By Christina Radish

Olivia Wilde at the SAG Awards held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, Calif. on January 27, 2008.

New York native Olivia Wilde spoke to MediaBlvd Magazine about working on a show of which she was already such a big fan.

MediaBlvd Magazine> When you initially signed on for this role, it wasn’t a regular gig. So, how did that affect your process and your long-term outlook for the role?

Olivia Wilde> It meant that we never took it for granted, which was great. We never knew if our characters were a short-term arc, or if we would be there for awhile. And so, it made it more of a mystery and kept us on our toes, which is a really good thing. I think it’s why the performances turned out as well as we all feel they did. There was no time for laziness. We would find out each week, whether we’d be there the next week. It was pretty exciting and pretty stressful, and what it did was just make us really enjoy every minute of it. Ironically, the second that Kal, Peter and I became series regulars, the strike happened. So, we still haven’t had a moment to take it for granted, but that’s good. I think that’s a healthy outlook.

MediaBlvd> Thirteen’s secret was something that was built up on the show. How quickly did you know what her past was?

Olivia> I didn’t. She doesn’t have just one secret. I would say Thirteen is a bowl of secrets. They’re slowly revealing bits about her. Soon, we’ll learn a little bit more. But, the big one that was dropped about her past -- how she may or may not have Huntington’s -- was something I found out a little earlier than everyone else because I needed to know why she was so guarded. I went to David Shore and said, “I know you guys keep everything secret. You’re so tight-lipped, and I respect that. But, I need to know, early on, what she’s comfortable with and what strikes a chord with her.” And, he trusted me and told me, and I didn’t tell a soul, even though it was difficult. But, that was good. It got me in character. And, once I knew, it really shaped her for me, and it made me have a lot of empathy and respect for her. As I continue to learn about her, I’m growing to love her more and more. They’re very good about keeping things very secret on House, even from us, but they respect us and, if we need to know something, they’re cool about letting us know.

MediaBlvd> Are there any romantic possibilities between your character and Dr. House?

Olivia> I’ve seen some reviews where people were speculating that there is romantic tension between Thirteen and House, but I never, ever picked up on that myself. I think they have a mutual respect, and they enjoy sparring with each other. They are both very stubborn and have very strong personalities. Of course, I know very little because we find out things just before the audience does. I think that anything is possible with her because she is unpredictable as a person. However, at this point, what I see between them is not a romantic connection, but a mutual respect between two very unorthodox and stubborn doctors.

MediaBlvd> What was the most interesting aspect of filming the “Frozen” episode with Mira Sorvino?

Olivia> I respect Mira Sorvino immensely, as an actress, and I was really excited when I heard she was coming to do the show. A lot of big actors want to come on House as guest stars, and they’re not necessarily always open to that. They pick people who are right for the roles, whether they’re unknowns or they’re famous. She really wanted to do it and was perfect, so they were happy to welcome her, and we were all really excited to meet her. And, the most interesting thing about that was the new technique of filming in that episode. It was a really interesting episode because House was forced to diagnosis without the tools that he usually has, and he had to work a little harder. It was a whole new way of working for him, and he was forced to confront a lot of his own fears, as far as confronting the patient, personally. It was a really good episode. 

MediaBlvd> Were you a big fan of the show before you were hired?

Olivia> I was a big fan of the show. I always thought it was really entertaining. And, I’ve loved Hugh Laurie since Fry and Laurie, Blackadder and all the shows that a lot of people here don’t know him from. I think it is amazing when an actor can stretch themselves between two genres, and do it so successfully. So, I had an immense respect for him before, but I also love the show itself.

MediaBlvd> What was your favorite part of that whole job contest? Will we see any of the other contestants again?

Olivia> My favorite part was the unpredictability. We really had no idea who would be chosen.  I loved that they chose so many very different actors with different styles. I really enjoyed getting the chance to work with so many different people. Having a huge cast for a few episodes, as we did, was really fun because they chose so many interesting people. I really enjoyed Edi Gathegi’s work. I enjoyed everybody’s work. My favorite part was getting the chance to work with so many cool young actors, and actors of different ages and styles. Being a fan of the show, I was just loving it. I was eating it up on set, thinking, “God, this is genius, this going to be great.” And, the fact that they took the risk to change it up as much as they did was really impressive to me, as a fan and as a cast member.

MediaBlvd> What types of things did you, as an actor, do to prepare yourself to play Thirteen?

Olivia> Thirteen is so different from me. I will meet someone for five minutes on the street and give them my Social Security number. I’m just so open. I meet people and I’m just ready to give them all my information. I have to stop doing that. I’m learning from Thirteen. It’s actually better to keep things closer. But, I think that Thirteen is an observer, and she would rather be quiet in a situation where she can watch and learn from what is going on around her. That was something that I started doing more. As an actor, I’m a total ham and attention hog. And so, when I started playing this role, I tried to sit back and watch a little bit more. It rubbed off on me, more and more. Over the past few months, some of my beloved castmates have said to me, “God, you’re so Thirteen right now. Work is over. Come on, we’re out to dinner, and you’re so Thirteen.” She doesn’t let people get to her, and I think that’s something to be admired. So, I’ve learned from her, just by understanding the way she operates in certain situations. I tried to explore that in my own personal life and see what I learned from it, and then bring that to the set.

