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- [00:00]
Podcast Host (Ad Reader)
This is an iHeart podcast guaranteed human
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Xolair Advertisement Voice
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Interviewer / Podcast Host
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Mira Sorvino
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Interviewer / Podcast Host
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Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
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Podcast Host (Ad Reader)
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Interviewer / Podcast Host
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- [03:24]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
aches and pains Hi everyone, it's Sophia.
- [03:28]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
Welcome to Work in Progress.
- [03:41]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Welcome back to Work in Progress, friends. Today we are joined by a cultural icon, an actress who's used her fame for good for such gorgeous creativity and who, both behind the scenes and out in the world, has been such a leader for women. Our guest today is Academy Award winner Mira Sorvino.
- [04:05]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
She began as a Harvard scholar and
- [04:07]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
went on to captivate audiences, winning her Academy Award for Mighty Aphrodite and then becoming everybody's on Screen bestie in Romeo and Michelle's high school reunion. Behind that fame, Mira was shaped by a household that was steeped in craft and conscious. Her father, Paul Sorvino, taught her the discipline of acting. Her mother was an incredible activist and she was taught early and she learned early to speak her truth. Those are lessons that she's carried into every role and every cause she has ever embraced. And that hasn't always been easy. Speaking out against harassment in Hollywood cost her opportunities when Harvey Weinstein retaliated against her, but she channeled that personal experience into incredible advocacy, becoming a United nations goodwill ambassador, fighting human trafficking, and bringing urgent stories of both survival and resilience into the public eye. Her career is a reflection of artistic excellence and unwavering commitment to justice, and her latest film manages to echo all of those lessons in her life. It is poignant, it is hilarious, it is everything that I think we as an audience want right now. The film is called Signing Tony Raymond and it is an American sports dramedy about a college football coach who is traveling to rural Alabama to recruit the nation's top high school defensive end, only to have to navigate rival recruiters, eccentric locals, and a dysfunctional family headed by Tony's mother, who of course is played by Mira. Let's dive in and hear all about her iconic life and legacy. Well, Mira, I'm just so excited to have you on the podcast today.
- [06:02]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
I. I'm going to be the professional
- [06:04]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
person who interviews you, but for the next 30 seconds, I'm gonna not and just tell you that your incredible filmography, the work you have done on screen, has been such a beacon for me as an actor. And what you do off screen is just so incredibly inspiring to me. And when I get, like, down about activism or being outspoken, I immediately think of a handful of women. I think about you, I think about Jane Fonda, I think about Viola Davis, and I'm like, it's gonna be okay. Keep going.
- [06:42]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
So I just wanna thank you for
- [06:45]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
all of the ways you inspire me and so many people.
- [06:48]
Mira Sorvino
Thank you very much. I appreciate that. Well, you're a brilliant actress and activist yourself, so coming right back at you.
- [06:55]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Well, that's really, really kind. Thank you. I. I think I feel particularly geeked to ask you this question because I love to learn about people. Before the world knew you, before we could, you know, look up, as I said, your incredibly impressive filmography on IMDb and your before sort of tickles me because I am a New Jersey resident. My mother grew up in New Jersey. And when I was reminded that you grew up in Tenafly, I was like, oh, we much to talk about.
- [07:28]
Mira Sorvino
Wait, did you grow up in Tenafly?
- [07:29]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
I didn't, but my mom grew up in Teaneck, so I spent so much of my childhood, you know, going there to be with my grandfather. And I'm just so curious if. If you could teleport back there today and interact with yourself at 8 or 9 or 10 years old. Do you. Do you think there are characteristics in her, even at that age that you would recognize in yourself today?
- [07:58]
Mira Sorvino
Oh, for sure. I think I've done a lot of work as an adult recently at sort of getting back in touch with little Mira, you know, and trying to protect little Mira and validate little Mira and just celebrate little Mira for the core elements of who I am. You know, little Mira was always, like, excited about everything. Very introspective, huge reader. Like, I would go to my room, like, if I was punished to go to my room, they'd have to call me to come back out because, you know, just. I just was stuck in a book and lost in it. And so, yeah, so there's that. And then I was very inspired by social justice movements. My mom marched on Washington with Dr. Martin Luther, Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. And that. That always made such a big impression on me. And, you know, I love the world of imagination and fantasy. And I loved acting. Like, I started acting in school plays at 8 and my dad started teaching me then. And, you know, that. That bug that bit me then has, you know, carried me all the way through to now.
- [09:10]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
So, yeah, it's so interesting because I think being an actor and standing up for social justice really go hand in hand. You know, we. We learn this craft of how to tell people's stories and care about them. And when you tell that story about your mom or you talk about your dad, who, you know, Paul Sorvino is an incredible actor in his own right. For our friends at home, did those lessons always come hand in hand, the acting and the how people's stories fit into the landscape of the world, or do you think you grew up in a household where one was about craft and one was about culture and they were just both so infused in your life?
- [09:58]
Mira Sorvino
Well, my. My parents were great entertainers, and so we would have these dinner parties where you'd have these long tables full of luminaries like, who was a Pulitzer Prize winning playwright. My dad was best friends with Jason Miller, who wrote that championship season for which my dad was nominated for a Tony on Broadway and then ended up doing the movie and then ended up directing a version of the movie later for Showtime. W. And Jason Miller was also the actor who played Father Karras in the Exorcist. You know, so he was a great actor.
- [10:28]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Wow.
