This interview was conducted before the SAG-AFTRA Strike.

The Big Picture

Elizabeth Banks discusses her role as Robbie in The Beanie Bubble and explores the complicated dynamic between her character and Zach Galifianakis’ character, Ty Warner. Banks appreciates the sense of agency that the female characters in this film have. She admires the approach of directors Damian Kulash and Kristin Gore, particularly their use of rhythm.

Elizabeth Banks is having quite the year. In addition to directing the instantly iconic Cocaine Bear, she’s now starring in The Beanie Bubble alongside Zach Galifianakis, Sarah Snook, and Geraldine Viswanathan. Banks plays Robbie in the film, eccentric toymaker Ty Warner’s (Galifianakis) first business partner. Despite being with Warner from the very beginning, it quickly becomes clear he doesn’t see her as an equal, and the film explores the triumphs and betrayals alike that define this complicated dynamic.

Collider spoke to Banks about what she loves most about her character, what she learned from first-time directors Kristin Gore and Damian Kulash that she’d like to take to her own projects, and why playing drunk in a pool with Galifianakis was her favorite scene to film — as well as why it was one of the scariest.

COLLIDER: I have to start by asking what I think is the most important question, which is what is your favorite Beanie Baby?

ELIZABETH BANKS: You know, I actually didn’t collect Beanie Babies, but I think Spot would be one for sure because I like puppies and dogs. That’s probably one of my favorites if I had to pick one.

Image via Apple TV+

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I love that. That’s a great choice. I love how many sort of feminist period pieces you’ve been doing lately — Call Jane was one of my favorite movies of last year, obviously Mrs. America. I’m curious: What it is about these kinds of projects that are really drawing you to them right now?

BANKS: Oh, you know, I just love these characters. I mean, I think what’s great about these is these storylines, for me, is they’re ultimately about women with a sense of agency that are sort of doing things for themselves that are not relying on the male characters. I think one of the themes of this movie is that Robbie felt like a supporting character in Ty’s story, and that’s a theme that you see — like literally, the creators made this movie to investigate that idea, right?

I’m a female actress who’s come up through Hollywood — I’ve definitely had to play a lot of supporting roles. And I just feel like this is about women who broke out of that and created their own lane, their own story, and took control of their life despite this huge personality that Ty Warner is and represents and still is to this day. They were able to carve out their own sense of self apart from him, which I thought was really fascinating.

You mentioned the directors, and I always really enjoy the films that you direct. Obviously, this is their debut feature, but I’m curious if there’s anything in their approach that you were like, “I want to do that next time that I step behind the camera.”

BANKS: That’s so interesting you ask that because Damian is obviously very musical, and he loves to use rhythm as a directing tool, and I actually did learn a little bit about that. I was like, “Oh, that’s an interesting approach that might be something that I try someday.”

Image via Apple TV+

There are so many fun scenes in this movie — I feel like the drunk pool scene is gonna stick with me, the kind of conspiring with Rose. What was the most fun to shoot for you?

BANKS: The pool scene, for sure. I bring it up all the time. We shot it actually pretty early in the schedule, and Zach and I had not really met until we started working on this movie together. So we were two characters and two actors who were actually having to create this connection with each other. I hate playing drunk people. It’s always so scary as an actor — you never want to overdo it, and it’s always hard. More than anything, I just wanted to be very carefree in the pool, and working with Zach and Damien and Kristin allowed me to just do that and just play. We had a great sense of playfulness that night.

And I had one idea that they took to heart, which is that I really wanted him to be above me in the pool. And I was like, “How are we gonna figure this out? What are we gonna do?” And they came up with that floating chair for him to be on, which I loved. You know, their power dynamic begins in that pool, which is he is inviting her into something. Himalayan cats is his idea, and she doesn’t recognize that she’s not an equal in that relationship. I loved exploring that in the physicality of it, too.

The Beanie Bubble will be available to stream on Apple TV+ July 28th.