How Home And Away star Rebecca Breeds landed Jodie Foster’s iconic role

Former Home And Away favourite Rebecca Breeds discusses the special moment she and her husband Luke Mitchell found out would be stepping into the shoes of an iconic Hollywood character.

You recently celebrated your eight-year wedding anniversary with fellow Australian actor and Home And Away alum Luke Mitchell. Is it nice to be able to share your work life so fully with each other?

It really helps to share such wonderful experiences in this industry. Of course we support each other, but we don’t talk work all the time. We know how to chill out and watch a movie and do a puzzle. We’re not always just sitting here, learning lines together [laughs].

You live in Los Angeles now. Do you think you’ll both get back to Australia this year?

That’s the golden question. We always want to come home – Sydney is home, and Australia is where we ultimately want to be, but we’re on this adventure right now. We’ve just got to ride this wave and see where it takes us.

There’s a lot up in the air with COVID and travel, and we have to wait and see. We hope we can get home sometime this year.

“At the end of the day, what makes [the character of Clarice] so brilliant is that what she does is not in spite of being a woman – it’s because she’s a woman.” (Picture: Supplied)

You’ve had roles in hit TV shows like Pretty Little Liars and The Vampire Diaries spin-off The Originals. What big differences have you noticed between US and Australian productions?

I’m in awe of what the Seven Network is able to do [on Home And Away], and what they can create in the time they have. They do an incredible job and I have total respect for them. It’s not too different in terms of the day-to-day on set.

You learn your lines, you turn up to work and you give it your all. That’s what I was doing [for the four years I played Ruby Buckton] on Home And Away and that’s what I do now. You treat every job with respect and an opportunity to learn and get better.

“You treat every job with respect and an opportunity to learn and get better.” (Picture: Home And Away)

“Of course we support each other.” (Picture: Getty Images)

Your new TV series Clarice sees you in the title roleof Clarice Starling, the iconic character from the Thomas Harris novels and the 1991 film The Silence Of The Lambs, and its 2001 sequel Hannibal. How does that feel?

It feels great. I’m really excited for the premiere. I’m excited for everyone to be able to see what we’ve been doing. My schedule is crazy busy, and my weekends are like gold dust.

Every moment that I get to sit on my couch in my robe and just chill out is precious. But driving home at 2am at the end of a 16-hour day, there’s such a feeling of satisfaction. I just can’t wipe the smile off my face, thinking about what we’re making. It’s worth every 5am start, every 4am finish. It’s all worth it.

What did you do when you found out you had the role?

Luke was waiting to find out about a role as well [he later landed a major part in upcoming series The Republic Of Sarah] and we were both nervous. We didn’t know what to do with ourselves, so we drove to Malibu to see the ocean and sat down to have lunch.

The waiter came over to ask what we wanted to drink, and we knew we were going to find out [if I’d got the role] in the next hour, so it was either going to be champagne… or vodka [laughs]. So we went, “Just water for now.” We got the call and, thank God, we were ordering champagne. It was a magical moment.

Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins starred together in The Silence of the Lambs. (Picture: Supplied)

The show takes place a year after the events in The Silence Of The Lambs which saw serial killer Buffalo Bill being caught. Clarice was played by Jodie Foster in the movie and by Julianne Moore in Hannibal. Are you ready for the inevitable comparisons?

I’m just so thrilled to be continuing to tell the story of Clarice and to explore who she is. Jodie, Julianne and I are so lucky in that Thomas Harris wrote a modern character – Clarice feels modern, even now. She’s one of the best written characters in literature and film history.

She’s so ahead of her time. She completely breaks the stereotype of what we’re used to seeing our characters do and be in filmmaking and storytelling. We’re all very blessed that we have such a fantastic foundation to build from.

It’s still pretty rare to see a main character as a woman in law enforcement, isn’t it?

Something that I really love about this story and this character is that she has to work 10 times as hard as all the men to be taken seriously. But at the end of the day, what makes

her so brilliant is that what she does is not in spite of being a woman – it’s because she’s a woman.

Rebecca Breeds features in this Sunday’s Stellar.

There’s a lot of hype around the show due to the popularity of the characters. Are you nervous?

I’m not afraid of this. And I don’t feel pressure as much as I just feel honoured to be a part of this. I feel like I’m prepared. I feel ready to tell this story.

You’ve been working in the US since 2013, but do you still have “Wow, look at where I am” moments, especially on this show?

Luke and I pinch ourselves all the time. Every day I drive to work, I give my gratitude. There’s not a day that goes by that I’m not grateful for this job, the crew and the cast and incredibly supportive producers.

I know that hindsight is a wonderful thing and there’s a certain amount of time and space you need to fully comprehend the magnitude of some events in your life. I think this is one of those moments.

Clarice premieres this Friday on Stan.

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