- [10:28]
Mira Sorvino
Even greater writer, a great thinker. Then we used to have opera singers there because dad was a big time opera singer and other actors and. And my mom's friends who were very dear, wonderful people, just salt of the earth people. And my grandparents were always there, so there was always this foment where, you know, this ferment or whatever where we would just be bouncing. And they encouraged us kids to really listen and talk with them, not just go off to the children's table or into the other room. Like, I was always treated with a great deal of maturity. Like, I was grateful for that. Like, I was invited into the discussions and brought to the cultural events and everything. So I think, you know, there was a real awareness of the wider world and how you fit into it as an artist with opinions, this sort of
- [11:17]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
merger of reality and storytelling I find so beautiful. Because in my own way, looking back, I realize I had that in a fashion. You know, my, my dad was a photographer for his whole career. I didn't have actors in my family, but I, I had people making art and, you know, gathering friends. And I think because I was an only child, very similarly to what you were saying, I was always treated with maturity because my parents were social and so I was social. And I, I think it's such a gift to give a kid that kind of both respect and to enable their curiosity really early.
- [11:59]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
And when I look at your life
- [12:01]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
and I think about, you know, you're being raised in this artistic space, your parents are activists, you go to set with your dad, you know, you want to be an actor. And also you went to Harvard and got a degree in East Asian Studies.
- [12:15]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
And I'm going, you are exactly my kind of person.
- [12:19]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
I love the way your brain works. How did you pick it? What was the reason?
- [12:24]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
Were, were you thinking you wanted to try something different, or did you just
- [12:28]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
want to immerse yourself in a completely new space?
- [12:32]
Mira Sorvino
You mean Chinese Studies? Yeah. So I was actually, I loved Chinese culture from the time I was 12 because I had a best friend, Angela Wong, who's now a doctor, lives in Utah. But she, her family would take me with them to Chinatown, to Peking Opera. I'd watch her grandmother play mahjong. And for. And I read the Good Earth and I just kind of fell in love with traditional Chinese culture. And then when I got to college, freshman year, I did not know what I wanted to do. I wanted to do everything. Like, I didn't want to narrow myself. And they had one major called history and lit, where you could do both history and literature, but you had to already speak the language of the country. So for me, it was either ang. Anglophone or Francophone countries. And you, they were very rigid. So, like, if you took a course about philosophy of France, right, the French philosophers, it would not count. Like, even if you were studying French history and lit for some reason, you know, or the art, it would not count. And then it was very rigid at the time. I really don't know how it is now. And Harvard also has this great core curriculum or did, where you got to take this super wide variety of subjects. So for that I'm very grateful. And you studied with these amazing professors like Stephen Jay Gould or, you know, on evolutionary biology, but I just wanted to study everything. And I probably just should have devised my own major or made an independent major, which I could have, but I didn't and then I took this course called Art, Politics and Mythology in Bronze Age China, I think, or Archeology, I don't know. It was taught by the famous Chinese archaeologist Casey Zhang. And it was so fascinating. And then my section leader was like, oh, mira, we have this major, maybe you would be interested in it. It's called East Asian Languages and Civilizations. And anything you studied, as long as it pertained to East Asia counted. So you could take Tang poetry, you could take Shinto architecture, you could take the politics of the Vietnam War, you could take anything as long as it pertained to East Asia. They did have a canonical choice, of course. You had to choose like, a home country. And mine was China. And so that took you through like, you know, you read the Buddhist sutras, you studied Taoism and Confucius and the, you know, the dynastic histories and everything, and 20th century history. But then anything you took would relate. And so I chose that. And it was a hard row to ho because the Chinese language is so difficult, and learning it away from a Chinese speaking place is very hard. But in between my junior and senior year, actually, my parents got divorced. They broke up at Christmas when I was 20, Christmas Day, Christmas night. You know, it was one of those, like, thanks for ruin it.
- [15:19]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
Right?
- [15:20]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
You're like, that's the plot of a Netflix movie.
- [15:22]
Mira Sorvino
Yeah, yeah. Just chase after the car in the snow, Daddy, don't leave. You know.
- [15:26]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Oh, goodness.
- [15:28]
Mira Sorvino
Yeah. And I. I had a really hard time focusing that spring semester of junior year because I just was so depressed and it was just like my whole world had like fallen apart. And so I went to China for the summer to study third year Chinese at Beijing University. And then I just decided to stay and. Because I felt like I was just scratching the surface of Chinese culture, just starting to make some friends. And my language had just gotten to the point where people didn't seem to be talking so quickly.
- [15:55]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
Right.
- [15:55]
Mira Sorvino
Because that's the thing. Like, if you're learning a language and then you watch like a news show, people seem to be speaking impossibly fast, and if only they would speak slower, you would understand it. And it was like a train that all of a sudden slowed down enough for me to jump on and have conversations and have comprehension. So I took a semester off of school and I rented a room from a Chinese woman and I got like three jobs. I was editing English language translations of Chinese magazines and books, and I would fix their English. And then I was singing jazz with two Chinese European jazz bands, and I had the fake books that my dad would send me in care packages. And they were all excited because they didn't have any of the music. So I was like a very popular person in Beij because I had all this western music. And this was still. Like everybody was still in mouse suits. Everybody was still. I mean, I'm old. So it was like people riding bicycles everywhere. It was nothing like the China of today, which has completely capitalized.
- [16:51]
Podcast Host (Ad Reader)
Right.
- [16:51]
Mira Sorvino
It was still super communist.
- [16:53]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Right.
- [16:54]
Mira Sorvino
So the iron rice bowl in full effect. Like, people had no hot water. People had no phones in their apartments. It was all walk ups. Like I had to go. I had to walk up six flights of stairs to get to my friend's apartment. And then I would have to use hot boiled water for my showers. And then if I had to call my family, I had to go down the six flights and go to this little hut where this shifu, this little man sat. And I would give him money and then I'd call the U.S. you know. But it was like. So it was. And I had a bicycle and my bicycle was stolen. I had to get another bicycle. But, you know, it was a different life. But it was also a very beautiful life because you forged these friendships with people that were really true. But then Tiananmen Square happened and then it became unsafe to go back. To go back and distasteful to go back. And you didn't want to endanger your friends. And. And so everybody in the China field kind of backed off. And that turned me back towards New York and acting more full force. I mean, I was in a lot of plays at Harvard and I directed things, but I don't know that I would have ended up being a full time actress had I gone back to China after graduation. If things had been different. Yeah. So life is interesting. Yeah.
