By Mike McCarthy
You have seen actress Tammy Gillis in an abundance of projects in the past and she’s only getting started. Having had parts going all the way back to the Chris Isaak show and the L Word in the early 2000’s to Girlfriend’s Guide to Divorce and Continuum this past year. Tammy has worked with some of the biggest actors on the planet and she doesn’t get phased by them, she is just in awe of how they work.
Tammy has done every genre from comedy in Blue Mountain State to sci-fi in Battlestar Galactica and everything in-between. Before going off to Menorca, Spain to finish her newest project ‘Menorca’, Tammy sat down with us to talk all about her career and future projects.
Wingman Magazine: How did you get started in the world of entertainment?
Tammy Gillis: I started performing in high school. Our new English teacher, Mrs. Grimstead, moved to our small town in Manitoba and started a drama club. It was really exciting for me because I always watched the traveling theater shows that came to our town. For my first school play, I played Grandpa (yes, Grandpa!). I remember grabbing a shirt and stuffing it down the front of my pants, and adjusting it every once in a while during the show. It always got a laugh and I was hooked. I never considered the possibility of becoming a professional actor, I’d never really met any “famous” actors growing up, the most recognizable people were hockey players, But then at University I was approached to start modeling, and I started booking some commercials in Winnipeg. I ended up working on some of the bigger movies that came to town and some of the lead actors told me that I should pursue it. I started to think it was possible.
WM: A new show you are in, Ties that Bind. Your episode airs tonight (August 26th) if I am correct, what is the show about and what is your character’s background?
Tammy Gillis: The show is a police procedural, but the interesting thing about it is that it is based on family, and family values. The lead character played by Kelli Williams, focuses on her dealing with her family as well as having a career as a police officer. Family is the ties that bind. It’s hard to walk away from them, good or bad. My character, Carla Martin, is happily married to the love of her life, but has a shady past. She cleans herself up, has found god and completely transformed her life. Her ex-boyfriend then gets out of jail and comes knocking. He just happens to be the guy that shot Kelli Williams prior. The ex-boyfriend is played by Jason Priestly. It was a great role and very different for me to play. I can’t say more as I don’t want to give anything away.
WM: You are part of the final season of Continuum that starts in 2 weeks on SyFy. What can we expect from your character?
Tammy Gillis: Unfortunately I can’t say much about my part, except that I am a doctor. That’s what it says on IMDB and you see me in the trailer.
WM: Battlestar, Supernatural, Continuum, Lost Girl. All more sci-fi genre shows. Do you fluctuate towards those style of roles?
Tammy Gillis: I just love to act. I’ve worked really hard to not be stuck in one genre or even one type of role. As an actor I love to play and try new things. I love comedy, and they had to practically remove me from the set of Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce, it was just so much fun. What’s cool is that the roles I have performed this year are ones that I was able to really discover new aspects of my acting. It’s been really challenging, which is exciting, and also really fun. I can’t say much about the role I play on Signed Sealed Delivered but I’m really proud of my work and I can’t wait for people to see it.
WM: You are filming a new movie, Menorca. What can you tell us about the film and when can we expect to see it?
Tammy Gillis: I started shooting Menorca in Winnipeg in June for three weeks, and I am going to Spain to finish shooting next week. This movie is about a housewife that is just completely lost. In my opinion, if she didn’t change something in her life, then she would die. She leaves a soccer game that her husband is coaching their son at, steals a van and goes on this crazy journey, kind of a no holds barred type of trip. Along that journey she realizes that her son is the most important thing in her life and she wants to have a relationship with him. Her redemption is all based on her returning this rock to Menorca (which is an island off the coast of Spain). Her son found it in Menorca and took it home but felt like he stole it and he wanted to return it. My character thinks that if I bring this rock back to the island that he will let me back into his life. It was very challenging, because everyone I talked to about this role told me that they hated my character, “how could a mother leave her child?” I’m not a mother so I haven’t been in that position but on one hand I totally agree with them, and then on the other hand, looking through the eyes of that woman and how miserable she really was, how could she stay? It was really important for me to let the audience see how much pain she was really in. I hope I achieved that. There isn’t a tentative date as of yet, but I know the director is hard at work editing it. I think it will be a festival piece for next year.
WM: What is one movie that you think should never be remade? And on the other side of the coin, what movie should be remade?
Tammy Gillis: I say that about every movie in history that has been remade. What’s funny as of late, is that I heard that they were talking about remaking Top Gun. I just want them to leave it alone, it’s one of my favorite movies but it’s Top Gun 2. When I heard they were remaking Ghostbusters, I was like “NO!” But then I heard it was an all-female cast!! I am totally going to go see that. I loved all of the Ghostbusters, I watched the cartoons, so for me the fact that they are remaking it is amazing. I want to be in it.
Normally I only think movies should be remade if they were off the mark or they were miscast. I am kind of sentimental. We have had this 80’s and 90’s theme in my house the past few months so I’ve been watching movies like Karate Kid and Dirty Dancing. I love the original versions of movies. I wish the film industry would take more chances on original screenplays. I don’t know why we feel the need to remake them, maybe it’s because of the established fan base and they want to remake it for a younger generation. My feeling is, watch the originals, they are so good.
WM: Have you ever been star struck when working with any of your co-stars?
Tammy Gillis: I know I had a hard time keeping up with Alan Thicke. He is a very, very funny man and I had a hard time keeping a straight face on the comedy series I worked with him on. I’ve been fortunate to have worked with some amazing actors and some big stars like Ben Affleck, and Mark Wahlberg. At some point, I think I realized that they are just people, people that get to share their beautiful talent with the world. Mark (Wahlberg) is the most normal, and laid back guy in the world. If you didn’t know he was Mark Wahlberg, he would just be a normal guy that loves his life.
WM: Since you were on Blue Mountain State, any chance we see you in the movie?
Tammy Gillis: I think they just finished shooting that film, but no unfortunately not. I loved shooting that show, it was super fun.
WM: Was there any audition that you thought that you nailed, but didn’t get?
Tammy Gillis: All the time! The thing I try to do in my auditions, is have fun. I try not to put so much pressure on it, because it is killer to your acting spirit. I just try and go in and give them my flavor on the part and have fun. Ultimately, it is play and I hope I entertained them and they want to work with me at some point. Sometimes its just about them getting to know you and then the perfect part comes up. For Supernatural I auditioned for that show like six or seven times. Every week I would go in and the producers always seemed to really enjoy my work so of course, I’d think, is this audition the one? Then I ended up booking the show from a taped audition from Toronto.
WM: With a lot of the comic book shows and movies being filmed up in Vancouver, any chance you will be going after some of those roles?
Tammy Gillis: Oh for sure, I definitely want to be on a comic book show, they always get to do such cool and fun stuff. One day in the summer, I was running on the seawall and they had shut down the road to shoot Deadpool, the new Ryan Reynolds movie. I hear this gunfire and explosions and start to panic, then I see this guy in a red suit running on top of cars and dive into the back seat of this SUV with a massive green screen. I was just like, “that’s so cool, I want to do that.”