Snowpiercer's Annalise Basso says it's "a lot of fun" to play LJ after twist
Snowpiercer spoilers for episode 5 follow.
LJ Folger's true colours came out in Snowpiercer's latest episode, as she stood trial for the train murders.
In a fascinating episode, LJ switched between multiple personalities – harmless and innocent in front of her parents, but arrogant and scheming in front of Melanie. LJ failed to convince the jury to vote in her favour and was correctly declared guilty, but she had another trick up her sleeve as she forced Melanie to commute her sentence.
Speaking to Digital Spy, Annalise Basso – who stars as LJ – discussed what it's like to play such a twisted character.
"I feel like I'm naturally more the white swan, because that black swan persona has always been kind of foreign to me," she explained.
"Being able to switch back and forth was a lot of fun to explore the behaviour in both characters – because honestly, LJ plays many different characters and that's what makes her so unpredictable and so fun to watch.
"She is literally psychotic, and so she has to make people believe that the person they're seeing is the real her. That was a challenge for me, trying to find out the little bits and pieces in each parts of her masks that she wears and what parts of those really resonated with me personally so that I could make it believable.
"I wanted the audience to see her change [between her masks]. And I hope that they see that and that they noticed and are really freaked out by it!"
Related: Snowpiercer star Annalise Basso breaks down episode 4's big twist
One scene that was particularly striking happened in the lead-up to the trial, with LJ asking for her father's glass eye.
LJ ends up putting the eye in her mouth and playing with it.
"I think it's more like a ritual that brings comfort to her," Basso said. "Maybe it's just out of routine. Maybe it's something that her father did to comfort her.
"But as you watch the show, you find out that she stabbed her father's eye out and that's the reason why he has the glass eye. So maybe symbolically, by taking it out again and being in control of something that is a part of him, she is reminding herself that at least she can do this."
Snowpiercer is available to watch on Netflix in the UK with new episodes released on Mondays. The series airs on TNT in the US.
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