- [18:08]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
And now for our sponsors.
- [18:11]
Xolair Advertisement Voice
Xolair Omalizumab is proven to significantly reduce allergic reactions if a food allergy accident happens. Xolair 150mg is a prescription medication used to treat food allergy in people 1 year of age and older to reduce allergic reactions due to accidental exposure to one or more foods while taking Xolair. You should continue to avoid all foods to which you are allergic. Don't use if you are allergic to Xolair. Xolair may cause a severe life threatening allergic reaction called anaphylaxis. Tell your doctor if you have ever had anaphylaxis. Get help right away if you have trouble breathing or if you have swelling of your throat or tongue. Xolair should not be used for the emergency treatment of allergic reactions including anaphylaxis. Xolair is for maintenance use to reduce allergic reactions including anaphylaxis, while avoiding food allergens. Serious side effects such as cancer, fever, muscle aches and rash, parasitic infection or heart and circulation problems have been reported. Please see xolair.com for full prescribing information. Ask an allergist about Xolair this is an advertisement for Xolair paid for by Genentech and Novartis.
- [19:21]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
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- [20:24]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
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Interviewer / Podcast Host
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Interviewer / Podcast Host
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- [21:03]
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- [22:05]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
I don't know about you, but being a couple months into the new year
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Interviewer / Podcast Host
makes me feel like I might need
- [22:10]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
a little re up on my goals, my plans. I'm not a fan of resolutions because I think they set us up to fail, but what I do like is setting intentions and I think a few months into the year it's a great time to check in with those. Whether you go on a walk outside to get some fresh air and sink into your thoughts or you want to sit and journal about your paper plans for the year, there are so many things you can do to change up your routine, especially as we approach long awaited spring sunshine. A refresh can be as simple as amplifying your look with clean beauty from Thrive Cosmetics. Every product is 100% vegan, cruelty free and made with clean ingredients that work with your skin, not against it. And when we use Thrive cosmetics, we're helping others shine too. With over $150 million in product and cash donations to over 600 giving partners, every purchase fuels real impact and that's beauty with purpose. Show your confidence in lipstick form like with the Empower Matte Precision Lip Crayon. This one comes in 18 buildable, long lasting matte shades and it's designed to be worn either as a liner or layered so it leaves your lips looking luscious and fuller. I'm eyeing a little eye game upgrade with the Brilliant Eye Brightener. It's a waterproof eyeshadow highlighter stick made to brighten and open your eyes. Definitely comes in handy on those long days on set. So join me and amplify your spring look with Thrive cosmetics. Go to thrivecosmetics.com progress for an exclusive 20% off your first order. That's Thrivecosmetics. C-A U S E M E T I C S.com progress no one knows
- [24:02]
Podcast Host (Ad Reader)
what the future holds, but you deserve a weather app that can help. Weatherbug is easy to use and provides forecasts for your every need, from storm warnings to pollen levels right at your fingertips. Get the fastest local Alerts and comprehensive 10 day forecasts wherever you are. If you its hyperlocal real time customizable alerts. Make sure the weather never takes you by surprise so you can plan every day with confidence. Download the free weather bug app from the app Store today and start getting accurate weather forecasts 24. 7.
- [24:36]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
So life takes that left turn. You can't go back. You do lean in full to acting, and then this career explodes. I mean, what is it that really sticks out for you? Is it because the obvious question for me is, you know, a fan and a follower of your work is mighty Aphrodite. But does that. Is there something before that was my 10th film. Yeah.
- [25:03]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
So I.
- [25:04]
Mira Sorvino
And my first film was a film that I was actually on the crew of before I got cast on it. Because I was working at Tribeca Productions as a reader for Jane Rosenthal and Robert De Niro. I would read script submissions and this script came in and I thought it was very good, but I didn't think it was right for their company. It was sort of like a baby Goodfellas. It's about these three sort of wannabe gangster boys in the Five Towns area of Long island and written and directed by Rob Weiss. And so I said, rob, I really like it, but I don't think this is gonna be something they're gonna go for. But, you know, if you want my help on it. So he's like, yes. So I became like an associate producer on it or so I don't know what my ultimate title was. It was a very minimal title for the amount of work that I ended up doing. But then they asked me if I'd be like the assistant casting director also. So. And then I became the reader for all the guys on the show, on the movie. And I. I asked Rob, I was like, rob, can I audition for Laura, the female lead? And he's like, nah, nah. I wanted to be cute, you know, bubbly, like a cheerleader. You're too deep. And this is when I had my dark hair. So when I have my dark hair, I think I seem more like, you know, introspective and intense. Yeah, yeah, more like my nerdy. My nerdy, like, school self rather than the fun loving, crazy characters. And so I said, okay. So I started being the reader for all the male auditions. And ultimately he was like. And then. And then it was taking up so much of my time and I had my own pursuits. And I had done a few short films already, but, you know, and I'd done some plays, but was like, I have to focus on My acting, Rob, I'm sorry. This is taking too much of my time. And he's like, okay, listen, I'll give you the role of Laura, but because I'm liking what you're doing, but only if you stay on as. As. As 3rd AD, cast all the extras, and drive the van. And I was like, okay. So that. That ended up happening. So I had to, like, fill, like, a restaurant, a diner with a hundred extras on Halloween night with no money. They. They. We gave them nothing and no food and, you know, like, just stuff like that. It was just. And then three weeks into making the movie, the movie fell apart, and we had to stop shooting. And then we had to go around and sing for our supper and, like, show people footage and try and get it back on board. And they finally did, and then we finished it, and then it went to the Sundance Film Festival, and that started all of our careers.
- [27:27]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
And that really changed your life in that moment.
