HUNGER GAMES: BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS & SNAKES Interview w/ Ashley Liao On Playing Clemensia Dovecote (Exclusive)
We speak with The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes star Ashley Liao about her role as Clemensia Dovecote, including the experience of working with Viola Davis, CGI snakes, and epic sets...
Interview
64 years before Katniss Everdeen volunteered as tribute, and decades before Coriolanus Snow became the tyrannical President of Panem, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes follows a young Coriolanus as he unites with Lucy Gray Baird in the 10th Hunger Games, and battles his instincts for both good and evil.
The movie, which is currently available to purchase on digital before hitting DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K later this month, features over two-and-a-half-hours of special features.
We've recently been catching up with the movie's impressive cast and, to kick off our coverage, we're sharing our full conversation with Ashley Liao (Secret Society of Second-Born Royals) about her standout role as Clemensia Dovecote.
A resident of the Capitol
A resident of the Capitol and a student of the Academy, the whipsmart Clemensia is among those selected to be a mentor for the 10th Hunger Games. During this interview, we hear from Ashley about the experience of shooting The Hunger Games prequel, what she learned from director Francis Lawrence and her co-stars, and how she believes Clemensia herself would fare in the Games.
We also get into spoiler territory when Ashley talks us through that shocking scene with Volumnia Gaul's (Viola Davis) snakes and how it felt to leave the character behind a little sooner than what we saw in the book. The actress also shares an interest in one day joining a Marvel or DC project!
This is a great role, but I have to ask: were you even a little bit disappointed that you wouldn’t actually get to take part in the Hunger Games?
Snake scene and working with Viola Davis
Hmm, part of me would have loved to get into the nitty-gritty of doing my own stunts. I know Rachel [Zegler] did most of her own and that’s so impressive. I did only one or two days of me falling onto a mat [Laughs]. I’d have loved to do that and some martial arts training. I have my black belt so I’d love to get into a fistfight, but no, I’m thankful Clemensia is safe in the Capitol! I do have to say that [Laughs].
I don’t know how to explain to my friends what it’s like just pretending you’re holding a snake and it’s slithering through your fingers and then biting you. I mean, Viola [Davis] made it easy. When you enter into a scene with two classically trained actors from Juilliard, it’s very easy to slip right into it and make it come to life.
Viola is incredible but did you learn anything from her during those scenes? [Volumnia Gaul is] such a unique character in this film.
Working with Francis Lawrence
Yeah. Between some of those takes that day when it was just Tom Blyth and Viola Davis and me, it was very intimate and I really got to know them. She gave me advice about her time at Juilliard and, when you’ve got someone like that giving you advice, I’m just thinking, ‘How do I take notes in my brain? I need to never ever forget these. Ever.’ I’m incredibly lucky and very, very grateful.
I think that’s something which was really surprising to me. Between my initial thought for that scene when she enters and it’s Reaping Day and for what Clemensia’s motives were and what Francis [Lawrence’s] were. He kept giving me these notes and was like, ‘Can you be more flirty?’ I said, ‘Flirty? What do you mean, flirty?’ He said, ‘Just a little more’ and I was like, ‘Okay!’ [Laughs] Me and Tom were just standing there grinning! I think she and Snow have a very layered, complex relationship.
And with Francis Lawrence coming back to direct this movie, how was it working with him as he returned to the series he put on the map?
