Paramount Pictures(NEW YORK) — Angela Bassett is a force to be reckoned in her latest film, Mission: Impossible — Fallout.
In the action spy thriller, Bassett plays CIA deputy director Erica Sloane, a woman who’s only is in charge of her unit but who also demands respect. Basset tells ABC Radio that in addition to being tough on the job, her character is very strategic.
“Erica’s a really great chess player,” Bassett says. “She’s a brilliant bada*** ballsy woman. Don’t underestimate her.”
While Bassett acknowledges her character’s strengths, she also admits it took a good while to actually pin her down.
“I initially didn’t get the script, because it was in constant evolution,” she says. “Constantly changing up until the very last day, even. So, when I got the word 7:00 a.m. one morning, I think it’s one Thursday morning, that I’ve been offered the job, it was just a tremendous opportunity. To work with Tom Cruise, to be a part of this major franchise that has been going strong for 22 years.”
While Basset loved the camaraderie of the cast, which she describes as “wonderful” and an “appreciated aspect of the film,” the actress says she also thoroughly enjoyed embodying her character.
“And in Erica, to portray one of those women,” she says. “A woman who looks like me, who has ascended to this position of power and influence… And it’s not bad telling Superman what to do.”
Mission: Impossible — Fallout, also starring Henry Cavill, Ving Rhames, Rebecca Ferguson and Alec Baldwin, hits theaters Friday.
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