private life quite well.

How far have you already become a part of Hollywood’s eternal party circuit?
Clarke: I’m avoiding the party circuit in Hollywood wherever I can, it’s just not my thing. Xander and I live a bit secluded in our house from the 30s in the Hollywood Hills. The landscape all-around often reminds me of Italy. Fortunately, up here you don’t catch a lot of the contrived goings-on in noble Beverly Hills or Bel Air. We rather invite some friends over. Lots of our friends aren’t in show business at all, most of them are designers or artists, or work in regular jobs. Xander and I both aren’t from California originally. That we know other lifestyles and appreciate them sometimes makes us hermits in Hollywood. I grew up in Missouri, Xander is from Canada and grew up at the east coast where people have very different traits compared to California. With that background we’re just picking the best from every zone and live very good with it.

How did you experience your childhood in Missouri?
Clarke: Growing up in Missouri was not a bad experience. St. Louis is a small town compared to New York or Los Angeles, I felt really protected. The Mid-West is certainly a good place to grow up. But after finishing university I felt I had to get out of there. Especially after having lived in Italy for one year. I wanted more, I wanted to see the world and get to know it. And so I went to New York. That was something that wasn’t difficult at all since my two brothers as well as many of my fellow students were already living there. So I had company really quickly.

What brought you to Italy?
Clarke: I studied Italian and Fine Arts at Indiana University. I applied for the exchange program with Italy and then moved to Bologna for nine months. After that I spent three months travelling across Europe. Actually, it was in Italy that I discovered my passion for acting. There was a class at university one of my fellow students dragged me along to one day. I got a part in a play right away and that awakened the virus for performing arts in me. The play was completely in Italian which made me have to improvise a lot. But it somehow worked out. When I came back to the States, I went to New York and got a scholarship at Circle In The Square Theatre School. I made some money on the side with architecture photography. Photography is my other big passion besides acting. I used to want to become a photographer. But by now I’m really happy with my choice of profession.

Can you imagine to be working at the theater again one day?
Clarke: Absolutely, that would be amazing. Standing on a theater stage is acting pure. If you play something seven days a week, you get to live the part in such a different way than when you perform in a movie or for a TV show in a studio. Besides, you get a sense of the audience’s reaction right away, that’s an additional stimulus. The small theaters in New York, aside from Broadway, have a fabulous atmosphere. No question, I would immediately perform in a stirring play.