In Robert Schwartzman's comedy The Argument, a cohabitating couple turns to their friends to help resolve a dinner party dispute that doesn't just threaten to tear apart one relationship, but several. As one of the friends asked to help settle the titular conflict, Maggie Q plays Brett's (Danny Pudi) girlfriend Sarah, an entertainment lawyer who has little patience for creative types, especially actors. This leads to one of the funniest scenes in the film, in which she vents to the entire room about how acting isn't a real job.
According to Q, best known for more action-heavy roles like The CW's Nikita and Live Free or Die Hard, filming that moment was a lot of fun because "everyone on set who were actors was in agreement that it can be so ridiculous at times." In general, via phone, she had no trouble being honest about her profession, while also speaking passionately about how much she enjoyed the "summer camp"-esque experience of rehearsing and making The Argument as a small scale indie film — especially since it's not the kind of role she normally gets offered.
The Argument, she said, was quite different from her next big project, but it's also one she's really excited about — the upcoming Martin Campbell film The Asset, which she just finished shooting. Below, she teases what to expect from the action thriller starring Michael Keaton and Samuel L. Jackson, explains why she asked to be written off Designated Survivor, and discusses her experience on Mission: Impossible 3 (including how she feels about the concept of joining future films).
Having followed your career for a really long time, I really enjoyed The Argument, especially since it feels like that was a thing relatively different for you, in terms of the kind of project it was.
Q: First of all, thank you for saying that. It was. The Argument was such a surprise because as a minority in the business it's not something that I'm normally offered. It's not something that most directors would look at, based on what I've done in my career and say, "Oh, you know what? I think Maggie would be funny in this." Or, "I think she'd be good for this."
When I met with the director, it was very interesting because we just talked the entire time about charity work and things in the world that need to change. It was a very deep coffee. And it wasn't a funny coffee. We barely talked about the movie. I told him I loved the script and he told me he'd love me for it, and then we ended it with this mutual respect and wanting of friendship and then he was like, "I knew you were right for this!"
I don't know how he knew that, based off the meeting we had, but it was really such a cool opportunity because it's such a diverse and fun cast — and not diverse for diversity's sake. When I was working with them, I looked at them and I just remember thinking, "I can't think of anybody better for the roles that you're doing." [Schwartzman] was just very sensitive in his casting and he nailed it. It was really a nice surprise, that he saw me in this light.
It doesn't surprise me to see you doing comedy, though, just because I feel like you've gotten a lot of opportunities to have the great one-liner and the great quip.
Q: Yeah, I know what you mean.
When you've gotten those moments before, did you relish them?
Q: I think what happens is you relish the fact that... Hollywood is like any other club in the world, where people see you as what they see you as, and those things are typically offered to the same type of people and sometimes the same people just over and over. I'm sure anyone who's always cast in romantic comedies is going, "God, I'd really love to do something more dramatic and deeper or where I'm taken a little more seriously in these roles." And people who do what I do are looking for that relief of comedy or something lighter or different. I think everybody looks for something different. But in general, in Hollywood, they have their ideas about who's right for what. And it takes people thinking outside the box to allow for that.
And the truth is, I think it's funny that people are surprised by dramatic actors who do comedy. I mean the greats, like my friend Phil Hoffman, in his career, I remember he moved so seamlessly between comedy and drama because he was an actor. He wasn't a comedic actor and he wasn't a dramatic actor. He was a damn fine actor. I just feel like if you have an understanding of the craft, you can do anything, really. It's whether people give you the opportunity to do it or not. That's a whole other conversation.
Well, in terms of The Argument, did Robert ever actually talk to you about why he felt you were right for this role?
Q: Do you know what? He didn't. There were a couple of times I wanted to ask him, because we're friends and we talk all the time. Well, now we are — I didn't know him before the film. But I did want to ask him that. And it's funny that you say that because there were a couple of times when I was like, "I want to ask Robert what it was." And I never did. I'm going to now that you brought it up again. I'm definitely going to ask him. But I'm just happy he did, I think, in the end. And I also was teamed back up with my friend Dan Fogler, who I did a movie called Balls of Fury with, which was another comedy. Different kind of comedy, but ... And that was really fun and exciting, too, because Dan, to me, is such a comedic genius and I just love working with him. I love being in his presence.
What was the experience of being paired up with Danny Pudi like?
Q: He is so ... Danny's one of those people where he's as funny as he is on screen and as funny and incredible and kind. I don't think it's exclusive to me. I think that you meet Danny and you love him immediately. For me, though the fact that he played my partner was so grounding and fun because, personally, it was an immediate connection and immediate affection for this person. So it was easy for us to start to build what we were doing in the film because there's this likeability, that's undeniable with him.
