Patrick Harbron/HBO(NEW YORK) — Julia Louis-Dreyfus plays Selina Meyer, the first female U.S. president, on the hit HBO show Veep, and in an interview with Yahoo’s Katie Couric, the actress weighed in on the upcoming 2016 elections.
While her show works with real-world consultants, the plot has sometimes pushed the envelope, Louis-Dreyfus said.
“I mean, listen, we’re telling stories. So we may sort of push the envelope a little bit in terms of reality on occasion. But I will also say that we’ve had circumstances where we told stories that seemed like, ‘Oh, are we pushing too much?’ And then two years later it happens,” she said.
When Couric, Yahoo’s global news anchor, asked for an example of such a circumstance, Louis-Dreyfus replied: “Well, season one or two of Veep we had all this stuff about our emails getting out. And she had to disclose all of her emails. And look what happened in the last couple months? I mean it’s bizarre, right? And — but, you know, who knew?”
Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was widely criticized last month when it was revealed that she had used her own private email account during her tenure as the nation’s top diplomat. The account was hosted by a private server located at her home in Chappaqua, New York. Clinton, 67, is expected to announce her candidacy for president very soon.
Couric asked Louis-Dreyfus what advice her character, President Meyer, would have for Clinton.
“Oh, Selina Meyer would have a complete fit about that. Her advice to — would be, ‘Get out of my way.’ I think. That’s what Selina Meyer would say,” the actress said, laughing.
Louis-Dreyfus, 54, also opened up about embracing her age. Getting older on camera is “bizarre,” she said.
“It is incredible. It’s like everybody’s looking in the magnifying mirror with you. You know?” she said.
“It’s a tricky thing. Aging. But you know what? Guess what? What’s the alternative? So embrace it. You get into trouble when you fight it too much,” she said.
The actress is also embracing new opportunities in television, especially for older women.
“Well, I think television is so — I mean, it’s so vast right now,” she said. “There are so many different avenues down which you can go to create product. And that’s thrilling because as a result it’s really attracting creative people with whole different points of view. Different styles, different voices, different — it feels like all bets are off.”
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