- [27:30]
Mira Sorvino
Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. And then I, you know, I did, like, I was still moonlighting on and off. I was still bartending, waitressing, teaching Chinese to Ben Taylor James and Carly's son, James Taylor. Yeah. Because he was 16, and he wanted to go back to China and Tibet to study wing chun. And I think it was Wing Chung is one of the, you know, one of the qigong studies. He was a master, you know, martial artist, and he wanted to learn Mandarin, so I was teaching him. So that was one of my crazy, like, you know, after college jobs. But I was studying with Wynn Handman, and I just adored him. He was the greatest teacher in New York, and we had such a wonderful community in that class. Yeah. And it just. I kept getting jobs from class. Like, people would tell me about something, or I would go and workshop my audition material in class. Oh, that's so smart Money After Night was my tenth film, I believe.
- [28:29]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Yeah, well, it's always that thing they say, out in the world, it takes 10 years to become an overnight success. Right. And it's like, people think about you, and. And they go, God, and she just exploded with this movie. And then this Oscar nom. And then this Oscar win. But, yeah, it's your 10th movie. It's like, yeah, you know, but the world saw this. I mean, I can't imagine what the moment felt like, but I. I think getting ready for today, you know, going back and seeing some of, you know, the footage and the photos and. And seeing your dad in the audience watching that moment for you, was that just the coolest.
- [29:12]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
I mean, what a cool thing to win an Oscar in the first place.
- [29:15]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
But your dad's sitting there. I just can't imagine. It's. It's this massive career moment moment and this incredibly intimate moment for you as a human in your family as well.
- [29:25]
Mira Sorvino
Sure. It went all the way back to, you know, when I was 8 years old and he was teaching me to cry, and I had to go to the middle of the stairways, halfway up, halfway down, and sit there until I was sobbing over whatever fantasy or memory I put in my head. And then he's like, now do the scene.
- [29:41]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Wow.
- [29:42]
Mira Sorvino
So. And then he would teach me to, you know, like, emotional preparation substitution, you know, never. He had these. So he would come to my plays as a high schooler, and he would be like, afterwards, every other parent was like, honey, that's amazing. And he would be like, very good, Mira. I just have two notes. And then he would sit me down for, like, two hours and break down the entire performance beat by beat, moment by moment, scene by scene. And on the one hand, it was a little bit like, ah, I wish he had just loved it unconditionally. But at the same time, like, those were invaluable lessons. Lessons. Like, one of the things I remember him saying is like, you're killing your first impulse when you sigh and then speak. When you go and then you speak, you're making an intellectual choice. You're not going with your instinct. Just speak. Let your unconscious, you know, do the line. Don't. Don't think. Don't change it. Don't make an intellectual choice. A thinking actor is a stinking actor, you know, from. From Stanford. Meisner. Right. Because he was one of Meisner students and Bill Esper. And my mom was also a product of their teaching. And my parents met in Bill Esper's class. They were scene study partners. But, you know, and he would be like, stick with the other fellow. And you'll never be wrong. You might be boring, but you'll never be inauthentic, you know, so, like, that's the funny thing when you work with actors who seem to want to, like, top you or change their performance from your side to their side. It's so ridiculous because then they're kind of killing the strength of the scene, because the scene is the sum total of the two people's alchemy in each moment, you know, and you just have to vibe off of, you know, and give back what you're getting, whether it's low or high. And so all of those things were so valuable. And I had watched him work my whole life. And dad was never nominated. And for Goodfellas, he was not nominated, which was sort of crazy. And there was a decision at some point. There was a. There's a famous picture of the four of them from Goodfellas with Hamza Pesci, De Niro and Ray Liott. And then there's a version of that picture where dad's not in it, and it's like they cut him out of the picture and they kind of went for the three shot, even though there's a bunch of those four shots out there. And so many people got, you know, recognized for that film. And it's arguably maybe the, you know, him and Brando, I mean, are the best godfathers ever. Right. You know, and Holly in Goodfellas is iconic. Right. And he. It was so different from his real personality because dad is not. Was not that heavy and not that sort of kind of leaden stare that he had that he had to work on. And he said one day when he looked in the mirror, he got frightened, and he almost decided he didn't want to do the movie because it was, you know, bringing up all this darkness. Right. Wow. And so I think I just wanted to share it with him. You know, I just wanted to say, well, if you hadn't been who you were with me, I never would be standing here. So I want to say that, you know, me getting this is you getting this. And that's when he burst into tears. I said, when you honor my father, when you give me this award, you honor my father, who's taught me everything I know about acting. That's when he exploded into tears. And he had told me he wasn't going to cry because he had cried at the Golden Globes, and he realized he was like, I don't want to pull focus from you mirror, so I am not going to cry. And then that happened.
- [32:55]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
That's so sweet.
- [32:57]
Ebay Advertisement Voice
Yeah.
- [32:57]
Mira Sorvino
And people told us for years that that was their favorite Oscar moment because it's. It reminded them of the love that they shared with their parent. You know, so it was a personal moment that wasn't necessarily about art at all. It was just about love.
- [33:10]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Yeah, I love that, though, because any artist, I mean, you love your work, but every human is so much more than what they do. You know, whatever your career might be, you have this whole life and identity. And I think. I think when you're able to merge the two, it. It's gotta be powerful as a person. But I think it's really powerful for everybody who watches also. Yeah, we'll be back in just a
- [33:40]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
minute after a few words from our favorite sponsors.
