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The game recalls the couples happier days.
She has been in prison ever since.
How did you prepare?
Tiera Skovbye: I got to spend about a week on set just watching Amanda.
They also sent me the dailies from what she had already filmed.
I based a lot of how I was going to portray young Betty on what Amanda was doing.
I followed in her footsteps.
There isnt a lot available in terms of things you could watch that show Betty as a young woman.
Skovbye: No, not at all.
I also read the portions ofThe Twelfth of Neverthat dealt with her younger years.
What was important for you to convey?
Skovbye: That they were really in love and they did try really hard to make it work.
There was a real place of love between the two of them.
I think thats what makes the whole thing so heartbreaking.
Chris, how did you prepare to play Dan?
I auditioned without knowing that.
I went in with a very strong idea of who Dan was from the little that is out there.
Christian and I just tried to work together and learn together to tell the story.
We were very lucky to have fantastic directors.
For episode two, Meera Menon was brilliant.
We were very lucky to be in such capable hands.
Skovbye: I havent watched it yet.
Chris, you ended up sounding so much like Christian Slater.
How did you do that?
Mason: Im from Liverpool originally, so Ive got quite the strong accent.
And so, Ive always been a decent mimic.
Watching Christian over and over, you see and feel where it comes from.
But its not just changing your accent.
Its the tone of his voice.
The first time I heard you, I kept staring at you wondering if there was dubbing involved.
Did it take a long time to get there?
Mason: Ill take that, thank you!
There was definitely some takes where it wasnt right.
I was lucky they let me do it.
Skovbye: Yeah, Chris, what is that?
Mason:Its something that Dan used to do, a little weird thing between them.
I think it was slightly different the way Dan did it in real life.
But when something is such an inside joke, it can be hard to portray on screen.
It was possibly my favorite scene to shoot and it was one of my audition scenes.
So, I really committed to it.
I had to wear pads on my hands and legs and throw myself on the floor.
It was so fun.
Tiera, did you find it creepy?
Skovbye: No, I thought it was hilarious.
There wasnt much acting for that scene.
I just really was reacting to whatever variation Chris was going to do.
It was incredibly entertaining to watch.
Its one of those weird, quirky things that a couple has probably done their whole relationship.
Chris, what do you mean that the real Dan Broderick did it differently?
Mason: The way he did the actual action of the alligator.
It was more with his mouth and using his hands for a snapping alligator kind of thing.
I think he used his mouth a little bit more, which could have been misconstrued on screen.
And Christian really made it a lot bigger than how Dan did it.
How did you view him?
But that didnt excuse how selfish he was.
As far as playing Dan, I got to play the nicer part of him.
There was a soft side.
When they got married in 1969, gender roles between men and women were very different.
What did you think of those aspects of their relationship?
Skovbye: Definitely now Id be like, Take it to the dry cleaner yourself.
But she had a mother who taught her what was expected of a good wife.
But the added layer was that she was also the financial support when he was going to school.
So, I put myself in the mindset that these were the times.
I wont have to do this so much.
But for now, this is what I do.
Once that does happen, and all the sacrifice is over, everything starts to unravel.
According to the bookTwelfth of Never, Betty Broderick was pregnant nine times total.
You see some of that in the show.
Skovbye: I think she also loved being a wife and she took pride in being a good wife.
I think she loved that role.
I think she loved that.
And then it all gets stripped away from her.
When you were playing her, were you mindful that shed eventually commit murder?
Skovbye: I fully put that away.
I didnt bring that into our bit of the storyline at all.
I dont think that was even something that she thought was in her world at that time.
She didnt even ask for half of their assets in the settlement.
He had a lot of money.
He had a new wife.
He had the kids.
He had a successful practice.
Why do you think he hung onto these battles with her?
He had a real level of control over her.
He really could have been a lot fairer.
He had the wherewithal.
He had the know-how.
He just wanted her to still be his version of Betty, the Betty he wanted her to be.
Thats probably why he didnt give her an inch.
Instead, he just pinned it all on her to make it seem like she had been losing herself.
Skovbye: One of my favorite scenes was the one with the lab coat.
There was so much happening in that scene.
I think we had a lot of fun with it, too.
Mason:We did.
I got the easy role in that scene.
Just to come in and be not such a nice guy.
That was also a really cramped set, right?
Skovbye: It was so hot.
I was wearing a super tight little sweater and I thought I was going to die.
Mason:Poor Tiera had to deal with all the kids and the props and everything all at once.
Just like the real Betty.
