Its not every day that I start an interview by asking, Who the fuck are you?
But when Jamie Lee Curtis and Margo Martindale are your interview subjects, its more than appropriate.
Who the fuck areyou?
Anna Webber, Getty Images on behalf of Prime Video
No, who the fuck areyou?
It wasnt until Curtisan executive producer onThe Stickyrecruited Martindale for the lead role that the two finally came face-to-face.
Never mind that it was freezing cold during most of the filming in Canada.
Martindale and Curtis: A pair for the ages.
It almost didnt happen.
A skeptical Martindale was unsure of whether she was right for the role when Curtis cold-called her.
Martindale and Curtis: A pair for the ages.
Margo Martindale as Ruth inThe Sticky.
Glamour:Jamie, tell us how you recruited Margo forThe Sticky.
Jamie Lee Curtis:I had to get her number.
Originally I was going to be inThe Sticky,playing Ruth.
Jamie Lee Curtis inThe Sticky.
That was the goal.
That was my plan.
I loved the show.
Chris Diamantopoulos and Margo Martindale inThe Sticky.
I thought it was funny.
You know, its show business.
It went away for a long period of time.
Jamie Lee Curtis and Christopher Guest in 2005.
I still wanted to be involved as a producer, but I couldt do the show.
So the obvious question was, Well, whos going to play Ruth?
Thats where the immediate understanding that it needed to be Margo was.
Margo Martindale with husband Bill Boals in 2013.
So I said, Get me her number.
JLC:So, I just called Margo up one day.
Okay, now Margo, you tell the rest.
Margo Martindale:I answer the phone.
She says [in a deep voice], Hi, this is Jamie Lee Curtis.
I didnt say it that aggressively.
MM:Well, no.
[In a regular voice] Hi, this is Jamie Lee Curtis.
JLC:There you go.
MM:It was friendly.
She wasnt being…
JLC:…a longshoreman.
MM:No, you werent, but I was.
And she said, Margo Martindale.
I said, in my head, In what world am I like Jamie Lee Curtis?
JLC:In this world, right here.
MM:And she said, So youre going to do it.
I said, Well, Im going to have to read it.
And she said, No, youre going to do it.
JLC:I might have.
Jamie, youre clearly not taking no for an answer, correct?
JLC:Well, there was no no for an answer.
Margo Martindale as Ruth inThe Sticky.
So when did you finally meet in person?
JLC:In Montreal, when I showed up.
JLC:Wed never.
Literally, Ive done that with many people, but Ive never done that with her.
MM:So she walked into my apartment in Montreal…
JLC:Yes, I did.
MM:Shes so straightforward and has such strength.
Shes a real smart, clear thinker, and shes extremely, extremely supportive.
And when she came, she came to play.
Oh, Ive seen episode five.
JLC:Yes, I did.
Mommy did not travel all the way to Montreal in the frigid tundra to be passive and uninteresting.
I was going to show up with some spirit.
MM:Yes, she did.
Jamie Lee Curtis inThe Sticky.
JLC:And what Margo just said about me, the same applies to her.
Shes passionate, clear, kind, has good leadership.
Its why I think were drawn to each other.
Theres a truth-telling in the work with Margo.
What was it like when you two shared the screen for the first time?
JLC:I said, Who the fuck are you?
Jamie, you mentioned you didnt think this project was going to happen after it fell apart originally.
How did you deal with that roller coaster of emotions?
JLC:Well, all I had committed to was Ruth.
The show didnt exist.
The loss was the chance to play Ruth, but it never materialized.
And so, as soon as that happened…honestly, I was off to another job very quickly.
So the trick to getting over something disappointing is to obviously have something else in the wings.
MM:It happens all the time in this business.
JLC:Ive just gotten used to it, but Ive also been really lucky.
Margo, what have you learned from Jamie?
And what makes you say yes to a project?
MM:To listen to her daily lectures.
And if that wouldnt happen, something else would.
You have to think that way.
I thought that way even when I wasnt working.
Like if I didnt get a job, it was because they were stupid.
I thought like that.