- [33:43]
Xolair Advertisement Voice
Xolair Omalizumab is proven to significantly reduce allergic reactions if a food allergy accident happens. Xolair 150mg is a prescription medication used to treat food allergy in people 1 year of age and older. To reduce allergic reactions due to accidental exposure to one or more foods while taking Xolair, you should continue to avoid all foods to which you are allergic. Don't use if you are allergic to Xolair. Xolair may cause a severe life threatening allergic reaction called anaphylaxis. Tell your doctor if you have ever had anaphylaxis. Get help right away if you have trouble breathing or if you have swelling of your throat or tongue. Xolair should not be used for the emergency treatment of allergic reactions including anaphylaxis. Xolair is for maintenance use to reduce allergic reactions including anaphylaxis while avoiding food allergens. Serious side effects such as cancer, fever, muscle aches and rash, parasitic infection or heart and circulation problems have been reported. Please see xolair.com for full prescribing information. Ask an allergist about Xolair this is an advertisement for Xolair paid for by Genentech and Novartis.
- [34:53]
Ebay Advertisement Voice
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- [35:52]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
I don't know about you, but being a couple months into the new year
- [35:54]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
makes me feel like I might need
- [35:56]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
a little re up on my goals, my plans. I'm not a fan of resolutions because I think they set us up to fail. But what I do like is setting intentions and I think a few months into the year it's a great time to check in with those. Whether you go on a walk outside to get some fresh air and sink into your thoughts, or you want to sit and journal about your plans for the year, there are so many things you can do to change up your routine, especially as we approach long awaited spring sunshine. A refresh can be as simple as amplifying your look with clean beauty from Thrive Cosmetics. Every product is 100% vegan, cruelty free, and made with clean ingredients that work with your skin, not against it. And when we use Thrive Cosmetics, we're helping others shine too. With over $150 million in product and cash donations to over 600 giving partners, every purchase fuels real impact. And that's Beauty with Purpose. Show your confidence in lipstick form like with the Empower Matte Precision Lip Crayon. This one comes in 18 buildable, long lasting matte shades and it's designed to be worn either as a liner or layered so it leaves your lips looking luscious and fuller. I'm eyeing a little eye game upgrade with the Brilliant Eye Brightener. It's a waterproof eyeshadow highlighter stick made to brighten and open your eyes. Definitely comes in handy on those long days on set. So join me and amplify your spring look with Thrive cosmetics. Go to thrivecosmetics.com for an exclusive 20% off your first order. That's Thrive Cosmetics. C A U S E M E t I c s.com progress no one
- [37:48]
Podcast Host (Ad Reader)
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- [38:18]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
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- [39:14]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
It's interesting because that's such a joyous moment and experience, you know, and then I, I think to sort of the other side of it. Not that, not that it's not wonderful, but powerful, scary, intense are the words that come to mind when I think about the merger of self and an artistic platform in advocacy. And, you know, I think back when the Me Too letter was getting put together in 2017 and it was, you know, who's going to sign this thing that's going to go in the New York Times and, and, and people on, on calls that I was on about that, talking about you and your work and, and the experience that standing up for yourself and other women had had put you through behind the scenes that finally came to light, you know, to have this sensational career and also to know that someone whom you simply asked to respect you as a person and your boundaries tried to get in the way of your career, discouraged you from being cast in things. I mean, what a. I don't want to put words in your mouth, but it, from the outside, it feels almost like a, like a whiplash. You know, I, I am amazed at the grace with which you have carried yourself through all of that. What did it mean to you to know that you weren't crazy when all of that came to light and people did say, oh yeah, I was told not to cast you in this film, or I was told not to look at you for this job. It doesn't help, but it helps. Is that the right observation?
- [41:00]
Mira Sorvino
I mean, sure, but. Okay, so. And the thing is that I actually turned Harvey down three times and when I had spoken to Ronan Farrow, so I'd forgotten about the third time, and it only came to mind later. But it was right after the third time that he put the kibosh on my career and blacklisted me for 20 years. I was blacklisted for 20 years. I didn't do a large studio movie for 20 years, and I've still only done two since 2018. So I was on top of the world. I had an Oscar. And 1998, he shut my career down for 20 years. And I Still worked. I did indies and I did television. But, you know, I did turn down, like, one television opportunity that would have taken me too much away from my little children, you know, so, like, I could have had a bigger career on television probably. But I was, you know, I have four kids, so. And I really wanted to be present there for them. And so, you know, I said, piecemeal together my work through indies and movies and, you know, television. Movies and television shows. But when I found out, because I had kind of made peace with my career having fallen from being a list to somewhere nebulous, you know, and I still love what I do, and I still think I have the same talent and drive, but. But I was like, okay, I guess it wasn't meant to be. I guess I just wasn't meant to continue at that level of career. Right. And when I read on Twitter, it was like December, after the fall of the MeToo stuff coming out and me being part of Ronan Farrow's Silence Breaker group. And I saw that Peter Jackson had given an interview in which he admitted that he was going to cast me and Ashley Jud in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and then did not, because Harvey and Bob, I believe, but definitely Harvey told him that we were crazy not to work with us. Meanwhile, I had made four movies with Miramax, so how crazy could I have been? Why did they keep hiring me? You know, I don't think it could be possible. Right. But that really sort of broke my heart because it felt like there was this dark hand of malice that had come into my life and stolen something that was rightfully mine away from me. Just for me. Not wanting to sleep with this disgusting man.
- [43:38]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Yeah.
- [43:39]
Mira Sorvino
This disgusting human being. This evil, evil, evil predator.
- [43:44]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Yeah.
- [43:45]
Mira Sorvino
And that hurt. And that took a while to get used to because the. The one thing of making peace was, okay, well, it's just not your night, kid. It's just not happening. Is different from, I'm going to destroy you. I'm going to make sure you never enjoy what you deserve because you wouldn't play my game.
- [44:03]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Yeah.
