Sarah Jessica Parker: TV doesn’t lack diversity
Sarah Jessica Parker says television is an area of acting where females have a strong presence.
The 51-year-old actress – who is most famous for portraying Carrie Bradshaw in both the TV series and two spin-off movies of ‘Sex and the City’ – feels women tend to be offered more work for the small screen than in movies "naturally" and she believes there is not as much of a problem with gender equality working in television.
Interviewed by fellow actress Michelle Pfeiffer for Variety magazine, Sarah said: "Television is doing better by some of those areas that were, I think, legitimately criticized for lack of diversity and gender. And television seems to — not by force, but really naturally — come to female directors and writers more."
Michelle, 59, expressed her desire to land a role in TV as she agrees with Sarah’s sentiment about the opportunities for females.
She replied: "I would love to do something in television. Because at this stage in my life it actually fits really well, because I like the idea of just being in one place for a while … I think there is a range of possibilities in television."
Sarah – who has son James Wilkie, 14, and twin daughters Tabitha and Loretta, seven, with husband Matthew Broderick – also admitted that she never intended to go back into television work after ‘Sex and the City’.
Asked by Michelle: "So what was it about this that made you want to come back to television?"
She answered: "When I finished ‘Sex and the City’ and then the movies, I assumed I wouldn’t do television for a while …"
However, she says she loves the routine of being a TV actress and getting to carry a characters journey through several episodes rather than just one feature film.
She added: "I really love the medium … I like the idea of living an alternate life to your own and telling a complete story about somebody.
"I love that television demands a sort of discipline. When you’re producing, and I’m sort of bundling producing in with the acting — because for me that is a part of the enormous joy and challenge and tears – I love how specific you have to be about every decision and how it all adds up so quickly."