You had a couple of weeks of rehearsal before shooting started — that must have made a huge difference just in terms of not just playing opposite somebody but playing someone in a serious relationship.
Q: It's true. And also, the script is like a play, right? So it reads like a play, and we shot it in sequence and so it really was a play. Whenever you do anything on stage, you're rehearsing for months before you're performing with these people. And you really are developing a bond and a connection with them. Robert, again, had the foresight of let's get together and let's all be friends because we're definitely all playing friends — with the exception of my character's disdain for actors. But besides that, we're all supposed to have known each other for a long time and seen each other around and all that.
So, the rehearsals were so key because it's a very low budget movie that we shot in Robert's house, and so on the day we didn't have a lot of time to mess up. We didn't have a lot of time for many, many takes. We had to be in it. And so, it did a few things. It created the relationships that we all had and the familiarity that we needed for the film, and then it also made us incredibly efficient on a very low-budget movie, on the days when we were filming.
This one, it really was so contained. It really was like doing a play. We were going back to the same location every single day. We were our same positions because obviously, we're playing the night over and over. And that is exactly what a play is like, so it sort of felt like ... It really, really honestly felt like summer camp. It was a bunch of young people having a blast making this film at the director's house. It didn't feel like work at all.
It really felt like we had the trust of the director. We trusted him and we trusted each other, so the only time any ... And this is true in friendships or any intimate relationships or work, whatever it is. When there's no trust, you don't have fun. It's not possible to have fun. And so, because of all the trust that existed in this everybody let their guard down. Everybody who isn't even normally in comedy was able to just experiment and put themselves out there and be funny and be really rewarded for that by everyone around them. And so, this experience was very special.
One thing you mentioned is your character's disdain for actors. And it's such a fun meta-level to the film, in that respect, because your character gives a very impassioned speech about how this entire industry is very silly — in a movie, of course, being made within the industry. For you, was that a moment where you just immerse yourself in it, or were you conscious at all of the levels on which this is all working?
Q: I think that no one in Hollywood is unaware of the silliness; the silly side of what we do and how people can be or act and the narcissism and the self-absorption and all that stuff that isn't relevant with everyone but quite relevant with a majority of the business. It's what it is. You are the business. You are your business. And so, because there's such an awareness of it, there's always that level of... Within the acting community, with all of us, I know that that scene and that moment was one of the funnest moments of the film — because everyone on set who were actors were in agreement that it can be so ridiculous at times. And we would cut and everybody would just cry laughing because that moment of... Can you imagine being someone who's not in the business, having to be around all these people and all they do is talk about themselves all day long?
Obviously, Tyler James Williams and Emma Bell are playing the worst versions, a magnified version of that. But Sarah being a working professional female, she just couldn't take it anymore. And I think all of us have felt that way at some point in the business, even being in the business. It was a fun little release and I think everybody really enjoyed that moment. One of the things about the humor of it all is that you do have to make fun of yourself and you do have to understand that self-deprecation is relevant in this business, because it can be a little silly.
And every lawyer I've ever had, every entertainment lawyer within Hollywood, I hear the stories of other clients and I see what they have to put up with and it just ... It's a lot.
I know that talking about the future right now is hard, but what do you see as your next big thing that you have, potentially, coming up?
Q: I just finished it, actually. I just flew in from Bulgaria. I was in Romania. I was in Bucharest from January to March. The beginning of this year. I was working and living COVID in real-time as everything was going down and Europe went into a tailspin. I did this film called The Asset with Michael Keaton and Sam Jackson and we were shooting in Romania and then London. And then London went on lockdown and then we went into hiatus because we couldn't finish the film. And then we just went back. I guess the standards were quite strict in Sofia so we were able to fly to Bulgaria and finish the film. I just got back after two weeks there. So, that's in the can now and I think we're set for a theatrical release in April.
It's a big, big action movie, Martin Campbell directing, so we're super excited about that. We hope that by April of next year people are going to the cinemas and are enjoying those kinds of movies at the theaters, because it would be really great for us. Whether we are or not, I have no clue, but that is the next film I have coming out which, I'm really excited about because I'm rarely proud of anything I do and I'm proud of that one. So, I can't wait.
Congratulations on getting it done.
Q: Thank you. I know. Just getting it done is a feat in itself, now.
In terms of the scale of that project versus something like The Argument, do you like going back and forth between them? Do you prefer one versus the other?
Q: I really don't. To be honest, you do something like The Argument that's so intimate and tiny... And by the way, for a movie that cost nothing that we shot in one location, essentially — we had one other location but that's it, and it was a half-day — the producers were so... Sometimes on a small project they're just so lovely and mindful. Like craft services, everything was organic and it was from the local grocery store that we all loved. It was very sweet. Because they knew that we were all taking a hit by doing a movie that was so low budget, they were like, "We're going to take care of them and feed them properly."
