'The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart' showrunner and director on working with Sigourney Weaver
As The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart continues its rollout with new episodes Fridays on Prime Video, the series’ creatives spoke with ABC Audio about adapting Holly Ringland’s novel and what it’s like to work with Sigourney Weaver.
When showrunner Sarah Lambert picked up The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart for the first time, she had no idea how much the book’s opening line would stick with her.
“Either I respond to something or I don’t,” Lambert said. “In that first page it talks about 9-year-old Alice Hart sitting in a weatherboard cottage, at the end of a lane, dreaming about ways to set her father on fire.”
Ringland’s words evoked something inside of Lambert. “I hadn’t read an opening line or an opening sequence where I fell in love with that character so much,” Lambert said.
Adapting the book for the screen became her passion project. Along the way, Lambert worked with collaborators who shared that same passion. This includes Weaver, who took on the challenging role of June.
“What I love about her is that she’s not afraid to not be likable …. that character goes on a massive journey, and sometimes she does things that you think, ‘Oh God, please don’t do that,’” Lambert said. “She was never afraid about making those choices.”
Glendyn Ivin, who directed all seven episodes of the series, said working with Weaver was intimidating.
“I grew up watching Sigourney. I was 10, I think, when I saw Alien for the first time,” Ivin said. “It changed my life. Sigourney Weaver had been in my mind since I was a kid. So, to finally meet her and work with her and to do something that we’re both really proud of is — it means a lot to me.”
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