Claire Danes on The Essex Serpent: ‘I think the serpent is a symbol for people’s nervousness’

Claire Danes says her first position after practically a decade in hit drama Homeland was each “wonderful” and “scary”, going from taking part in a CIA officer to a grieving nineteenth century British widow in new mini-series The Essex Serpent.

The 43-year-old actress gained quite a few awards for her portrayal of intrepid bipolar protagonist Carrie Mathison within the 2011-2020 present.

Set centuries earlier and primarily based on the hit novel by Sarah Perry, The Essex Serpent sees Danes play Cora, who strikes from London to the English county of Essex to look into speak of a legendary serpent.

She befriends pastor Will, performed by Tom Hiddleston, however quickly finds herself going through the wrath of native residents who blame her for a tragedy.

“It felt wonderful… I loved finally being able to play somebody who was in relationship with other human beings because Carrie really wasn’t,” Danes instructed Reuters in an interview.

“I kind of thought of her as like Edward Scissorhands, weirdly… she understood her volatility and she was very inclined to protect other people from that and so she isolated herself. Cora doesn’t have to, she was allowed to enjoy intimacy of varying kinds… That was fun but it was also kind of scary to be in uncharted territory.”

While the mysterious serpent is feared by locals, Cora is intrigued to be taught extra about it.

“I think the serpent is a symbol for people’s anxiety, for all of the myriad unknowns that plague us and worry us,” Danes stated.

“All of the characters are wrestling with quite a bit of internal tumult and this is a way for them to attempt to make sense of that and to fixate on something seemingly tangible and concrete.”

The story focuses on the controversy of science versus religion, with the characters believing totally different causes for the creature’s existence.

“I find it a very nourishing debate…the interconnectedness between faith and reason, science and religion. As a society and as communities, we need belief systems in order to make sense of our lives and to understand how our lives are meaningful,” Hiddleston stated.

“And at this particular time… the end of the 19th century, there was so much change in terms of the way people understood their lives. And I think the conversation continues.”

The Essex Serpent premieres on Apple TV+ on Friday.