Interview: Jennifer Ehle
Published October 24, 2005
Jennifer Ehle is probably best known for her portrayal of Elizabeth Bennet in the 1995 miniseries Pride and Prejudice Although she often believed to be British, she actually was born and raised in North Carolina. Both her parents are well-known. Her father, John Ehle, is a novelist while her mother, Rosemary Harris is an acclaimed actress.
This past summer, Ms. Ehle appeared on the London stage opposite Kevin Spacey in The Philadelphia Story. As the production was nearing the end of its run, Ms. Ehle agreed to answer questions from fans and bloggers submitted through the Jennifer Ehle Fan Blog. In all, 135 questions were submitted and she was gracious enough to answer almost all of them.
Click here to read the entire interview.
Here are my questions along with her answers:
Given the popularity of Pride and Prejudice when it first appeared, it would have been natural to expect you to try to capitalize on its success with your subsequent roles. However, it seems that you went out of your way to try not to be typecast in the same type of roles as Elizabeth Bennet. Can you share how you selected the roles you accepted after Pride and Prejudice and whether a fear of typecasting played a part in those selections?
~ When Pride and Prejudice came out September of '95, I was already working at the RSC and under contract with them till February of '96 — so there was nothing I could have done to 'capitalize' on the show's success then, even if I had wanted to. It suited me perfectly to be unavailable; and to sit tight and wait out the hoopla.
Once I was released from the RSC, I just continued to do what I always had done, which was to take the most interesting (to me) jobs that I was offered.
This has changed a little now that I have a family — and am open again to working — but it has not changed a great deal.
Now it has to be the most interesting job that is also interesting enough to ask my family to commit to.
- Interview: Jennifer Ehle
- Published: October 24, 2005
- Type: Interview
- Section: Video
- Filed Under: Video: Classics, Video: Drama
- Writer: Daddypundit
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- Daddypundit's personal site
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And another update: Alpha Male is out in UK cinemas on August 11th 2006. From October 2006 til March 2007 Jennifer Ehle will be in Tom Stoppard's The Coast of Utopia trilogy at the Lincoln Center Theater.
JENNIFER EHLE IS JUST ABOUT THE MOST BEAUTIFUL WOMAN. HER PERFORMANCE IN 'PRIDE AND PREJUDICE' ALWAYS TAKES MY BREATHE AWAYAND I AM TOTALLY ADDICTED TO HER LOVELY FACE
Jennifer Ehle is a very talented actress. She has that ability to create life in the character that she portrays amazingly natural and believable. They could not do another Pride and Prejudice better than the 1995 BBC/A&E Production.They have the best group of people in that production.
These few (excellent) questions are part of a much larger collection of queries, which are available for download (pdf) here -- overall, more than a hundred web-fan-submitted questions were answered personally by Ms. Ehle, who is made of AWESOME!
I am absolutely smitten with Jennifer Ehle's masterful portrayal of Elizabeth Bennett, which I've been watching again on a PBS rerun of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE. She captures every nuance of mood revealed by that irresistible young lady. Her face is as beautiful and heart-rending when expressing annoyance or anger as when it radiates the sunshine of her heavenly smile. I could watch this film over and over again just to indulge my own fantasies.
Eckhart Richter
I agree that Jennifer Ehle is a very talented
actress. I am enjoying so much the 2nd showing of Pride and Prejudice on Public Television.
Ms. Ehle's performance as a actress is so memorable I could watch this three part series of
the Jane Austen Chronicles over and over.
Wouldn't we all like to find a Lizzy of our own. Her portrayal of E. B. in 'Pride & Prejudice' is indeed irrestible. Every moment of hers on screen is radiated with the candidicy of a wide ranging personality fully influenced by a truly impressive character. This kind of natural human beauty will never go out of style. Very, very well communicated Ms. Ehle.
Jennifer ehle is so amazing. Her performance in pride and prejuidice is so remarkable. i watch it all the time and everytime it creates something new for me.
it's really one of the best series that has ever been on t.v
I have watched P&P a thousand times and I never get tired of it. BBC's adaptation of P&P is trully the best. The group of actors involved in the production has captured the true essence of the book and the beauty of Jane Austen's writing. I also love to read sequels of the book written by other authors and the only faces I see in the book are those of Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth.How I wish they could do another movie together.
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Thought some of you might be interested in what Jennifer Ehle has been up to. It's a big year for her - her star's rising!
Firstly, she's doing Macbeth with Liev Schreiber for Shakespeare in the Park in NYC. It's running from June 13th to July 9th. More info at the Public Theatre site.
Secondly, she's finished two biggish films. One is Michael Clayton with George Clooney and directed by Tony Gilroy of the Bourne films. That's a legal thriller and she's playing Clooney's lover. It's in post-production now and should be released sometime this year. The other film is Pride and Glory, a drama about a family of cops, also starring Edward Norton and Colin Farrell. Filming is coming to an end at the moment and should be released in 2007. She also finished an Indian movie earlier this year called Road to the Sky or Kerala, which is directed by Santosh Sivan.
On the DVD front, The Camomile Lawn is out in the US, and in the UK Melissa and The River King are due. There is also a collector's edition of Pride and Prejudice coming out in September.
Have a look at
themy Jennifer Ehle blog to keep up with her news.