Anna Faris: Mum's the word

Anna Faris in the TV show Mom. Photo / Supplied

Being a mum playing a mum in ‘Mom’ has been a life-changing, career-defining role for Anna Faris, discovers Des Sampson

With her recurring role as Cindy Campbell in the Scary Movie franchise and starring parts in a succession of offbeat comedies Lost in Translation, Waiting and House Bunny, Anna Faris was on a Hollywood high, headed for the top. But despite her rapid rise from bit parts to the big-screen Queen of scream, she wasn't happy with the direction her career was taking.

"After doing the Scary Movies I wanted to try something different - something dramatic - because that's what I grew up doing," she explains earnestly. "I wanted to prove that I could do more than just comedy or 'fright' movies. I was never a 'fright' person.

"I don't know why I felt like I needed to prove myself, but I did. Maybe it's because I was a very short child and have a tall brother, so I grew up having a Napoleon complex [and] needed to be taken seriously," Faris suggests, kicking off her kitten heels and subconsciously drawing her knees up to her chest, protectively. "For my own sanity and satisfaction, I needed to prove I could be a serious actress."

Unfortunately, her plan to ditch light comedy for heavyweight drama backfired and, as her career floundered, Faris resorted to cameos in small-budget flicks and voiceovers for kids' films Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs and Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel. "It was scary because I was only 35 and started to think, 'Is it time? Is the ride over?' People I knew and loved chided me for thinking that, but I couldn't help myself. That's how I felt," she confesses.

"Sadly, there's a part of this job that's all about selling an image that you're confident enough to work forever, but I didn't feel that."

Getting married to hunky actor Chris Pratt in 2009 - they'd met on set, in 2007, while filming Take Me Home Tonight together - and becoming a first-time mum in 2012 changed Faris' focus though, especially when their son, Jack, was born nine weeks premature and had to spend his first month in the neonatal intensive care unit.

"I was a new mum, faced with new challenges and didn't know what I was doing until he was about 2, so that was a big adjustment," she says. "Also, my husband's career was going really well at the time - it's still going well - and I remember thinking: 'What do I want to do? Do I really need to go back to acting?'

"I certainly didn't feel like I needed to take a job, just for the money. It had to be something that really excited me."

Ironically, salvation came in the form of a familiar role - one Faris had just spent the past two years of her life perfecting: playing a mum, in the sitcom Mom. She stars as single mum, Christy Plunkett - a recovering addict and alcoholic - who flees to California with her teenage daughter, Violet (Sadie Calvano) to rebuild her life and re-establish her relationship with her ex-alcoholic mum, Bonnie, adroitly played by Allison Janney.

With gritty storylines about alcoholism, teenage pregnancy, cancer, homelessness, domestic violence and death, it's not your usual comedy fare, but it's been a challenging and rewarding role for Faris.

"This show came at the perfect time in my life, because I'd been contemplating a move into television. But I never thought I'd end up doing something as amazing as Mom, playing such a wonderfully nuanced character," she says, excitedly.

"It's truly the best role I've ever had and I feel a sense of ownership with it that I've never felt before, so Mom has been a blessing in so many ways."

Mom is already into a second series and a third has been announced, so Faris now has the security and the stability she has always craved.

"It's a huge relief and an honour to get another series because I love this job so much," she says, smiling.

"Also, now that I've been a part of such a wonderful show, I've stopped trying to prove that I can be a dramatic actress or seeking affirmation from Hollywood because I've come to the conclusion that it won't provide me with happiness or satisfaction. Now I'm happy to do comedy and make a complete ass out of myself."

It's proof that being a mum and playing a mum, in Mom, has been a life-changing role reversal for her. Whoever said "mum's the word" was right - especially for Faris.

Season 2 of Mom screens Wednesday nights at 8.30pm on TV2 and repeats Friday nights at 7.30pm.