The Genius and Beauty of Olivia Williams

Olivia Williams is such a beautiful woman.  I feel, in some way, as if that's an obvious, and therefore un-useful, thing to say.  But I think it merits saying anyway, since in ageless Hollywood, she looks, and is, 42 simultaneously.  I think she's grown into that beauty in a way that other actors and actresses miss out on because they're afraid of it.   It's too bad too much of this A.V. Club interview is about Roman Polanski, because, well, ugh, because I think it showcases a lot of what makes her a sophisticated, intelligent, and therefore extremely interesting actress with a very long potential shelf life.  Even if she hadn't given the rest of the interview, the simple fact that she was initially up for a role that went to Kim Cattrall in The Ghostwriter, but ended up with a role once intended for Tilda Swinton, is a great demonstration of her range.  This level of attention to detail, though, is what really sells me on her:

I was very particular about the type of woman Ruth is. She isn’t a British aristocrat, and that was something I discussed with Roman, because occasionally, he would direct me to speak to the servants or to other people as if I was someone who was used to that British way of assuming you’re in charge—a colonial way. But she’s not that. She’s bright, working-class, made via education and ambition. So she’s not at ease. She’s quite awkward and not particularly elegant, and that is what I wanted to achieve, not the assumption that someone like that would be something out of an Oscar Wilde play. She’s tougher and edgier. The point about her is that she’s not the charismatic one. Her husband is charismatic, and because she’s not, she didn’t choose to have the big, center-stage political career. It was my mission, in some ways, to make her abrasive and unattractive.

Also, she sounds like she would be quite a bit of fun to watch movies with, herself:

I am the worst judge of how a movie is going to do. I always have great and ambitious hopes, but none of them see the light of day. I loved Rushmore. I loved the script. I mean, that is what drew me to it, just the actual piece of literature the script is. But I never thought in a million years that anyone would see it or respond to it. It was an absolute joy that it was so loved and continues to be. The same with The Sixth Sense. I thought, “No one’s going to watch this. Bruce Willis hasn’t got a gun. There’s no shagging. Lovely story, sweet and profound about loss and death, but no one’s going to watch this.” 

And this final sentiment I think gets at why I worry that tabloid drama, and lives lived so intensely in the public eye, leaches something away from actors' ability to deliver fine performances.  "It’s the payoff, you know? It’s why you mustn’t show your subtext at any other time. It’s the fun bit. It’s the fun and games."