CHELSEA HARRIS- ACTRESS-SNOWPIERCER
Hi Chelsea!...Hi!... Good morning, okay lets jump in...how would you introduce yourself. Ahhh..hi I am Chelsea. I am an actor, and am currently Sykes on Snowpiercer (TNT) which is one of my own favorite television shows ever. I am from Columbus, GA., I am a small town girl. I have been living in L.A. for the past fourteen years. Next to that, I am a huge advocate for diversity, women on T.V., and that is a really big goal of mine.
Please tell us about your role as ‘Sykes’ in ‘Snowpiercer’. Okay, Sykes is a covert operative, and she is Mr.Wilford’s right hand woman. Wilford is a person who has created the whole universe of Snowpiercer, the universe that these people live in. This train that circles the earth, and... next to every man is a strong woman (supposedly). Yes, right. So that is who Sykes is, she is the person doing his dirty work of keeping order on this train; and carrying out his somewhat devastating, terrorizing orders.
What pulled you to this role, were you a fantasy buff growing up (reading it), because I know personally I love all things fantasy, mythological. This totally peaked my interest, this Invisible City - I have so much to binge watch this weekend. See I wish I had your sensibility...I actually fell in love with Fantasy Syfy honestly through this show. No, way. Yes, yes I was not a huge Syfy buff. What drew me to the role first, and the way that I got it my manager is a huge fan of the original film by Bong Joon Ho, Parasite (2019). He (my manager) was like you have this audition, and this was on a Saturday. And typically auditions do not come through on Saturdays, he (my manager) was so excited.
The first time I looked at this I was like ‘I have no idea what to do with this’. Although I did play in the Syfy world a little bit, I did guest star on ‘Star Trek’; but I was still not the biggest consumer. Yes, because there are so many depths of Syfy, I’m not a Trekkie personally either; but you can go Mythological, or more historical. Yes, yes... Yes, there are so many layers that are not one-hundred percent fantasy. So when people say I am a Syfy buff, it is such a broad spectrum.
It is exactly what you are saying because it is so broad, Bong is such an incredible film maker, and story teller. Every single scene is a metaphor, about life, and that is what made me fall in love with it.
So, I first fell in love with the film when I watched it that weekend. I saw how it was about social justice, classism, even fascism in a sense, and micro cosmos of how life is here on earth now. When blown up into that kind of world you can see how messed up parts of our culture are... Yes, so true. Then I was like... ‘yeah, we have to do this’. Yes, it was the complexity of being human in a prettier setting. Yes! That is it...and beautifully said. It is the complexity of being human in a fantasy setting. Ahahaha yes...that is what I tell people when they say...’you like Syfy...I say it is deeper than it sounds’.
Yes! And thank you for saying that. Syfy is incredibly deep, now that I have spent the last year and a half really falling in love with the genre.
I think it is one of the most powerful storytelling tools that we have, because you can say so much about current life circumstances without pointing to it directly. Yes. If that makes sense... Oh yes, it is like a passive way of saying it.
Congratulations on the honor to be named Ambassador in 2018 by Shonda Rhimes. Please tell us about your role in Dove Self-Esteem Program. Well, thank you. The Dove Self-Esteem Program is really something that is close to my heart. What they actually call it is the Dove Self-Esteem Fund. Dove has set aside monies specifically for the education of young women and girls. To help build their self-esteem into young women that are confident in themselves.
My involvement began when I attended the workshops when I was 15, or 16 years old. There was something that I heard back then that opened my eyes, and changed how I relate to myself. I related to myself that basically the function of a woman in the world is largely to be pretty. I grew up in the South, and I am not saying that that is how everybody thinks in the South - but that is a part...but it is like your currency. For a woman your currency, value, is how aesthetically pleasing you are - it is like Beyonce’s song ‘Pretty Hurts’.
Yeah!.. People do not care what you are thinking, or feeling. You could be dead on the inside, but as long as you look put together, polished, and aesthetically pleasing, they are happy. Exactly. I think it is in most cultures, environments, it is just that some are more vocal about it. Unfortunately it is the currency for women.
Yes, it is a different time... and that is exactly what is shared in these workshops, classes, mentoring sessions, and programs that are offered to these young women. This is what real value, and worth looks like. It is also waking them up to the lies that we have been told, of exactly what you just shared. Our aesthetics is so much of our currency, whereas our intelligence and vitality are just not as valuable. So it is educating young women on their real worth, so they can grow up to be confident, and empowered women. That is beautiful, I am going to have to check that out - The Dove Fund.
What have you seen as the common thread of issue(s) that face young women across the nation. There are a few. The number one that comes to mind is ‘Social Media Literacy’. Basically, it is how so many of us look at photos, experiences that people are having on Social Media, and they see them as fact. Telling them (young ladies) this is what life should look like, so therefore if you are not this airbrushed, perfect, polished look; and if you are not...on a beach in Maui at 18 years old with a Birkin bag, and on a private yacht... Exactly, yes!... Exactly... then it promotes young women to feel - their life doesn't measure up to this (life). That is it, that is it!...if I am not on a yacht in Croatia for my 18th birthday I must be doing something wrong. Yes, exactly.