JLC:Just today, somebody asked me aboutPamela Anderson, who Im inThe Last Showgirlwith right now.
Ive done work that Im happy with and thrilled with.
I love my job, but Ive been waiting very patiently for that opportunity.
There are people who work all the time, and they dont get these opportunities.
MM:Good Lord.
JLC:Im telling you, and youve enjoyed it.
Its fucking fun to watch people fly.
MM:It is.
Its fun to fly.
Chris Diamantopoulos and Margo Martindale inThe Sticky.
What lessons are you unlearning at this point in your life?
MM:To let the little things go.
I try not to worry as much as I used to, but Im a terrible worrier.
So can you let the little things go?
MM:Not really.
[Laughs]
I appreciate the honesty, at least.
Its like when people say to me, You cant take it personally.
Im like, But I do take it personally because I put so much into it.
To be honest, I dont have an answer for that.
But Im sure Jamie does.
JLC:Thats a hard question, actually.
Jessica, what have you had to unlearn?
MM:At 73, I dont have to look any way except for how I look.
JLC:And Margo, you look beautiful.
I always [tell people], Dont fuck with your face.
Just dont do it.
MM:So not true.
JLC:And unfortunately, were being fed every day that it is true.
Also, youre right about the people-pleasing, because people-pleasing is the job of an actor in many ways.
Pleasing is a lifelong unlearning, Im realizing.
Margo might laugh at this, but Im really quite isolating, the older I get.
JLC:I dont have much bandwidth for peoples noise anymore, and its not that Im snarky.
Honestly, I just dont have the patience for it.
I dont go out at night.
The lights are out at like 5:30.
Im in my jammies.
JLC:Yes, but Im never going to tell you.
JLC:Because then it sort of somehow diminishes the person who did it.
Every single one of them went to Debra Winger.
And I just find that its like, Okay, fine.
Shes so great, and thats fine.
Literally, every job she did for about four years?
I also went up for.
But the person who did could really sing.
On a completely different note, we need to talk about how you met your spouses.
Howd you make it happen?
JLC:Yes, yes.
MM:I have a same sort of story.
This I need to hear.
She said, Who?
I said, That one, right there.
And she said, Oh, yeah.
His name is Chris Guest.
I tried to put him in a movie once.
Hes with your agents.
I said, Oh?
Im going to marry him.
So, I called his agent the next day.
His agent said, Hi, Jamie.
I know all about it.
I said, What are you fucking talking about?
He said, Your friend called me.
I said, Look, the guys cute.
Im not a stalker.
He didnt call me, and then I dated somebody else for about a month.
I took him to the airport and kind of broke up with him when I was dropping him off.
We went to Hugos Restaurant, I sat down, and Chris was sitting about 15 feet away.
I was facing him, and he looked at me.
I was so mortified.
And then he got up to leave like a minute later when he finished his meal.
He stood next to his chair and just kind of shrugged his shoulders and waved.
And then he left.
But he called me the next day.
That was June 28, 1984.
We went out July 2, 1984.
I was starting the moviePerfectin August of 1984 in Los Angeles.
We got engaged September 28.
We got married December 18 and will be celebrating 40 years of marriage this year.
Jamie Lee Curtis and Christopher Guest in 2005.
But also, did he say why he didnt originally call you?
JLC:Because hes shy.
Anyway, thats how I met my husband.
Okay, Margo, your turn.
There was a new guy there who was the busboy.
And I said, Whats your name?
He said, Bill.
And I said, Where are you from, Bill?
He said, Texas.
I said, Im from Texas too.
He said, Frisco, Texas.
I said, Huh.
Im going to marry you.
And he walked away and was scared to death of me every time I would come in.
But then things worked out, and Ive been married for almost 39 years.
Margo Martindale with husband Bill Boals in 2013.
So thats what I need to do.
I need to tell the next guy that I like, Im going to marry you.
JLC:Well, Who the fuck are you?
is sort of how this interview began, and Im going to marry you is how it ends.
And dont fuck with your face.
JLC:And dont fuck with your face.