MediaBlvd> Your character’s real name has not been revealed yet, right?

Olivia> No, it has not. I thought they were going to reveal it awhile ago, and I think it’s great that the producers made this dramatic choice not to reveal it when they had planned to. They actually tried to hide it. It disappeared from the call sheets. It disappeared from around the set. They’re not putting too much value on the secrecy of a name, but they like the fact that it has established this inside joke between House and Thirteen. He could easily look at her file and see her name, but he chooses to keep it up. I think they have an informal relationship. Almost from the beginning, she has just called him House, as they all do. The formality of Dr. This or Dr. That has been taken away. And so, still using her number, when he knows her pretty intimately, at this point, is a way of acknowledging the joke of her attempt to keep everything tightly held to her chest. And, I think that it’s a tongue-in-cheek way of saying, “Okay, you can try to keep it in.  I won’t use your name, but I’m going to find out everything else.” And, the rest of the team uses it  as a joke. They could also find out her name, if they really wanted to.

MediaBlvd> Do you know what her name is?

Olivia> I do, yes.  I love it.

MediaBlvd> How do you define a character when all you have to go on is that her name is Thirteen?

Olivia> A name can define a character and teach you a lot about who they are and how they operate within the structure of the show, and something like Thirteen already tells you so much.  Is that an unlucky number, or a lucky number? It’s so mysterious. What it taught me, right away, was that there was obviously something secretive about her nature. It really informs the audience about her relationship towards different people. That’s what she’s going to known by, and they’re not going to get to know her that much better. They feel settled in the fact that that’s how she wants it, and they’re acknowledging that that is how it’s going to be. So, it taught me a lot about her, just hearing that. And, I really love that the producers have kept it going. That’s such a brave, cool choice. I really enjoy walking down the street and having people yell, “Thirteen!” It’s funny.

MediaBlvd> How do you find Thirteen, in comparison to Jennifer Morrison’s character, Cameron?

Olivia> I find Cameron’s character to be so compassionate and emotional. She’s just so loveable, and a lover. I’ve been watching this show for awhile, and that’s how I see her. And, I find Thirteen to be almost the opposite. She’s not cutthroat, like Amber was, but she’s definitely not as soft and open as Cameron is. Cameron is the type of doctor you really wish you’ll find when you walk into the ER. You want someone like Cameron. She’s really always got the patient’s life first on her priority list, even above her own. Having a compassionate doctor like that would be amazing. Thirteen is different in the way she approaches things. She’s holding back something personal that stops her from having the same type of compassion, or the same type of softness, as Cameron. I think they operate differently in situations. With two girls on a show, people are always going to compare them. I’m amazingly flattered to be compared to her, physically, because I think Jennifer is stunning. But, I think fans are obviously going to be resistant to the idea of a new person on House’s team, and I completely understand that. The fact that they see connections between the two characters, I think also comes from the fact that there are not that many women writing on House. And so, when they’re writing for a girl, the vernacular might come out sounding similar. Certain things may sound familiar because Cameron has completed her 3-year fellowship, and Thirteen has now gotten the job that Cameron has gone through, and has a lot of the same roles within it. House delegates the same type of tasks to the women in his life, and on his team. But, I don’t see the characters as being similar. Hopefully, viewers will get to know her and they will recognize the differences between the characters more, and appreciate two differently defined characters.

MediaBlvd> With the nature of the stories, has your involvement in the show made you self-conscious or paranoid, in any way, about the many different and unlikely things that can make you sick? Does it make you want to just go into hiding?

Olivia> I thought it would make me a total hypochondriac, but I’m now convinced that I’m a doctor. Someone says they have a pain and I’m like, “Well, that’s your spleen, so you probably have low blood pressure,” and I diagnosis them, even though I’m completely unqualified to do so. It has given me this false confidence as a pretend doctor, which is pretty funny to my friends and family. But, I so enjoy learning about all of these different, crazy diseases.  I particularly love the neurological disorders. I’m a big fan of Oliver Sacks, and I love reading his books. It’s my favorite when someone on the show has some sort of neurological disorder because they’re the most odd. It’s really fun. I love all the medical terminology. It’s pretty difficult, but I really enjoy learning it.

MediaBlvd> What is it like to work with these actors? Is it a pretty generous set?

Olivia> Absolutely. That’s the rule of thumb for House. You would never make someone do a phone call, or any scene like that, without being off-camera for them. Everyone takes rehearsal very seriously, and really is there for each other to work through the scene as many times as anybody wants before shooting, even though that can be time consuming. We’re known as having one of the hardest work schedules of any TV show, and we don’t do a lot of location shoots. We’re often inside the hospital. But, the reason we take so long is because people are willing to work really hard for each other. Even if you have one line in a scene and you feel totally comfortable with just winging it and going back to your trailer, but someone else really wants to work through it for a few hours, it gets rehearsed properly, so that it’s up to par for the shooting of the show. You do that for them because they’d do it for you. Hugh is constantly like that. And, I was really pleased to see that Mira Sorvino was like that as well. At one point, she missed a flight home to New York because she was willing to stay and do off-camera for us. I thought that that was unbelievable. She’s an Oscar-winning actress and she has a family at home and a young kid wanting to see his mom, and she had enough respect for everybody that she waited. I just remember being so blown away by that. She was fabulous, and that’s the rule of thumb on House.

