Margo Martindale is as surprised as you are that she's starring in Cocaine Bear

Clark Collis
·4 min read
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Margo Martindale is as surprised as you are that she's starring in Cocaine Bear
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Are you surprised that the acclaimed, Emmy-winning actress Margo Martindale is facing off against a deadly, drugged-up animal in Cocaine Bear (out Feb. 24)? So is she.

"I never thought at age 70 I would be doing an action movie, but I guess I did!" Martindale tells EW, with great glee.

In director Elizabeth Banks' movie, the actress plays a forest ranger named Liz whose day takes a very unexpected turn when she crosses paths with a bear who has ingested a large quantity of cocaine.

"She's no-nonsense," says Martindale of her character. "She's devoted to her craft, wanting to go up in the ranger world, does everything by the book, and has her heart set on [a character played by] Jesse Tyler Ferguson."

Cocaine Bear
Cocaine Bear

Universal Pictures Margo Martindale in 'Cocaine Bear'

While Martindale did portray a trigger-happy version of herself on the animated show Bojack Horseman, that was a purely vocal performance. The shoot for Cocaine Bear was a rather different experience.

"I thought when I read the script, well, I'm sure there'll be somebody to do all [the stunts] for me," she says. "And when I get there, I said, 'Are you kidding? You mean, I have to get down there and do that?' [Elizabeth] said, 'You read the script!' [Laughs] I did have a stunt double, who was wonderful."

Martindale talks more about the movie, her real-life bear encounters, and whether she would appear in a follow-up movie called Cocaine Shark, below.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: How did Elizabeth Banks describe the film when she approached you about the role?

MARGO MARTINDALE: She said it would be the wildest thing she's ever done, and she was hoping that I would come and do it. [Laughs]

I don't want to spoil anything, but your character goes through a lot physically in the film. What was it like shooting those scenes?

It was like people being so kind to me. When I would have to crawl around on the ground, or through the bushes, or be dragged by my feet, there'd be two very strong men waiting to help me up off the ground. It was fine. I was very well taken care of.

What was the most bizarre moment of the shoot for you?

[I was on] kind of like a railroad trolley from the old westerns, you know, where they pump it. I was on that, and they were rolling it one way, and I would have to sort of look like I was being whisked off. Of course, I looked absurd, so everybody found that hilarious. The entire cast and crew that were watching were on the ground laughing until they couldn't stop because I looked so ridiculous. It really worked beautifully in the film. [Laughs] That was the most bizarre day and the most fun.

Cocaine Bear
Cocaine Bear

Pat Redmond/Universal Pictures

Is it difficult pretending to act with a bear?

Oh, it's easy for me to imagine a bear being there because I'm scared of my own shadows. [Laughs] I'm so not the parts I play! It was easy. I'm easily frightened. But I've had a big bear right on our property, right out in front of our house, several times.

What did you do?

I said to my husband, "Bill,Bill, Bill, bear, bear, bear." And we quietly walked back in the house.

The trailer became a sensation on the internet. Were you aware of that?

Oh yeah. It kind of blew up immediately. I was working on Your Honor and I showed Bryan Cranston and James Degus the trailer. James said, "That's exactly what we need right now!" It's an incredible trailer.

I don't know if you read this, but a lot of cocaine was recently found in the ocean close to New Zealand.

[Laughs uproariously] I didn't read that.

Apparently, they found enough cocaine to keep the population of New Zealand high for the next 30 years.

Wow. That's amazing.

As a result of the story, Elizabeth Banks was asked if she would make Cocaine Shark, and she said she would. How about you?

What, put on a scuba outfit? Well, I have no pride left. Yeah, sure!

What is next for you?

Next is, I'm starting a show. I'm the lead of this new show called The Sticky that Jamie Lee Curtis is one of the producers on. Brian Donovan and Ed Herro are the showrunners and it's about the Great Maple Syrup Heist in Canada. It's really fabulous.

Cocaine Bear hits cinemas Feb. 24.

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