C, the mysterious woman onWestworldplayed byProdigal Sonstar Aurora Perrineau, has a more familiar name to viewers.
It’s Frankie, as in the grown-up version of Caleb’s (Aaron Paul) daughter.
Then she got the script for episode 4, and her perception changed.
Aurora Perrineau on ‘Westworld’.John Johnson/HBO
“I thought it was really cool when I got the reveal later on,” she tells EW.
Except Caleb was brought back by Chalores, presumably as a robot.
And it’s only over the course of 23 years that she’s been testing him for fidelity.
EW sat down with Perrineau to unpack all this.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Was this always in the back of your mind when you first came intoWestworld?
AURORA PERRINEAU:No.
I was like, I will do anything on this show.
I’ll march through the back of a shot.
I don’t care.
So I thought it was really cool when I got the reveal later on.
So it’s a situation where you’re getting the scripts for each episode as you’re going along.
It’s not all up front.
No, nothing all up front.
You’re like, “Is this for real?”
They’re like, “Yeah, it’s for real.”
I did not know then.
But I think that will all be revealed later.
Neither of us knew that we were playing each other.
It just worked out in a way.
I think they did a really good job casting her and it felt similar.
In hindsight, do you feel there are obvious parallels between the two Frankies?
Yes, but it’s interesting when you read the script versus when you watch the show.
The way it’s edited, things get moved.
Do you feel like you would’ve approached the character differently if you knew that backstory?
Maybe, but the really great thing was that I only didn’t know for one episode.
In episode 3, I didn’t know exactly why I was doing the things I was doing.
And then by episode 4 I knew, and then the rest of the season I knew.
So it ended up being okay and not one where you’re like, “Oh no!
I would’ve done all these things so differently.”
What backstory did you make up for this character before you knew?
I never reveal my secrets.
Then they don’t work.
They don’t work when you have a go at do it for something else.
We find out in this episode that the weapon Frankie has been looking for is actually Maeve.
There are so many implications for this.
What are the big implications for you?
So there’s confusion, there’s anger, there’s sadness, there’s all these things.
I don’t even know if she’s thinking what’s next.
I also want to ask about Daniel Wu’s character.
We see both of you butting heads.
Can you tell us a bit about these two characters' relationship?
There’s always going to be tension, but clearly there’s a common goal.
I think there’s fun to be had with that between the two of them throughout the season.
Now as an adult, you have actual machinery.
I get in on a good amount of action.
It’s a really fun character.
She gets to do a lot of fun stuff.
We’re at the halfway mark and it seems like the entire game has changed.
We know what’s going on with the city and the tower.
What are you most excited for viewers to see for the back half of this season?
I think every character gets to go on a journey that is not really expected.
Did you get to pilot that?
I had a stunt driver, but I did get to pilot.
It actually looks really cool.
It’s really hard to drive.
But when you’re driving, you’re like, “I can’t really see.
I’ve got to kind of turn my head to hear.”
It doesn’t look like I’m so badass driving this car.
You’re kind of like, “Oh, I can’t really drive this.”
Doesn’t go over a certain mileage, like miles per hour.
And it’s just kind of a hilarious to drive.
It’s just for show.
And they’re like, “you’re free to’t go over the speed limit.
So go ahead.”
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
