Three Womenfinds three women on a crash course to radically overturn their lives. Sloane (DeWanda Wise), a glamorous entrepreneur in the Northeast, has a committed open marriage with Richard (Blair Underwood), until two sexy new strangers threaten their aspirational love story. Lina (Betty Gilpin) is a decade into a passionless marriage when she embarks on an affair, while Maggie (Gabrielle Creevy) weathers an intense storm after accusing her married English teacher of an inappropriate relationship. Gia (Shailene Woodley) is the writer who persuades each of these three women to tell her their stories.
Three Womenis unafraid to explore deeply emotional stories while boasting important messaging about female empowerment. Both DeWanda Wise and Blair Underwood are seasoned actors: DeWanda is known for her work inJurassic World Dominion, while Blair can be seen inAgents of S.H.I.E.L.D.Three Womendebuts on Starz on Friday, September 13th.
Imaginary Star DeWanda Wise Compares New Blumhouse Horror Film To Modern Greek Tragedy
Imaginary’s DeWanda Wise explains how horror is like Greek tragedy with its high stakes, her desire for more Chauncey, and Pyper Braun’s talent.
Screen Rantsat down with DeWanda Wise and Blair Underwood to discuss their new series,Three Women. They joke that they both filmed horror films, DeWanda withImaginaryand Blair withLonglegs, after this series because they needed a break from the heavy and emotional stories. The two also discuss the importance of bringing female empowerment to the screen.
On Going From An Heavy, Emotional Series To Horror Movies
“The one common denominator is they are both freaky, in different ways.”
Screen Rant: You’re coming off of some, I think, fantastichorror films withImaginaryandLonglegs. What was it like going into something heavy and emotional like Three Women after this?
DeWanda Wise: Well, it was the opposite, right? Because you film Longlegs after this, too. So we filmed this before, so maybe we were both subconsciously like, I need to do something else.
Blair Underwood: Exactly the one common denominator is they are both freaky in different ways. But freaky nonetheless.
DeWanda Wise & Blair Underwood Talk Bringing Female Empowerment To The Screen
“I grew up being surrounded by strong, powerful, accomplished women.”
Screen Rant: What was it that drew you to want to be a part of telling these stories?
DeWanda Wise: I’ve been super spoiled in the TV space because I saw all ten scripts. I’ve read the book, and I love the book. The challenge for Sloane and Richard is that they’re rich, they look like us, how do you find empathy for these people in the context of a story where there’s an impoverished girl who has been groomed by her teacher, there’s a character with fibromyalgia whose husband won’t touch her. So we really had our work cut out for us in terms of taking the side of our characters in a way that, hopefully, if we did our jobs well, God willing, the audience can feel viscerally. That’s the challenge. That’s what I saw on the page. And I was like, Oh, if we can do that.
Blair Underwood: For me, I grew up being surrounded by strong, powerful, accomplished women. My mother, my sister, I have a daughter, my wife is the same. So the fact that I knew this was really run by women, the producers, all of our directors, a lot of the production staff, I found that fascinating. Then as DeWanda was speaking to the context of what the stories and the characters we were delving into and exploring, I thought was very fascinating and in a different way. I was intrigued, actually, at the time.
I remember reading reviews about her book, Three Women, and how it was groundbreaking. And I was wondering, how do you break ground in 2021? Actually, how do you break ground in this day and age? And that’s what I learned. DeWanda and I talked about this too, just about how this is still peeling back layers of female empowerment.
DeWanda Wise Is The “Queen Of Light” On The Three Women Set
“Between action and cut, that’s when you get deep.”
Screen Rant: Was Lisa on set helping you guys along, answering questions as you needed them?
DeWanda Wise: She’s a co-showrunner on the series, so she was extraordinarily present.
Screen Rant: Did you find a way to keep things lighter on set? Because this is some heavy subject matter.
DeWanda Wise: I am the Queen of light. You drop in, you get out.
Blair Underwood: I was just going to say you stay light. Then between action and cut, that’s when you get deep. Stay light.
More About Three Women Season 1
“Three Women” finds three women on a crash course to radically overturn their lives. Lina (Betty Gilpin), a homemaker in suburban Indiana, is a decade into a passionless marriage when she embarks on an affair that quickly becomes all-consuming and transforms her life. Sloane (DeWanda Wise), a glamorous entrepreneur in the Northeast, has a committed open marriage with Richard (Blair Underwood), until two sexy new strangers threaten their aspirational love story. Maggie (Gabrielle Creevy), a student in North Dakota, weathers an intense storm after accusing her married English teacher (Jason Ralph) of an inappropriate relationship. Gia (Shailene Woodley), a writer grieving the loss of her family, persuades each of these three spectacular “ordinary” women to tell her their stories, and her relationships with them change the course of her life forever.
Three Women
Cast
“Three Women” follows the intertwined lives of Sloane, Lina, and Maggie, each facing unique challenges in their personal and romantic lives. Sloane, a successful businesswoman, explores the boundaries of her open marriage. Lina, stuck in a passionless marriage, finds herself in a transformative affair. Maggie, a young student, navigates the repercussions of a controversial relationship with her teacher.
