A bad CSI audition almost stopped Mary Lynn Rajskub from trying out for Chloe on 24
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Mary Lynn Rajskub Never Expected to Become a Fan Favorite on ‘24’
Mary Lynn Rajskub didn't initially know she'd become one of the mainstays of '24,' and looks back at auditioning for dramas.
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It's hard to imagine a time before Jack Bauer depended on intelligence analyst Chloe O'Brian, but the fan favorite 24 character was a season 3 addition that was never built to last according to actress and comedian Mary Lynn Rajskub.
"I was hired on for four episodes, I was hired on for six episodes, I got backhanded compliments from the executives — 'Oh we didn't know you could do drama,'" recalls the performer, who's new standup special Mary Lynn Rajskub: Live from the Pandemic is out now, during an appearance on PeopleTV's Couch Surfing.
Having initially come from the comedy world, Rajskub explained to host Lola Ogunnaike how joining the Fox action drama was "one of these situations where I'm like I don't know. I've never been on a set like this. I entered the show and it was already massively popular, so it was scary."
Everett Collection Mary Lynn Rajskub playing Chloe on '24.'
Rajskub was also reeling from another experience that tainted the idea of her becoming a dramatic actress. "I tried to not go on the [24] audition. I told my agent, I said I had a really bad CSI audition. I had to go in for like a rape victim," the comedian remembers.
Unfortunately, Rajskub just couldn't find the right character beats, and the audition went south. "It was so serious and I think they were like what is she doing? Like I didn't know how to grasp things that were that heavy."
The actress jokingly concluded, "This is not my thing. Like I am traumatized from trying to play this traumatized person. It just is not working for me."
Watch the full clip above.
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