Toni’s role reversal

You know that when the ABC schedules an American show that chances are it’s going to be worth seeing. When it isn’t showing Australian content, the public broadcaster is usually closely aligned with the BBC.

With United States of Tara, it has the Australian premiere of the new Showtime drama in which Toni Collette plays a woman with Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). It’s an acquisition that surprised even her.

“I feel very safe knowing that,” she told TV Tonight. “I was surprised but then I thought it feels really right. What makes it even better is that there aren’t going to be any commercials. I think any show would suffer from being broken up that way. I like the idea of it being commercial free. The old ABC is really taking it home!”

The role, which has seen her nominated for an Emmy, is something of a dream for the actress, best known for her film work.

“I wasn’t really looking to work in TV, I was very happy with what was going on in my life. But really all I respond to when it comes to a job is the material. This was so out of this world that I didn’t care what size screen it was going to be on. It was a matter of jumping in and going for it.”

Collette has received glowing reviews for her multiple roles as the afflicted mother, a rebellious teenager, period housewife and Vietnam War veteran. She shifts from alter-ego to dazzling alter-ego in a script by Juno screenwriter Diablo Cody and production under the helm of Steven Spielberg.

“Tara was Steven’s idea, and Dreamworks went to Diablo to create it. They knew her because of her very popular blog, and the book that she’d written. Juno hadn’t been shot at the time so the fact that became a success was seen as a huge coup,” she said.

In many ways the show is about living with the affliction. While it is a showpiece role, Collette is drawn to its suburban reality and the way the family deals with Tara‘s unique persona.

“I think one of the clever things Diablo did was not make it ‘hush hush’ and taboo. Everything is accepted and embraced and they get on with their day. They exist as a family, and that gives it a real heart I think.”

Tara has been likened to the 1976 miniseries Sybil, in which Sally Field played a woman with 16 alter-egos. It’s a work that Collette fleetingly recalls when she was growing up.

“I do remember Sybil when it was on because I wasn’t allowed to watch it. And I used to sneak out of my room and peek and got busted and sent back to bed. But the little that I do remember was very scary. United States of Tara although dealing with something very heavy has a completely different tone. It involves mental illness but it’s not just about that. It goes beyond that.”

In tackling such a demanding role, Collette says she declined opportunities to meet actual DID case-studies, preferring to research via books and documentaries.

“I had the offer to meet one woman who has DID and is based in LA. Diablo has spent quite a bit of time with her, as have some of the other writers I think. But from what I know about DID is that it’s quite a varied, and obtuse affliction. I felt that if I met one person I’d feel a direct responsibility. My only responsibility is to Tara and her journey, so I declined the offer. But who knows, in the future I may get together with her?”

Tara also represents a continuing emergence of 30 minute dramas on US cable including In Treatment and Nurse Jackie. It very smartly leaves the viewer wanting more.

“With our show people have commented it that it could very easily be one hour,” she said. “But it’s a very jam-packed half-hour and to stretch it out might ruin it. I don’t know why there’s an existing trend. There’s one programme, which I won’t name, which is a really great idea and it’s an hour, and as much as I like it it does feel drawn out, as if it’s treading water.

“The pace of this is just bang, bang, bang. I think it gives it balls actually.”

United States of Tara premieres 9:30pm Wednesday on ABC1.