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Its a good thing Patricia Arquette didnt listen to her children.
When I told my kids, they were both like, No!
Dont play that lady, no.
I said, Guys, Im just acting.
Im not going to start poisoning you or medicating you.
But they said that lady is too scary.
But theyreallydidnt want me to play Dee Dee.
I think they fed off each other.
But it wasnt something I had anticipated in any kind of way.
In the scenes she selected, each of her characters melts down, but under very different circumstances.
These women are very strange, very flawed women, she said.
There are commonalities, you know?
The Act
Arquette calls Dee Dee the weirdest person Ive ever played.
It flies in the face of what nature demands from us, she said.
What was interesting in the beginning was there wasnt as much research material.
Between action and cut, I strive to be thinking about what the characters thinking, she said.
Dee Dees thought process got weirder and weirder.
Shed go off on a tangent in this whole other memory.
She completely loses it and confronts Gypsy, who doesnt back down, infuriating her even more.
Sexuality in youth is undeniable, Arquette said.
It becomes a real threat of Dee Dee being abandoned.
Thats how she emotionally perceives it, so its terrifying, heartbreaking, and enraging.
We walked and talked through everything and I wanted to verify she was okay with it, Arquette recalled.
Joeys such a good actress and such a sweet person that I found myself apologizing a lot in advance.
I just cant believe this lady did these things to her daughter.
Theres something weirdly familiar about it.
My mother was pretty violent and mercurial, she said.
Thats hard sometimes, revisiting the darker moments or fears of my childhood.
When Gypsy spits in her mothers face, Dee Dee cant handle it and collapses on the bed.
Its so shocking and disrespectful to her.
Theres a really strong fear of abandonment there that goes to such a crazy level, she added.
Sure, we all have a little fear, but we dont eat people.
The part inside the Chinese restaurant was the first scene with dialogue that Arquette filmed of the entire series.
The trick came in bringing herself back into this pivotal moment for Tilly time and time again during production.
At every turn, I was screaming,Oh my God, what is going on?
Theyre trying to cover for themselves and where that takes them is fascinating.
Even so, Arquette admits she hasnt quite caught the true-crime bug.
Im not wedded to it or against it.
Im open to reading anything.
I just dont want any real true crime in my own future, she said with a laugh.
