Amber Midthunder talks Reservation Dogs and her 'really special' experience
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
You might not believe it after watching Amber Midthunder in the latest episode of Reservation Dogs, but she has never done a comedic role. She may have recently impaled a Predator in Hulu's summer hit Prey but she's ready to do it all.
"I love that I've gotten to experience both [comedy and action]," she tells EW over a recent Zoom conversation talking about her hilarious guest role, Miss M8triarch on Reservation Dogs. "I would love to experience both again and experience other things on top of that."
"I think that you never want to stay just stuck in the same space, whatever that is. Especially as an artist and especially when you look at Indigenous content — being able to break down any genre, any time period, any character, there's a lot of value in that," she continues, "I think as an individual, as a culture. So, getting the opportunity for me to experience both of these was really exciting. I'm excited to continue doing that."
Midthunder reveals how it felt experiencing a set full of Native American talent, how she fell in love with the "magic" of entertainment, and what she believes is the "purpose of" her career.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Were you approached for the role or did you have to audition?
AMBER MIDTHUNDER: I auditioned the conventional way, I got a self-tape request for this character. I saw the breakdown and I just had so much fun doing the self-tape. I thought she was so funny. Originally, it said that she was wearing mismatched regalia. I was like, cool. I had so much fun just doing that and playing even with the audition sides. Then, I had a call back and just really went through it in a very traditional way. I've been such a huge fan of the show since it started. I was shooting Prey in Canada when the show came out and I was using my VPN to watch it wherever I was, just so I wouldn't miss an episode 'cause it was just so cool. There's never been a show like this before. Getting to accomplish everything it's accomplishing is so amazing. I mean, I would've done it if they asked me just to bring them coffee, I would've brought them coffee! When Sterlin (Harjo, series creator) called and was like, "You have the role," I was just so excited.
Since you were a fan of the show, what was it like being on set, especially that first day, the experience being surrounded by Native American talent, to that extent that we don't usually get to see on television?
It was a dream. Going from Prey to this and having the experience of being around so many native people who share the same passion as I do, I've never had that experience in a work environment. So, getting to feel that, and then being around people who I share culture with — that provides a level of comfort and familiarity that you don't get otherwise It was just really special.
There's a version of your character in many underrepresented communities as well. How did you find the inspiration for this character? Was it all on the page or was she inspired by people you actually knew?
She was just written so distinctly, that everything about her I think, was just there. It was so easy to bring to life because you're like, she can't help but be herself, even when it's just on paper. Even going into the fitting, the fitting was so much fun, I was getting to play with all these things of items I really like. But it's like, when you put them all together, it's really a lot. Then, especially when it's the first day, and I went in my trailer and saw what the wardrobe was going to be and put it on and then walked into an IHS that looked like the IHS that I grew up going to, I was like, oh, this is ridiculous, but also very honest.
Shane Brown/FX Amber Midthunder talks about her 'really special' experience on 'Reservation Dogs'
One of my favorite lines was when she's like, "Well, I'm from the Bay Area, but my soul is with my ancestors."
[Laughs] 'Cause there's really people like that. There's people out there who really believe those things and say those things, and she's one of those people. That's the thing about her is, she really believes in what she's doing, really, genuinely believes in herself and her activities and that journal is going to save their lives. All these things, she really, really believes.
I read that both of your parents are also actors. How do they feel that you've joined them in the acting community? Because I've heard different things from parents that are actors and then their kids get into it.
My dad is an actor. My mom was an actress one time, by accident and then decided she hated it. Now she's a casting director. She casts Reservation Dogs. It was never anything that was suggested to me or put on me, growing up. My parents really just let me be a kid and have my own feelings. I think once I started growing up and understanding what my dad's job was... once I started understanding it and asking about it, they would let me try it.
I did a non-union commercial when I was a kid and decided, "no, I hate it". Then, by the time I was in high school, I came back to it. I was like, "oh no, this is the love of my life." I think that they're proud of this time period for indigenous people. My mom is Asian, so just Asian people or any kind of underrepresented community. I think that as people, they would be proud of me no matter what, as much as they are probably also scared.
Yeah, I'm a mom. My daughter's 15, so I totally get that. What was the one role or play or movie that you saw, that finally you were like, "That magic, I want to be part of it"? Was there a specific story or character, where you felt you actually connected, or where it inspired you to lead that way?
That's a great question. I remember being a kid and walking out of movie theaters, and feeling I was still inside of the movie that I just watched. It didn't matter what. If it was a Pixar movie, I would still be in the silly world of Toy Story and looking at my toys, wondering like, "when are they going to move?" If it was Narnia, I remember walking out and looking at the sky and being like, well, I wonder who's behind that cloud? Stuff like that.
I think it was just, I always really believed in the magic. As an adult or even in my teen years, getting to know that you could still believe in the magic and also have an adult job to make money and pay rent, was the best option to me and a very difficult one. That was, I think, really what enticed me to it. I always just loved everything about it. Following that magic was really what got me.
Regarding Prey again, the film has been such a hit. Fans have been vocal about wishing it had gotten a theater debut. Do you hope there are plans for Prey 2, or has it been suggested to you? And if so, likely this would get a big screen debut. How would that feel to take it to that second level?
I've heard a lot of fans say that. I think it's very flattering. I didn't really think much about what would happen to the movie coming out. I was so focused on making the movie that I think to me, it was like, that was the finish line. I didn't have a lot of expectations, one way or the other, for it coming out. So, for people to respond so positively to that level, I just feel really humbled by it. I feel really excited.
I don't know what the plans are for the future, but I trust whatever decision is made. Dan (Trachtenberg, who directed Prey) spent so long developing this with 20th Century. Obviously, all that time was used to make a really great thing. I'm sure that nobody would make something again, if it wasn't amazing. So I think whatever happens, I think it will be the right choice.
What does it feel to be part of the group breaking the ceiling for the next generation of Native American creatives like yourself? How does it feel to be part of that, that changes what representation for your community looks like for the next generation?
To hear somebody say to me that I'm in that group, my brain doesn't compute that. I just am glad to see that it exists. I really think that this is just the beginning of that. I think that showing the youth that there are people that are out here that look like you and that come from places like you, doing exactly what you want to do and that you can do that too, I think that showing our own people that anything we want to accomplish is possible, is really important. That's the purpose of my career.
I love acting. I love it for myself. That's my personal passion, but I also hope to do something good in my life. If I could do anything good, especially for my people, that's what means the most to me. I was just in Santa Fe for Indian Market. A woman came up to me and she was like, "My sister and my daughter and I watched your movie, and we really loved it. It was really powerful. It meant a lot to me."
I was like, "Well, thank you so much. How old is your daughter?" She said eight, and I touched my chest, and she started crying. We didn't say anything. Just watching her feel that and knowing how it felt to me, it also made me cry. Having so many experiences like that, of meeting kids who love it or talking to adults whose kids love it or who it means something to them, 'cause they never got to see stuff like that growing up and thinking about how this is just the beginning and that hopefully coming behind us is just multitudes more, that's what really, I think, makes it matter.
Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.
Related content:
