The annual Women Who Kick Ass panel took place at San Diego Comic-Con 2019 on Saturday, July 20 in Hall H.
The panel included Shohreh Aghdashloo (The Expanse), Freema Agyeman (New Amsterdam, Doctor Who), Cobie Smulders (Avengers, How I Met Your Mother), Betty Gilpin (The Hunt, GLOW), and surprise panelist Jeri Ryan (Star Trek: Voyager), who had also been a surprise guest at the Star Trek panel earlier that day, as she will be appearing in Star Trek: Picard.
The moderator kicked off the panel by asking the panelists who their female role model was. Freema, Betty, and Jeri all answered their mother. Additionally, Freema also mentioned her science teacher, Betty talked about Alison Brie (Glow), and Cobie answered that it was her sister growing up, and more recently it has been Pam Fryman, who directed almost every episode of How I Met Your Mother.
When asked if they noticed a difference between male and female directors, Shohreh said that she has never noticed a difference. Meanwhile, Cobie said she thought it was more about the relationship that you have with the director, as she developed a close relationship with Pam Fryman, but now working on Stumptown, it’s a new experience for her having a different director for every episode. Betty pointed out that there’s a perception that there’s only one type of woman who can be in charge, but it’s time for that to change. She also spoke about it being a “freeing” experience working on Glow, surrounded by women.
The moderator observed that the women on the panel had been in various types of roles in many different genres, and asked how they got to the point where they can dictate what type of roles they want to play. Shohreh said it was just a matter of putting your foot down and saying that you want to or don’t want to do something. Freema recalled that when she was first trying to get into the business, she was told that the only way she would make it was to do things like grow and straighten her hair and to change her name — which in turn caused her to do the opposite. She also went on to talk about the importance of representation.
Shorhreh, who has been in the business for 43 years, reflected on the changes that she has seen over time. She told us that she is from Iran, educated herself in the UK, and then has been living in the U.S. for the past 30 years. At that time, people kept asking why there weren’t more powerful female roles on the silver screen, and her answer was that we needed more powerful females in real life, so that the silver screen could reflect that. Now, there are more of those powerful females in real life, and mothers are pushing their daughters to become somebody.
The moderator pointed out that the various roles the panelists play in the shows that they’re on are very different from each other. Cobie talked about how the new show she is in, Stumptown, for once she is not “coupled” with anyone, there’s no “will they or won’t they.” Instead, it’s about a woman who is her own boss, and out for herself. Freema went on to talk about diversity and equality, and the need for awareness of what’s important to people while trying to be inclusive.
Jeri Ryan, who has a 24-year old son and an 11-year old daughter, told us that when her daughter was born, it became more urgent for her to play characters that were a positive representation of what a woman can be. She wants young girls to know that “everything is a possibility” and that in order for them to understand that, they need to see this represented.
Betty Gilpin pointed out that in the past, female roles revolved around “the journey of brunch.” However, now the representation of women in shows like Killing Eve and Fleabag is more about “releasing the inner kracken,” which Betty thinks is the thing that can join us all together.
When choosing a project to work on, Cobie gets excited about projects that normalize something that people haven’t seen before. She also talked about how there are different types of strengths, and about finding the strength in characters that appear weak on paper.
Shohreh shared that when she left Iran, she turned herself into an actress with a mission: she’s a storyteller. She has to learn the story first. Additionally, Shohreh expressed gratitude that Amazon picked up The Expanse, because the show is now available worldwide, and young girls in the Middle East can see her and think, “If she can do it, I can too.”
The panelists all agreed that genre fans are the most loyal fan base, especially Jeri, who talked about how great the Star Trek fan base is. Jeri also talked about how she has often received praise from those in the autism community, who identified with her character, Seven of Nine, who was a human, then became a machine and had to learn to be human again, as she had to deal with the same kind of struggles that they do. She revealed that her son is on the spectrum, so she is aware of these struggles.
The moderator asked who the panelists would cosplay as. Jeri said she would dress as a random Ravenclaw student, while Freema recalled Star Trek was a massive part of her household, and she and her sister actually went to conventions, where they cosplayed as Bajorans. Cobie would want to dress as Poison Ivy or Xena. Betty would dress as Jodie Comer on Killing Eve, since she often gets mistaken for her. As for Shohreh, she would cosplay as Jeri’s character on Star Trek.
Cobie told us a little about her upcoming show Stumptown, which is based on a graphic novel. She plays an ex-military, sex-addict, gambling-addict, private investigator in Portland, Oregon who drinks, but is a good person. Although the show will feature cases, it will be mainly character-driven. Cobie explained that the show can’t be categorized as a single description, so they’re calling it an “action dramedy” as it is a mix of everything.
Audience members were given the chance to ask questions as well.
One audience member asked the panelists how it felt to be a role model. Shohreh answered that it’s not easy, but very satisfying. Meanwhile, Betty confessed that this version of her was the “porn poodle” version of herself, and that she usually dresses down. Cobie pointed out that what makes Betty a good role model is that she is grounded and down to Earth.
When asked for advice about body image issues, especially with thinness being idealized in social media, Shohreh advised, “Celebrate who you are, get to know who you are, and love thyself.” Cobie lamented having taken her own body for granted, recalling health issues she has gone through, including breaking her leg. She gave the advice of laying off the judgment, and you’ll be happier.
Freema acknowledged that we all suffer from insecurities. She recalled that she was terrified when the read the Sense 8 script due to the nudity. Freema told us that Lana Wachowski would never force anyone to do anything they’re uncomfortable with, but told her a story about an experiment with a two way mirror, where the person looking in the mirror was negative about their own appearance, while people looking from the other side were positive and noticed mannerisms more than looks. She went on to say that we should get out of our heads and surround ourselves with people more celebratory about ourselves.
Another attendee brought up a quote from Betty’s IMDb page: “My brain is a room full of women who take turns at the wheel.” Betty explained that often how she approaches a character is to figure out what “brain women” are in her head, and when each one is driving. Some examples include a homeless witch or a 7-year old with chocolate on her face. It depends on how much coffee she has had that day! To her, this is what it feels like to be alive as a woman.
As far as interactions on social media go, Cobie always tries to make hers positive. Freema pointed out that if you have a loyal fan base, when someone says something “trash” to you, fans will protect you. Cobie also said that she only absorbs opinions from people she really respects and loves.
The final audience question was for the panelists to provide one word that describes women who kick ass, but also gives them nuance and dimensionality. Cobie answered “resilient,” while Shohreh answered “ferociously,” and Betty said “three-dimensional.”
That wrapped up the one-hour Women Who Kick Ass panel. Up next in Hall H was the Marvel Studios panel. Click here to continue to our recap and photos of that panel!
You can view more of our photos from the Women Who Kick Ass panel at SDCC 2019 below.
