Allison Janney interview: 'Trump has divided America like it was in the Civil War'

“I’m a little blurry-eyed,” Allison Janney forewarns as we settle down to chat in a bustling London hotel one February afternoon. It’s been a long day of interviews for the actor who, days later, will grace the Royal Albert Hall stage to pick up a Best Supporting Actress trophy for her role of Tonia Harding’s no-nonsense mother, LaVona, in new drama I, Tonya.

Not that she shows it. Janney – one of Hollywood’s most dependable fixtures whose numerous roles traverse both the big and small screen – displays willingness to talk about any subject thrown her way, be it Trump or her breakout role as CJ Cregg in seminal Aaron Sorkin drama The West Wing.

But she’s here for I, Tonya, the biographical film focused on the largely misunderstood story of figure skater Harding’s involvement in the infamous 1994 attack on her sports rival Nancy Kerrigan. For her role, Janney secured an Oscar nomination alongside its lead star, Margot Robbie.

Below, Janney speaks about the “complicated” LaVona, her luck in securing roles, and why the world needs a West Wing reunion now more than ever.

On her memories of the Tonya Harding scandal

“I was in New York City at the time. I was very aware of the players involved because I used to be a figure skater. I one point dreamed of competing at the Olympics which didn’t happen for a number of reasons – one of them being that I wasn’t good at it. I was fascinated.

“It was the advent of the 24-hour news cycle so we couldn’t get enough of it. It was such a great story – the bad girl and the ice princess. It was just a narrative that people wanted more and more of – and we totally believed Tonya did it. I have nothing against Nancy – my God, this should never have happened to her – but I think that they were both portrayed unfairly as one thing: Nancy’s not just an ice princess and Tonya certainly wasn’t just a bad girl from the wrong side of the tracks.

“The thing this movie does so beautifully is to make you have a lot more empathy for Tonya. At least I did. Everyone can walk away from this movie thinking what they want – the audience member gets to decide what they feel about it. It’s extraordinary storytelling at its best. Everyone has such a wildly different take about the same thing that happened.”

On her Bafta-winning role of LaVona Harding

“She is certainly one of the more complicated characters I’ve ever had to play – she’s completely a mess. [Writer] Steven Rogers couldn’t find the real LaVona and Tonya didn’t care if she was alive or dead – she didn’t know where she was – so I was relieved of the responsibility of playing someone real. I thought, ‘Oh good, I won’t offend this woman.’ That would have made me nervous because obviously she has now resurfaced and disagrees with everything. She’s relentless, and quite a piece of work, but it was my challenge to bring her to life without judging her.

“There’s nothing more fun for an actor than to do a direct address to the camera and tell your character’s point of view. That’s a really fun thing and that was the part that I was most looking forward to doing this movie – sitting there with that bird and fur coat.

“The oxygen tank was my idea because the bird handler wouldn’t let us smoke around the bird and [director] Craig Gillespie was like, ‘Well, we have to smoke.’ So I said, ‘Wait a minute – why don’t we give her emphysema?” It just made sense and the prop department had one of these breathing tubes and oxygen tanks that we threw next to her – and away we went. That bird was fascinated with that tube in my ear and kept poking it – it was so much fun. Did I already say I said I felt I’d stepped out of a Diane Arbus photograph?”

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On how she picks roles

“This one was decided for me – Steve [Rogers] literally attached me to this movie before he even asked my permission because he was so sure he wanted me to play it. I have the good fortune of having friends who have worked with me and know they want to work with me. I remember one of the first things I did in New York was a play called Five Women Wearing the Same Dress (1993) that Alan Ball wrote – that was before he wrote American Beauty (1999) – and told Sam Mendes he wanted me to play the mother. It wasn’t like I read American Beauty and went, ‘Get me that role.’ I’ve made some good choices and had good choices made for me.”

On the gender imbalance in Hollywood

“[It’s especially bad] for directors. I’m so happy that [Lady Bird director] Greta Gerwig got her nomination and Reed Morano just won Best Director [at the Golden Globes] for The Handmaid’s Tale. I think we’re definitely seeing a sea change of shift in Hollywood for women and other people who have been marginalised most of their career. I’m pretty excited to see that happening in my lifetime. I don’t know I ever thought it would happen.

“Trump wasn’t in office when Steven wrote this movie – MeToo and TimesUp weren’t around – and this movie’s resonating so much because of the story about a woman who was not embraced for her individuality, was told she had to fit into an old-timey version of what a woman should be. It’s amazing how much it’s resonating right now. It’s a happy-go-lucky coincidence.”

On her experience of playing CJ Cregg in The West Wing

“Some of the happiest times of my life – really truly. They are some of my favourite people on this planet that I still consider great friends. I was fully aware of how cool it was to be a part of that show and it only gets cooler with age, especially now with what’s going on in our country and our current administration.”

On the Trump administration

“It makes so many people sad what’s going on. It’s even more important that... [she sighs] I wish that we could come back and do The West Wing. This is one of the scarier times I’ve been around – I never thought I’d see our country in the place that it is now and be divided like it was back in the Civil War. It’s crazy. It’s really terrifying. We need to do a West Wing reunion.”

On her cameo appearance in TV series Lost

My God, I was in it for one episode [season 6’s “Across the Sea”]. I thought I would do something completely different and be a part of pop culture. I still don’t even understand what was going on in that, I really don’t. I was grasping at straws. I’m not sure it was my finest work. But it was kind of cool to be in it. I’m not a fan of acting outdoors – that’s what I learned. With noise and waterfalls? It was very hard [laughs]. That episode explained a lot. I had to kill a woman after she gave birth, and there was Titus Welliver, the smoke man.

On her three favourite roles

I loved being part of Drop Dead Gorgeous (1999). That was really a fun movie. I loved being part of, well obviously I, Tonya. Oh my, I don’t know... American Beauty.

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On the legacy that she’d like to leave behind

I like to play these roles where people – especially with CJ or roles like this one – are inspired to want to act. I want to change their lives. Or I just like to keep entertaining people and healing through showing people’s pain and having people feel validated somehow. Shit like that.

‘I, Tonya’ is in cinemas now

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