“I think surprising myself constitutes a good day at work. In a scene, it’s whenever you can feel like you gave a performance that you didn’t anticipate, but feels right for the scene, the character, the story and everything.” – Gillian Jacobs
Community and Love star Gillian Jacobs has amassed many notable acting credits in both film and television since she graduated from Juilliard School in 2004. For the most part, many of her projects have fallen into the category of general comedy or drama projects with a handful of genre-related projects to her credit. While speaking with The Hollywood Reporter about her role in the slasher film series Fear Street, Jacobs reveals what types of projects she aspires to work in.
When the interviewer asks if there are any genres that Jacobs if there are any genres that she would like to have a role in some day, Jacobs is very open: anything she hasn’t done lately, and uses the 2016 indie comedy Don’t Think Twice as an example of a project where she learned a lot. She says:
“What’s been fun about being in all different sorts of genres of movies and TV shows is that it stretches me as an actor. So I kind of want to do whatever I haven’t done recently. (Laughs.) That’s sort of my answer always. Something that feels new or different. I did this movie [Don’t Think Twice] with Mike Birbiglia a few years ago where I was part of an improv troupe. I had never really studied improv, and that movie required me to study improv and improvise and really be a part of an improv troupe, which was very intimidating to me. But I ultimately found it really exciting and fulfilling to challenge myself in that way. So those roles that really push you in a new direction as a performer can be unexpected, and I’m pretty open to whatever that might be next.”
On that note, Jacobs reflects on what a “good day at work” means to her as an actress. She explains, “I think surprising myself constitutes a good day at work. In a scene, it’s whenever you can feel like you gave a performance that you didn’t anticipate, but feels right for the scene, the character, the story and everything. It’s those moments where you just feel so in the moment with your co-star, and you feel so in alignment with the character, the director and the writer, and you can surprise yourself. I think that’s really exhilarating.”