- [44:03]
Mira Sorvino
You wouldn't let me victimize you. You wouldn't make a deal with me. And now you're going to suffer, and I'm going to make you suffer indefinitely. Indefinitely. And he had that kind of reach. Like, I don't think it was just that. He told certain filmmakers, I think that Harvey had a reach with. With companies beyond his own, with casting directors beyond his own, and that there was literally a blacklist and there were other actors on it that I know that were not female, that did not reject him, that he just didn't like, and, and that he affected their career, dampened their careers immensely. And once the MeToo stuff came out, they rebounded. So, you know, and I've become good friends with a lot of the fellow silence breakers, and they're really wonderful women. And. And I just. My heart breaks for all of them. And I feel like, you know, there's a second wave of that sorrow and brokenheartedness right now because of the Epstein files. And I think we all feel such, such sorrow for all the victims, living and dead, of these, you know, this horrendous, horrendous culture of abuse and absolute lack of morality and lawlessness and disgustingness and, like, predatory, you know, more than rape. Like, the things that we have heard, the things that we have read in the files are so horrific, heinous. You're like, how can this world be true? You know, how can. How can these people that we thought we knew be this bad and have such little regard for the beauty of children? You know, children are the most defenseless and delightful creatures on this earth. And to be. To be hurting them in the worst of ways and just laughing about it or finding some kind of sick power from it, like deriving power ritually from abusing people, abusing girls, children, boys, animals.
- [46:01]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
It's unfathomable.
- [46:02]
Mira Sorvino
It's unfathomable. And I think I've been having a really hard time with my own emotions during this time because I, you know, we thought, like, Harvey was maybe the worst of it. He's not even the worst of it.
- [46:15]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
I think that's what has broken my heart, is to realize that at every level there's a version of this to exactly your point, that someone would not just want to hurt you in a moment, but would want to try to hurt you forever because you didn't want to be possessed by them in a way they wanted that. You did not because you dared to say, I don't want that and that. And so the answer is no. To have had. You know, my girlfriends and I were so inspired by all of you. We spoke out about a boss we'd worked for who was terrible. And in the 22 years I've been a full time working actor, I've had one really creepy boss and one really terrible co star. And I think in 22 years to work with, like two bad dudes out of, as you'll know, the thousands of people on thousands of sets and great executives and great writers and great grips and great transpo guys and like the best of the best people in our weird little circus. I recently was being onboarded to what I thought was going to be the job of my dreams. And a man in power said she has problems at work. I don't need that energy here. And I thought, wait a second. So standing with my friends on one set and standing up for other women when I was in the power position on another, two instances of standing up in, in 22 years of maintaining wonderful relationships and friendships with everybody else I've worked with for 22 years. I, I'm the problem and not like the dudes who do this. And I've never been in your position, you know, going to win an Oscar and going to maybe do one of the biggest trilogies of all times. But even in my own relative version of the world, I see that ripple effect where I go, oh, because I've said no. Are certain people going to say no to me for the rest of my career? Is that what it's going to be?
- [48:24]
Mira Sorvino
You just don't know. You know, you just don't know who is what. And you just don't know. You just don't know if just being outspoken is not vanilla enough. I don't know know. I don't know.
- [48:33]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
And the sad part is, to your point about these files and these things, you, you, when, when the blinders come off, you go, oh, my God. It's literally everywhere. Every version, every place, every level, every age, every. Oh, my God. And why. And I, I don't know the answer to that.
- [48:50]
Mira Sorvino
I think it always has been. I think it's something broken about our species, that there has always been this kind of raping and pillaging instinct. And I, I don't know how we fix that. You know, I don't know how we do it, but I think it's. Sadly, it's just endemic. And, you know, having worked against human trafficking for over 20 years, I started working on it in 2004 with MC International for two years as their Stop Violence Against Women campaign spokesperson. And then from 2009 to last year, I was UNODC's Goodwill Ambassador against human trafficking. And now I'm like the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund for Victims of Tracking of Persons. Its short name is unvtf, and I'm on the board of trustees for that now. And so I've seen this horror. I did not. I was naive. I did not think it went up to the highest levels of society. I didn't understand that. I knew that it was organized crime. And I knew that some people were getting very fat off of the exploitation of 50 million people across the globe. But I just, I think I was reluctant to really look into that heart of darkness and understand how very vertically integrated it was. And that came as a shock.
- [50:09]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Right.
- [50:10]
Mira Sorvino
And I think the whole world is still reeling from these things and I think, you know, other countries are handling it a lot better than we are right now. But hopefully eventually there'll be some, some criminal investigations and some indictments and convictions eventually. Because otherwise what, what has happened to us, you know, I don't know.
- [50:29]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Yeah, well, I think you're right and I think that that's what I was going to ask you about is I'm so heartened by and grateful for the organizations you just listed that you have worked with for 20 years. I mean that, that you in your own way have taken your version of experiencing that kind of darkness and trans, transmuted it into advocacy for so many other people. It's, it's understanding that organizations like that have been fighting this fight for so long that is really, I think, to me the only beacon of hope. Seeing how vertical this is. To your point, do you. Are there ways that, that people who want to take the awful and try to add their, their reaction and rage for that to a resiliency, Are there ways for them to get involved? Are there ways for them to support anti human, human trafficking efforts? The work at the UN like I know my listeners want to rage and change this stuff. And so I'm curious as you, as we have you as an expert with us today, where would you point people to get involved?
- [51:46]
Mira Sorvino
Well, there's always local organizations. Most communities have anti trafficking groups within them and there's like shelters for women and girls, there's outreach, you know, there's education, there's people who lobby for laws in their state to be strengthened or took money to be raised. If you want to do it on the, you know, the, the, the global scale. If you want to donate a little money to UNVTF, which you can go to endht.org and you'll find information about UNODC, the UN Office on Drugs and Crimes, anti trafficking programs. And then you'll find a link to a donation page. And we help trafficking survivors across the world. Like all of our grants go to organizations that are on the ground working to provide aid directly to victims and survivors, helping them exit and then helping them rebuild their lives. And we are in 66 countries and we've helped hundreds of thousands of people so far. But you know, including the U.S. we're in the U.S. we're in Latin America, we're in Europe, we're in Asia, we're in, you know, Africa. But I do love the organization AIM Agape International Missions. I made a documentary about them with CNN Freedom Project called Every Day in Cambodia. And that was about virgin sales in Cambodia of young girls in this very impoverished community of paperless immigrants who were just desperate and loan sharks would create these debts and then come back to collect by taking the 12 year old girl to auction off her virginity and just, I mean just. But this organization made like systemic change throughout this community. Like they actually were healing the whole community and giving the parents ways to be self sustained rather than selling their kids as their only option to keep food in their mouths. And changing the culture and educating the kids. They built this school that can hold over 3,000 students and they take all these kids who used to 100% go into sex trafficking or be taken into sex trafficking by the time they were 12 or 13. Now they're having kids be able to go on to high school, go on to college and be able to take their family out of poverty through a dignified way, you know, so they're great aim.
