Marcia Gay Harden on Depicting the “Universal Heartbreak” of Netflix’s Uncoupled

Marcia Gay Harden feels like one of the hardest-working actors out there; since winning her Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in Pollack (she was also nominated for Clint Eastwood’s Mystic River) she’s made countless appearances across film and television, often appearing in multiple episode guest-starring roles across shows including The Morning Show, Damages, The Newsroom, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, How to Get Away With Murder, and more.

So it’s not a huge surprise to see her appear in Uncoupled, the new Darren Star (Sex and the City) comedy now streaming on Netflix, though it is a pleasure. The series focuses on how Michael (Neil Patrick Harris), a 40-something residential real estate agent in New York, copes with the sudden end of a 17-year relationship; Harden appears as Claire, one of Michael’s Upper East Side clients who’s also going through a dramatic breakup, and dealing with a lot of anger issues as a result.

In this interview, transcribed and edited for clarity, Harden talks about how the character she plays in Uncoupling is a type of woman she knows very well (with an angry twist) and what keeps her working across so many projects. She also reveals why one of the shows she most wants to appear on is RuPaul’s Drag Race, favors Consequence with a taste of her Clint Eastwood impression, and teases her upcoming appearance in the Jon Hamm-starring Confess, Fletch — while using an Italian accent.

To start off, what brought you to Uncoupled?

Easy. Darren Star, Jeffrey Richmond, New York City, Neil Patrick Harris, Tisha Campbell, and the crew of amazing actors. That’s the ticket. They’re like, “Hey, there’s this thing,” and you’re like, “Great,” and they’re like “now read the script,” and you’re like, “Okay, someone makes me stop laughing and tell me who I need to scrub off a porch to get that role.” Because [the character] is so fabulous. So arch and so fabulous and such a fun, funny, aggressive, angry woman. I loved it.

Is this the type of woman you feel like you’ve met before?

Haven’t you? Haven’t we all? I waited on them when I was a waitress and a caterer, I’ve worked with them. I know them in some of the circles that I am in. Yes, we do know them. There are so many wonderful philanthropists and very wealthy upper East Side people, but it is a stereotype. We can poke fun at them because we do know what it’s like, in the schools where everybody has a Tesla at Christmas, and all the Teslas have reindeer ears them. It is a bit of a stereotype, but yes, I know her.

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