And sometimes you're on a huge movie and you're like, "What's happening here? Where is the ..." You can't even get fed properly and your crew is so big that you don't get to really bond the way that we did on The Argument. So, they're different. They serve different purposes. But certainly, Martin Campbell was... I couldn't have dreamed working with a director like that. Casino Royale is my favorite Bond and the job he did on that movie was so remarkable that I just was so excited about that level. Watching someone like him work and watching the DP work with him and how they created shots that really told stories. Take the actors out, just the lighting. Just the way Martin wanted to shoot things.
I was watching and studying so carefully this man, who has so much experience. He's 78 now. And being able to pick up and still be in the business for 20 years. That's what I love about our business is every single person you come across you're going to learn something from. And just being in the school of Martin Campbell and our DP, David Tattersall, and just watching how they worked was a brand new education for me after 20 years in the business. Seeing how they worked and learning more than I have learned on other films was really cool. They all teach something.
Of course. You talk about studying them, does that mean you're considering moving into directing at some point?
Q: I've always ... It's so funny because everybody I work with has asked me that, Martin included. They were like, "Do you want to direct?" And I said, "You know, funnily enough, I do and I have, little things, but on a different scale." I said to Martin when he was asking me about it, "One of the things, which is kind of counter to what a lot of people's experience is, that what I actually really love about directing, is I actually love working with actors." I love actors. I love working with them. I love seeing someone make decisions that benefit their performance. I love getting them there. I love seeing people have success. I love seeing people come from a place where they may not have understood the arc of where they were going and watching them get there and seeing them nail something.
That, for me, is so fulfilling. More than the technical aspect of it, I just love getting people to a place where they're at their best. That's something that really feeds me. And it's something I do anyway, even as an actor, when I work with people. And they need me. I never offer anything unless somebody asks, but if I'm working with an actor who's like, "Hey, Mag. What do you think?" I'm like ... I am right there. I'm excited about getting them there and I'm willing to do the work with them to get them there. That's one of the main reasons why I want to direct is I want to work with actors.
Yeah. I've heard a lot of actors who turned director talk about how valuable that experience is for them. I think they refer to it as, "I speak actor."
Q: No, and that is what it is. It's very true because it's a very specific vulnerability to be able to understand, and not everybody understands it. And by the way, I've been on many projects where I'm horrified. Horrified. Where I've actually gotten into fights with directors and I'm like, "What is wrong with you? What do you not understand about human relationships and how to actually get the best out of people?" There are a ton of directors who are technically very good but who have no idea how to deal with people. And I think that's tragic when that happens because you're missing the biggest part of what directing can bring.
I do want to ask about two other projects really quickly. One is Designated Survivor, which ended with Season 3 — but if it had come back for a fourth season, it wouldn't have included you, right?
Q: Yeah, definitely. To my understanding, they weren't going to end the show, but for me, the show was on ABC and then everything changed hands and... For me, it was working out of town. One of the things with actors is you have to relocate your life a lot. I had spent, at that point, about six to seven years away from home, and so I just wasn't willing to be away from home any longer.
So, did you ask to be written out?
Q: Yeah. Yeah. I think the other thing is I had done everything I could do, in my opinion, as an artist with that character. I'd done what I came to do and I had done it. And I think if I felt like I had more to give it would have been a different story, but I was like, "This is Kiefer's show. I did what I did. I don't really have much more to give. But I've really enjoyed the experience." And so, that was kind of it for me.
And then, the last thing I want to ask you about is, well, everyone has their favorite Mission: Impossible movie. Mine is definitely 3 for a number of reasons — like, you were talking earlier about Philip Seymour Hoffman and, "yes, of course, Philip Seymour Hoffman playing a villain in an action movie will do an incredible job."
Q: Are you kidding me? Yeah.
Yeah.
Q: Yeah. 1000 percent. Agreed.
It seems like the experience was good for you — I've read older interviews where you said that you wanted to come back for a future film but you had scheduling conflicts. If there was an opening in the next Mission: Impossible movie, would you be interested?
Q: You know, there isn't. They called me back for a couple of them. I think it was four and five.
Right.
Q: And I was locked into a show and so that ... There's absolutely nothing you can do. As much as you desire to go back to that job, you're committed and that's it. And I think they've already cast the next two and they're off and running and ready to go with all of those.
I'll take that experience from three and cherish it for the rest of my life. And also, honestly, the combination. First of all, J.J. Abrams. Come on. So, J.J., Billy Crudup and Lawrence and Rhys, Tom, Phil. You're talking Kerri Russell and Michelle Monaghan. What a lineup of actors. Could it be better? It just couldn't be better.
The Argument is now available in virtual theaters and via VOD.