Judith Light on How The Terror: Devil in Silver Tells a Mental Health Story Through Horror: Podcast

Listen via: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Podcasts | More Platforms 

There’s a point in The Terror: Devil in Silver where Judith Light barely seems human anymore — which is exactly why she’s so mesmerizing in it. The legendary actress spoke with Kyle Meredith about AMC’s latest chapter in the horror anthology series, in which she plays a long-abandoned psychiatric patient named Dory, and how the show uses monsters and madness to say something painfully real about America’s healthcare system. Along the way, Light also talked about working alongside Dan Stevens, CCH Pounder, and Steven Root, plus finding unexpected joy inside one of the bleakest onscreen worlds she’s ever stepped into. Listen above or wherever you get your podcasts.

“Horror found me,” Light admits with a laugh when asked about her recent run through darker material like The Menu, American Horror Story, and now Devil in Silver. “I’m not your horror girl.” But this project hooked her immediately: “I literally said, after two lines, ‘I’m in. That’s it.’ This character is so intriguing to me.” What especially pulled her in was the series’ ability to balance supernatural terror with conversations about homelessness, mental health, and the way people disappear inside broken systems. “We have to talk about this,” she says. “You can’t just let this go by.”

Underneath the horror, Light says the series carries a bigger purpose. “People are discarded. People are no longer held as human beings,” she explains. “Our work is our service. We are able to entertain and also be of service at the same time.”

Light also describes how collaborative the experience became behind the scenes, crediting everyone from the prosthetics team to executive producers including Ridley Scott for helping her disappear into the role. “You’re not creating something alone,” she says. “It’s a team effort.” Despite the series’ heavy themes, she says the cast kept things surprisingly loose between takes. “There was a lot of laughter and a lot of wild hysteria on the set,” she says, noting the long van rides back from Staten Island shoots became nightly decompression sessions.

Listen to Judith Light talk about The Terror: Devil in Silver, horror roles, and more in the new episode above or by watching the video below.

Keep up on all the latest episodes by following Kyle Meredith With… on your favorite podcast platform; plus, check out all the series on the Consequence Podcast Network.