“The Detour” star Natalie Zea knew it was time for a change when over a one-week period she found herself sitting in a chair weeping with a gun pointed at her belly while the person threatening her and her ex-lover talked about what was to happen, and then in a completely different situation she was sitting in a chair sobbing while an ice pick was held to her head while the person threatening her and her ex-lover talked about what was happening.
“All I could think about was ‘I’m not saying a lot in this scene but it is all about me. What is going on here?’ ” Zea says.
These demanding acting moments happened while she was part of the casts of the Fox series “The Following,” where she played Claire Matthews, and on the FX series “Justified,” where she portrayed Winona Hawkins. She’s not complaining about the quality of the roles, as both series earned praise from critics and fans. Her problem was with the kind of emotional drain playing characters in such dire situations put on her.
That’s when she knew a new direction was needed. That meant going for a project completely different than what she had been doing. All she needed was to be given a chance.