- [54:04]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Thank you for that. I think, I think giving people trusted places to go is always something that our audience is excited about. And, and then I get excited when, you know, we get emails or DMS on the show and people are like, I donated my birthday to this cause
- [54:18]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
and my family helped me raise all this money.
- [54:20]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
It makes me want to sob. It's special to kind of see I think the potential in that. We'll be back in just a minute, but here's a word from our sponsors.
- [54:30]
Xolair Advertisement Voice
Xolair Omalizumab is proven to significantly reduce allergic reactions if a food allergy accident happens. Xolair 150mg is a prescription medication used to treat food allergy in people 1 year of age and older. To reduce allergic reactions due to accidental exposure to one or more foods while taking Xolair, you should continue to avoid all foods to which you are allergic. Don't use if you are allergic to Xolair. Xolair may cause a severe life threatening allergic reaction called anaphylaxis. Tell your doctor if you have ever had anaphylaxis. Get help right away if you have trouble breathing or if you have swelling of your throat or tongue. Xolair should not be used for the emergency treatment of allergic reactions including anaphylaxis. Xolair is for maintenance use to reduce allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis, while avoiding food allergens. Serious side effects such as cancer, fever, muscle aches and rash, parasitic infection, or heart and circulation problems have been reported. Please see xolair.com for full prescribing information. Ask an allergist about Xolair. This is an advertisement for Xolair paid for by Genentech and Novartis.
- [55:40]
Ebay Advertisement Voice
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- [56:38]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
Friends I don't know about you, but being a couple months into the new year makes me feel like I might need a little re up on my goals, my plans. I'm not a fan of resolutions because I think they set us up to fail. But what I do like is setting intentions. And I think a few months into the year it's a great time to check in with those. Whether you go on a walk outside to get some fresh air and sink into your thoughts or you want to sit and journal about about your plans for the year, there are so many things you can do to change up your routine, especially as we approach long awaited spring sunshine. A refresh can be as simple as amplifying your look with clean beauty From Thrive Cosmetics. Every product is 100% vegan, cruelty free, and made with clean ingredients that work with your skin, not against it. And when we use Thrive Cosmetics, we're helping others shift shine too. With over $150 million in product and cash donations to over 600 giving partners, every purchase fuels real impact. And that's beauty with purpose. Show your confidence in lipstick form like with the Empower Matte Precision Lip Crayon. This one comes in 18 buildable, long lasting matte shades and it's designed to be worn either as a liner or layered so it leaves your lips looking looking luscious and fuller. I'm eyeing a little eye game upgrade with the Brilliant Eye Brightener. It's a waterproof eyeshadow highlighter stick made to brighten and open your eyes. Definitely comes in handy on those long days on set, so join me and amplify your spring look with Thrive cosmetics. Go to thrivecosmetics.com progress for an exclusive 20% off your first order. That's thrivecosmetics. C A U S E M E t I c s.com progress no one
- [58:35]
Podcast Host (Ad Reader)
knows what the future holds, but you deserve a weather app that can help. Weatherbug is easy to use and provides forecasts for your every need, from storm warnings to pollen levels right at your fingertips. Get the fastest local Alerts and comprehensive 10 day forecasts wherever you are. Its hyperlocal real time customizable alerts. Make sure the weather never takes you by surprise so you can plan every day with confidence. Download the free weather bug app from the App Store today and start getting accurate weather forecasts 24 7.
- [59:05]
Co-Host / Interview Facilitator
You know those days when body pain just won't let you get things done well? Aleve is here to keep you moving. Whether it's sore back after a workout, knee pain from chasing the kids around, or shoulder pain from carrying the groceries, pain has a way of slowing everything down. But Aleve's got your back. With up to 12 hours of body pain relief per dose, Aleve helps you throughout your day so you can get back to doing what matters with the ones that matter most. Aleve works by reducing pain from inflammation, which makes it a great option for common aches and pains like muscle aches, back pain, joint and minor arthritis pain. Aleve is in it for the long haul from sun up to sundown, morning meetings, afternoon errands and evening plans included. Try a leaves long lasting body pain relief for whatever your day holds. Use as directed for minor aches and pains.
- [60:00]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
I want to get us near the end of the interview on a high note and I think they connect. It's not even necessarily a a hard pivot. It's actually so interesting to me, you know the way you're talking about desperation in a family versus opportunity. It's not lost on me that the new movie signing Tony Raymond, which is such a sweet film and it's so beautiful and you play such a dreamboat of a mom. I love her but but it it also frankly, you're talking about how, you know, the world of professional sports can be predatory. Young people can be taken advantage of. They can also get the future of their dreams. And all this work you've done, it seems to me, has to have influenced this woman you play this mom where you just say, like, listen, my kid is a phenom and a talent and all these things, and I'm gonna protect him. I'm gonna make sure he has, you know, the future that he deserves. Do you feel like some of that advocacy that's in your bones affected, you know, who you, who you play in this movie?
