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MOLLY SHANNON on 'YEAR OF THE DOG'
Contributed by Michael J. Lee, Executive Editor
for Radio Free Entertainment
April 5, 2007
In the comedy drama Year of the Dog, an unassuming secretary named Peggy (Molly Shannon) is devastated when her Beagle Pencil dies under mysterious circumstances. A single woman who has always felt closer to animals than people, Peggy is psychologically distraught and left to re-examine her life. But none of her relationships--including those with her niece, her brother, her sister-in-law (Laura Dern), her best friend (Regina King), an unsavory neighbor (John C. Reilly), and a quirky dog trainer (Peter Sarsgaard)--seem to fill the void left by her beloved pet.
Year of the Dog is written and directed by Mike White, who previously penned the critically acclaimed Chuck and Buck and The Good Girl, as well as the Jack Black vehicles Orange County and The School of Rock.
In this interview, Molly Shannon talks about working on the movie, and making the transition from her long-running stint on Saturday Night Live to feature films.
Year of the Dog is now available to own on DVD.
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The Interview
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MEDIA: Did you get to know your canine co-stars before filming began?
MOLLY: Yeah. I trained with the dogs before we started the movie just to kind of see how that would work, but it wasn't that elaborate or anything. Those trainers are so good, I didn't have to do much. Peter Sarsgaard had to do more.
Peggy's dog Pencil is so cute. What's the real story? Is he really five dogs, and two of them are divas?
I said, "Oh my God, where did you find this little dog?" They actually had auditions for the dog, and that particular dog Pencil (I mean, I forget the dog's real name) could do this amazing death shake, where it could look like it was dying and quiver. [laughs] So Mike cast that dog. He was so sweet. But they take really good care of those dogs, and the trainers are really nice. That's a whole crazy world in its own. That could be a movie of the dog trainers.
What was it like filming the scene in which you're crammed in a car with a bunch of dogs?
That was crazy. I was actually on my way to go to a premiere that night for Talladega Nights, and that was the last scene of the day, and I was like, "All right, I hope I can make it to the premiere alive without getting scratched and pounced on!" Because it's crazy. They jump on you. But I had little pads and stuff. They were really pretty good. And again, it's very rehearsed and choreographed, so each dog [is doing] the same thing over and over.
And what about the scene in which Peggy gets bitten? Was it a scary thing to shoot?
Yeah, it was kind of scary. That dog was so sweet, but I was like, "Are you sure it's sweet? He looks so mean." [laughs] Like I had to do that scene where I'm wiping up what I spill, and so I have a rag, and the dog's supposed to bite the rag. But yeah, I was scared. It was hard. And then in the scene, you can't really even see it that much...But the trainers were great, so I didn't really worry about it. They were not vicious dogs.
What was it like working with Mike White in his feature debut as a director?
It was great. We had worked together on this TV show, Cracking Up, that got canceled at Fox. So I had a lot of experience with him as a writer. And he would come on the set and direct. And then when he would leave, I was like, [pleading] "No, I want Mike!" So I always wanted him around. He's naturally a director, and so it came very naturally to him. He was really good. He's just really confident, and he has a lot of experience because he's made a lot of movies, so it was a very natural next step for him. He's great. He's really humble, and he's funny and laid back, and he just knows what he wants. And those are always the best to work with. He has no ego. Sometimes it's hard to work with people that are trying to "act like they're directors" or prove themselves. Mike's like the opposite of that.
You've done a lot of movies involving dogs...
I've done so many, yeah. My husband was like, "God, you've got to stop doing so many dog and Christmas movies."
Do you have dogs of your own?
No. I had dogs when I was younger. I had a German Shepherd named Hannibal who could sing opera. And I had a little mutt named Oliver that we ended up having to get rid of because I developed an allergy. So I can relate to Peggy where we had to bring her to a farm, and I was so sad.
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Has it been tough transitioning from Saturday Night Live to films?
Oh yeah, it's definitely, at times, been hard. And I think that I didn't really understand how the movies worked, and I think I thought it was easier than it was. So I kind of had to go through like a grieving process of what I thought the movie industry was. I think Tina Fey said a great thing on NPR where she said Hollywood is a lot harder on women than SNL. Because people would always be like, "Oh, SNL's so hard on women." And she was like, "I think Hollywood's a lot harder on women than Saturday Night Live." But I don't mind struggling because sometimes I feel like it can help you create something that you might not have thought of...Usually, something comes out of that struggle. So that's kind of the way I look at it. I try not to blame anyone.
Do you feel there is a shortage of good roles for women in movies?
You know, people are just going to write what they know. It was like that at Saturday Night Live. Like you could go, "Why aren't those boys writing for me? Why are they just writing sketches with bears and robots? Why can't they write a complicated female part?" They don't mean any harm, they just want to write about bears and robots, you know? So if you want to do something for yourself, you have to create that for yourself. And so Hollywood's similar in that once in a while, you're so lucky. [With this movie from writer/director] Mike White...This is a special circumstance, but I feel like, "Wow, how lucky." I just feel gratitude because I know how hard it is.
You've worked in movies with several of your former SNL co-stars. Do you feel those relationships give you a bit of job security?
There's never so much security. But that is true, because if you're friends, people go, "Oh, can you do this [movie]?" That does happen. I'm fortunate that that's happened for me. But you can't count on that. You know, you still kind of have to do your own thing. But yeah, it's great when you form those relationships and then you have that history. So that is really nice. But I wouldn't just sit back with that and be like, "Yeah, I'm taken care of." I don't feel that way.
Did your desire to perform start at an early age?
I went to a parochial school, and every St. Patrick's Day, each class would do a song and dance number...There were these two choreographers named Miss Patty and Miss Jackie, they would come around January, and they wore leotards, and they had jet black hair and red lips. And I couldn't wait for Miss Patty and Miss Jackie to come and teach us our routine. So I remember, at a very young age, feeling like I couldn't wait to do that show on St. Patrick's Day. And my dad would be like, [cheering] "Molly!" And he'd wave, and he'd tell me to push up into the front row.
How long ago was that?
Around fifth grade? Fourth grade?
Do you miss playing your Catholic schoolgirl character, Mary Katherine Gallagher?
I don't miss that that much, because it was physically very taxing, and you would bruise yourself. Now that I'm a parent (I have two toddlers--I have a three and a half year old and a two year old), I don't want to do such risky stuff. But at that time, I was more reckless. I didn't even care. And now I look at some of that stuff and I'm like, "You could break your neck! That is crazy!" But fortunately, I never really did any major damage, thank God. [knocks on wood] But yeah, I don't have this huge burning desire to do that particular character again.
Have you had an easy time coordinating work with motherhood?
I've had it really great since my kids have been born, because I've just done movies. You know, you can do like a little part in a movie. Like Talladega Nights, for example. I did that part in like a week. It was easy. We go to Virginia, stay in a hotel. You're actually there for two weeks, but you only work three days. I mean, you can do these nice-sized little cameo parts in a very short time, and then you have months off. Like I worked this summer doing Mike's movie, and then I've had months and months and months and months off. And now I'm back to work again. So movies are great. You can pick and choose and have lots of time off. I think it's harder for maybe the mothers on single camera shows, hour-long, where they're the lead star. That's hard. But I haven't done that.
Thanks for your time.
Okay, thanks, you guys!
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