So, again it is just about breaking down the lies. There are so many young girls that this is all that they see. Yes. And you guys highlight that (The Dove Fund). Many young girls hear the rap songs that sing about the importance of the red bottom shoes. And if you do not have these things, or if you do not look that certain way, or do that certain thing - are you worthless? It is such a complex issue. And the point that these issues are being highlighted are brilliant.
Hmmmm...you know you just highlighted on some things that mean so much to me. It was a video clip that I recently saw, and it was with Cher. She was being interviewed by I think Diane Sawyer. Cher was telling the story what her mother said...’oh Cher, I just want you to grow up and marry a rich man. And Cher said ...Mom, I am a rich man’. Hahahah...that is what I am saying, why do you have to give away all this power.
Why can't you be the empowered one. Exactly, and this is by no means a man bashing discussion. The point is you do not have to sacrifice so much. Exactly.... If you are an able body, smart, and can work - why not. It is a totally different feeling. There is a shift from...’ I will do anything to get that one pair of shoes’. It is totally different, you feel more confident, and have more self-respect.
Yes, it is incredibly important to young women around me, and me, that I have value - outside of things. It is hard, it is a daily struggle... It is a struggle, because it is what society looks like; but we have to be able to value ourselves outside of those things. So you don't necessarily need these things, but you can have these things, enjoy them; but relate to them in a different way, where they do not define you. Brilliantly put.
When you accept different roles, do you think about how the characters you portray could impact young women. Ohhhh, yes...yes, even when I audition for a role. I immediately go to, and no judgment of the person because everyone is moving through life at different paces, and doing different things. Even though I might not necessarily agree with them, I can have empathy, and understand that this is a real human experience. Then I look at - how do I tell this story in the most empowering way. Yes, I do look at that. How young women looking at this role will effect them. Any role that I am chosen for... also because I do know what my intentions are, what I am innately showing up with; and that any woman looking at this can not help but feel some sense of empowerment. Yes, there is a lot of thought and a lot of intention that goes into it.
You also have a supporting role in ‘Top Gun:Maverick’ with the release date of Summer 2021. What is the message your character conveys. Eeewww...I love this! Again this. character is a woman of strength. Even in this my character is the right hand woman to Jon Hamm’s character...wait!...what Jon Hamm’s in this? Ahahaha yes...Jon Hamm. She is a woman of strength she gets things done. She is efficient, super accountable, believes in the new recruits coming in; and she is going to test them.
Will this premiere be the traditional premiere, are you excited. Yes!!!...of course! I love premieres of course! I hope it is an actual red carpet, and a full on premiere. This movie, is so long in the making, and it is such a big deal. Even when we were filming it at the Naval Base in Coronado, so many people came up to us and said the reason they joined that branch of the military was because of the original film. Wow, that is just so cool - Right, just to honor the work, and the love that went into this (film)...I pray that we have a premiere.
What does your dream role look like - actors, and what messages... So, speaking of Syfy...I realize that my dream role is to get into the head of the person that tells the Syfy stories. My dream role right now is to play the young version of Octavia E. Butler, the black female Syfy writer. Oh, that would be interesting.
She is just a fascinating human being that grew up in the 1950’s and 1960’s, when there was not Syfy books written from a black female experience. And so she created these incredible books, ‘Parable of the Sower’, ‘Earthseed’; all of these incredible Syfy novels, series, and she puts herself into them. Octavia E. Butler literally opened up an entire genre of Afro Futurism, and black Syfy. So that is my dream role right now.
Perfect. Do you have any actors you would like to work with in this project... hmmmm, since I would be playing Octavia....I have not filled in the rest of the cast yet. Yes, right...and that's the most important one (ahahaha). Nooo, we are working on it and crafting it out slowly.
What is your favorite way to unwind Chelsea...hmmm...okay do not laugh at me. My favorite way to unwind is to have a little sip of Rose, and turn on some Bachelor (TV Show). Nooooo!!! And watch it with my boyfriend. Girrrl do not judge me.
What the - Bachelor! - nooo I am hard core judging. Ahahahaha, yes! I mean if you want some drama. I mean I would force my guy to watch Lupin (Netflix), or Kevin Hart. Wow! See, I consider myself very well travelled, educated, and I will watch the Bachelor. The reason why is because the Bachelor is fascinating, also because I am an actor, and I am obsessed with human behavior. Uh..huh... When I sit and watch the Bachelor it is so high stakes... but no one stays together. Ohhhh, yes they do!
Only the couple from Season 1...Nah... uhh, no! ahahaha...well, clearly I am a hopeless romantic and you are not. Ahahaha it is soooo true, that is so true. Well, since it is sooo high stakes there is a piece of you...no, me that gets caught in it. Yeah...I am just more cynical. No, but I watch it, and you see how people behave when their back is against the wall. It is fascinating to me. Well, yeah with no judgment - I respect that. I will say that its just the cynicism in me. Ahahaha...okay. Thank you, this has been so enjoyable. Yes!, thank you.