MediaBlvd> How has that helped your character grow?

Olivia> When you have a bunch of actors who are really there for each other, it creates a very trusting dynamic. And, once you trust your fellow actors, you can take risks in your acting and relax. A lot of interesting parts come out of House because people take risks and trust themselves as actors. They’re in a trusting, comfortable environment. And, that only happens if everybody is really there for each other. That’s what makes the show so great. Also, watching Hugh and the way he behaves, how professional he is and the risks that he takes, it raises the bar and makes you understand that it’s no joke. They really are serious about making it one of the best shows on television. It makes everybody work harder and, if everybody works harder, everyone hangs together and trusts each other, and then better performances happen.

MediaBlvd> Since you were previously a fan of Hugh Laurie before you joined the show, how is it working with him?  Is it what you expected, or has it been totally unexpected?

Olivia> I was so terrified, my first day, because he’s so fabulous and he’s immediately disarming because he has this incredible sense of humor that comes across. He started as a comedian at Cambridge, and worked very successfully. And, even though he is brilliant at doing drama, he has this amazing sense of humor and a lightness of heart that permeates the room. That immediately softened me and made me more comfortable and able to do scenes one-on-one with him, which previously I had been so terrified to do. I thought I would mess up and destroy it for him. But, he couldn’t be more encouraging. Multiple times, he allowed me to continue working on a scene when I felt like I hadn’t done my best. And, he would say, “Well, hold on, let’s do it again. I know they’re pressuring us to move faster. Everybody wants to get out of here.  It’s expensive to keep a show running late. But, if you need the time, you take the time.” And, having someone like that on the show is invaluable. I think that’s why it turns out well.

MediaBlvd> As a fan, were there things that surprised you when you got on set?

Olivia> Obviously, everything seems bigger on television. Although, I was impressed with how much of a hospital they’ve actually built. The show takes up three soundstages. I was like, “Gosh, the sets they have are pretty extensive,” but then I realized that it’s kind of brilliant. I’m constantly amazed with how many sets they have. But, as a fan transferring to being on the show, I was just amazed with how well-run it is, and how efficient. I guess I expected it to be that way because I knew it was done so well, but I didn’t know the hours were so long because we don’t go on location that much. They don’t stop until it’s good, so that’s not surprising.

MediaBlvd> Of your major television roles, on the Black Donnelly’s, The O.C. and House, which one did you like the most, and which one do you relate to the best?

Olivia> I relate to all of them, in different ways. Jenny Riley, on the Black Donnellys, was the biggest stretch for me, which I really enjoyed. And, The O.C. was also a stretch for me, but I liked doing that. I’m not afraid of a challenge. With Thirteen, I find a lot of myself in her. She’s quite a feminist. And, she doesn’t put up with the idea that men are better doctors, scientists or mathematicians, which I think a lot of female doctors do put up with. I have a friend who is a female doctor, who is constantly being called nurse by patients, and she just doesn’t answer. I’m finding the same sense of purpose or self-respect. And yet, she’s different from me because I’m so totally open and she’s not. But, I’m really enjoying Thirteen, more than I have enjoyed other characters, at least in a long time.  I really miss playing her, and this separation from the show, because of the strike, has made me realize how much I enjoy being her, every day.

MediaBlvd> Do you prefer to play characters that are different than you?

Olivia> Oh, yes, absolutely. And, even though I find things in common with her, as I think you have to find them with a character you’re playing, it’s most interesting to depart from yourself. That’s when you’re really learning something.

MediaBlvd> Can you talk about your upcoming film Fix, and how that was shot in first person by the actors?

Olivia> There was one camera that was an HD camera. My husband, Tao Ruspoli, who’s in it, is also the director and co-writer. He shot most of it. His character spends most of the time behind the camera and, occasionally, other characters pick it up. And, it meant that we had to stretch ourselves beyond being actors and had to learn to be D.P.’s as well, which is really exciting and it kind of inspired me to do it again. That film is really interesting. It’s a totally unorthodox way of filming. We had an amazing premiere up at Slamdance and we also took it to the Santa Barbara Film Festival.

MediaBlvd> Who do you play in The Year One, out in 2009?

Olivia> I play Princess Inanna, the Princess of Sodom & Gomorrah. It is Jack Black and Michael Cera, directed by Harold Ramis and produced by Judd Apatow. It’s a Monty Pythonesque journey through Biblical times, and it’s ridiculously hilarious. I read the script and just fell over on my floor, laughing. I’m really excited to be a part of it. And, the character couldn’t be more different from Thirteen, so that will be fun to shake it up a little bit.