Diaz hasn't played a mother before, but director Cassavetes knew she had it in her. "It's weird that she has never played a mother in a movie and she's playing a mother of three in this movie and they're teenagers. Yes, it's weird, but that doesn't scare me. I knew she was up for it. I thought it was fresh casting," said Cassavetes. "I think she's terrific in the film. I've got to tell you, I'm more proud of her performance in the film than I'm proud of a lot of things in my life. I think she's fantastic in the film."
Cameron Diaz, Abigail Breslin and Sofia Vassilieva Press Conference
Cameron, this is the first time you’re playing a mom, and playing a mom to teenagers is a big step for an actress. Was there any hesitation or concern about going that route, or was the material just too good to pass up?Cameron Diaz: "Yeah, I didn’t really think about it. I really don’t think about this stuff too hard. [Laughing] I just find my way through it. Nick [Cassavetes] brought me this script, and it was a wonderful script. I didn't really even think about the fact that I would be playing a mother. I didn’t think about it, in terms of what it meant to my career. I thought of what it meant to the story, and who this woman was, and what her life experience was and what was happening in front of her. I didn’t think, 'Oh my God, if I play a mother, and a mother of teenagers, how is this going to affect my career?' It didn’t even phase me."
Cameron, having a sister yourself, how did you feel when you read this script?
Cameron Diaz: "Family is so important. What drew all of us to this story was the family, and the stories of each of these characters. Neither Sofia nor Abigail has a sister."
Abigail Breslin: "In the movie, my character and Sofia’s character, Kate, are sisters, and my character loves her sister so much that she’s willing to go to any lengths to help her. That’s what I liked about the movie. You think that this family is all in this big problem, which they are, but they all love each other, even though they’re going through this whole thing."
Cameron Diaz: "Reading this script, I think we all related to the fact that there isn’t anything that you wouldn’t give someone that you love that deeply. You do whatever it takes to keep that person alive. I think that that’s something that spoke to most of us,for this film, and what I think is so effective in the film."
Sofia, how did you feel the first time you looked in the mirror and saw yourself in this character?
Sofia Vassilieva: "One day when we were doing a screen test beforehand, we had just done one where it was the wig when the hair was falling out and it was the very beginning of it all. I remember I came into the trailer and I was hysterical. It was so hard to see yourself like that, and it was so hard to envision other people going through that, and that’s something that happens every single day. The two things that made that moment better were that Cammy and my mom were there, and they both [came] in when I was sitting in that chair, crying."
Cameron Diaz: "It was so brave of her to do it. She was 15 when she did it. If anybody thinks back to when they were 15 years old, the last thing you want to do is shave your head and then your eyebrows. That’s when you’re getting a real sense of who you are. It’s so formidable. It was very brave for Sofia to do. It was amazing."
Sofia Vassilieva: "And I think that it let me see myself in a different light, being so new and pure, and having a completely fresh start. At 15, I wasn’t conformed to any idea of myself."
Cameron, can you talk about working with Abigail and Sofia? Was there a specific scene with each of them where you felt like you hit that moment?
Cameron Diaz: "Every scene with them. They are really amazing. They’re both extraordinary young women. What was amazing about working with Abby was that I realized you see her and you’re like, 'Oh, she’s just a little girl,' but she’s got so much power within her. I went up to her mother and said, 'Your daughter is a warrior.' She possesses something inside herself that is of the nature of a warrior, where she just knows how to push through. She can take all these things that are happening around her, that are these very adult, complicated, complex situations and ideas, and she’s able to somehow put something behind it with more strength than you see in most people. I was amazed by how strong she is. She’s just a powerhouse."
"And Sofia is the most tender of tender. Everything is right there on the surface, at all times. You don’t want to fall into her depth too deep because you don’t where it’s going to end. She has such a depth of feeling and emotion. Both of these girls were so generous with me, as actors, every time. Abby was crying off camera, and I was like, 'Sweetheart, you don’t have to cry off camera,' and she was like, 'It’s okay. I’ve got it.' They were just so generous. And, Sofia, having to play a girl who is having to tell her mother that it’s okay for her to die was something where Sofia held me for those moments. It was such an enriching experience on a level that was totally new for me, so it was great."