- [61:13]
Mira Sorvino
I have to say it's probably being a mom that affected it, being a mama bear, because I have four kids and two of my sons are very high level baseball players. And your heart bleeds for them because they work so hard and you feel like this is just a dollars game in a way. You know, people are just trying to earn money for their schools by filling the stadiums or getting their boosters to donate or whatever. And so, you know, But I think also, I think Sandy is operating on another level too, of feeling like they've been marginalized. These people are, like, very poor. And she's lost a child in the past due to, you know, sort of a crazy accident. But, but, you know, being in the wrong environment and maybe if she was. Had a little bit more help and a little bit more money, she wouldn't have been living in an area where her daughter could catch like a bacterial infection that killed her, you know, so. So she's, she's just kind of. I think she has a chip on her shoulder for being overlooked for being sort of written off as a crazy, dumb lady living in the sticks, you know, and she, she, she's kind of crying out for her own dignity as well as the protection of her son because she sees these slick coaches come into town trying to promise them the moon and stars just to get their son to sign with them. But they don't mean most of what they say. Most of what they say is just campaign promises. Right, right. So she's just there to assert that, I am not stupid. I see what you're doing, and I still have some kind of agency, even though she's drowning herself in pills and booze, you know, and. And then that creates some pretty outlandish behavior too, which is actually quite comedic. So I kind of loved her unfetteredness, her sort of wild cat spirit, you know, she's just.
- [63:02]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Yeah, I was gonna say mama bear like a grizzly.
- [63:05]
Mira Sorvino
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- [63:06]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Absolutely.
- [63:07]
Mira Sorvino
But inside, there's, like, a real beating heart, you know, that has, like, this suffering that's kind of eating away at her. And. And I love that there's this combination of comedy and drama in this movie. It's. Yes, it's. It's. It's a wonderful admixture.
- [63:21]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Yeah, me too. It's my favorite kind of thing to watch. Friends, we're going to be back to really dive into signing Tony Raymond with the incredible Mira Sorvino. But before we go on today's episode, I have to ask you our very favorite question. From this moment when you look out at the year ahead, and maybe it's an advocacy and maybe it's in motherhood, and maybe it's, I don't know, some random thing on your bucket list. What feels like your work in progress?
- [63:50]
Mira Sorvino
Oh, gosh, there's. There's a few. There's a personal project that I've been making about Italy that I hope really gets off the ground, which is really connected to my emotional connection to Italy's culture that I was raised by, you know, with my grandparents, and, like, they're Italy. So we'll see if that happens. If it does, I will be, like the happy camper. Like, I just, you know, it'll be a sort of emotional homecoming for me to get to do that and share that with the world. And then there's a very. A project that's super near and dear to my heart that we've been working for years to get off the ground. And I think we are infinitesimally close to it being greenlit, but I can't speak about it right now. But. Okay, if it. If it happens in the next couple of days, I'll. I'll let you guys know and then you can, you know, give that note or whatever. Yeah, but that. That would be huge. That would be just, like a full circle thing for me, and I would be so joyous doing it. But, you know, the rest of things, I'm just trying to focus on really connecting with my children as they're still around because one of my daughters is in college and away. And Johnny being home near Pepperdine is, like, amazing for us because we get to have him back for a year. It was, like, unexpected, you know, but I have two kids left living at home, and I just want to be as focused and connected and not frittering or in my time, like, looking at my phone when they're around or something like that, you know, really just being there for them and treasuring Them because this life is like that, you know.
- [65:22]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Yeah.
- [65:22]
Mira Sorvino
Having lost dad, having lost friends, you know, seeing what life does like. I just want us to be there for each other as much as possible because ultimately that's the most important thing and that, that, you know, let's circle back to like the, the Harvey Weinstein robbery of my career. At the same time, if I had stayed an A list actress, if I had gone from movie to movie to movie, which is what I was doing in the 90s, I had like three weeks off a year and that was it. Like I would go back to back and I was almost having a nervous breakdown because it was so much pressure. I would not have met my husband, I would not have had my four specific children. I probably never would have had four children because I would have been too busy and too worried about the time it would take to recover from the pregnancies and get back down to fighting weight and be like, you know, professionally available and you know, I would have been a more self centered person I think. And I would not have had the time that I have had to fully fling myself headlong into the anti trafficking work which has become a gigantic thing for me. It's really my second like non paid career. It's like a. Yeah, it's a blessing for me to be able to have an ongoing voice in that fight. So. You know, my grandmother used to say not every evil comes to destroy us, which is a, you know, Southern Italian epithet and none per nocere. And, and I have held on to that. And yeah, not that I'm ever, that I'm ever saying it's okay what he did or what he took from me, but I have a beautiful life that I wouldn't trade is what I'm saying.
- [67:08]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
But I think the beauty in what you're saying, and this is a work in progress for me is to realize from your, from your grandma's saying, I have some of those from my nonnas in northern Italy. But that even, even where you things break, that's where the light gets in. And I think when you, when you find the light in the ways you've been broken, I actually think that's how you alchemize the way humans have a tendency to be into the potential of what we could be if we keep doing that work. And I, I think that is, that's like the craft of humanity. And I think particularly for mothers, that is the work because women are going to be the ones who fix this. So I don't at least as someone who's so thrilled to share space with you today. I don't think it's a an excusing of what happened to you, but I do think it's a figuring out how there was no way your life was not going to be beautiful no matter what anybody else tried. And I.
- [68:19]
Mint Mobile Advertisement Voice
Sorry.
- [68:20]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
I love that for you and I love the example that that sets. So thank you. Sure. Yeah.
- [68:27]
Mira Sorvino
And, and I. I couldn't have done any of this without God. Right. I'm. I'm. I'm very, I'm quite religious. So like Jesus and God. For me, if I did not have, then I would be dead. I'd be dead right now, honestly. So you know that that is my personal way of getting through it as well as with the love of family and friends and my husband and everything. But yeah, I. I would have to say that it would be false not to say that.
- [68:50]
Interviewer / Podcast Host
Yeah, I love that for you.
- [69:09]
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- [70:19]
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- [72:54]
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