Accused Season 2 Episode 6, “Val’s Story,” continues in the style of the anthology series, opening on a criminal defendant and exploring his story through a mix of flashbacks and a court case. In this episode, Val is a mother struggling to recover after a contentious divorce from an abusive ex-husband. When her ex-husband is found dead, Val becomes the prime suspect.
Val is played by how I Met Your Mother and Marvel Cinematic Universe veteran Cobie Smulders, who leads a cast that also includes Dina Shihabi (Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan), Eric Johnson (The Knick) and Kai Kirton. Val’s defense lawyer, Marta, is played by Vella Lovell. Lovell is known for her work on comedies such as Crazy ex-girlfriend and Animal Controlthe latter will soon enter its third season. “Val’s Story” airs Tuesday, November 26 on FOX.
Screen speech I spoke with Accused stars Cobie Smulders and Vella Lovell about their work on “Val’s Story.” The actors discussed how they approached their respective roles in the anthology, the importance of highlighting the issues at stake, and their personal connection to their characters. They also shared some of their favorite moments about working together.
Cobie Smulders and Vella Lovell discuss how to get into character as the accused
Smulders aimed to be as real and respectful as possible, and Lovell flexed his dramatic muscles
Screen Rant: Cobie, this episode represents a version of something that happens all the time and is very serious. Did you feel a sense of responsibility coming into the series and taking on the role of Val?
Cobie Smulders: Of course. Maile Meloy, who wrote and directed the episode, and I had a lot of discussions about how to make this as real as possible and play with the drama of it. It was really interesting to analyze and try to analyze human behavior and the emotion behind it, and the real struggle and PTSD of someone going through this experience. It’s a horrible, manipulative, dark subject, and when going into something like this and portraying someone like this, you want to make it as real as possible and be as respectful as possible. So we were, every step of the way, monitoring that.
Vella, when your character and Val meet, it’s like you’re so pragmatic to the point where we almost don’t know if she believes what Val is saying. What can you say about how your character, Marta, sees what’s happening?
Lovell Candle: It’s interesting. As a defense attorney, the question is, “Do you believe or do you just need to get your client the best possible outcome?” I chose, as an actor, to also believe in Cobie. How can you not? She’s so honest and open, so it was kind of hard not to go on this journey with her. But for me, this whole script – which Maile did an incredible job on – is a kind of domino effect of what happens when you believe a woman who comes forward and says something like this happened to her, and what can happen when the reverberations of it drip.
I guess I could have chosen not to believe her, but I thought it would have been a more convincing choice to simply go on the journey with her. But this has to happen very quickly. [In] that first scene, when I meet her, it’s like you have to get on the horse and go. I think she’s pragmatic, but it’s instinct and she goes with it.
Cobie, as Vella was saying, Val is a very likeable character. You can tell how much she cares and how hard she is trying to be there for her son. Was there an aspect of her personality that you found easiest to identify with?
Cobie Smulders: I’m a mother myself, and when you’re a father, you try to do everything you can to protect your child. I think when Val was in this abusive relationship, the goal was to protect her son, and she got to a point where she said, “Now I have to protect myself and find a way out.” As the law was more on the husband’s side, it was a constant dance after the law and the presence. I think what Val is throwing at her is [that] she used substances to try to stay afloat. Ultimately, this was something of a downfall for her in trying to gain custody of her son. So I definitely identify with her struggle to provide the best life for her child, and I think she’s a very intelligent woman. I’m not saying, “Me too,” but I think there are ways that she’s trying to get out of her situation that are very inventive, but that come from a place of survival, which I can certainly relate to.
Vella, I first came across your work in Crazy ex-girlfriend. You seem like someone for whom comedy comes very easily. What made you want to do something like this, which is basically the opposite side of the coin?
Vella Lovell: What do you mean? I thought it was hilarious [Laughs]. I feel like – I’m sure Cobie can relate to this too – if you use a muscle over and over again, you start to feel really good in that muscle. So as an actor, you think, “There are other muscles I’m not using.” [There are] other parts of the human experience that I think you draw on when you do comedy. I always find my way into comedy by asking, “What’s really real and sad about this?” It seems like it’s the same with drama.
You’re kind of searching… I really tried to find a joke in this episode. I don’t think there are any jokes, but that’s just my sense: it’s like looking for water. You’re looking for comedy in drama and drama in comedy. I was really, to use the water metaphor, hungry to do something that had a different tone, so I jumped at the chance to do that.
Also, Dina Shihabi, who plays Jordan, is one of my old friends from my theater days in New York, which is crazy. This never happens where you act with your friends. It was a real pleasure to experience this with her and meet Cobie, who is so talented and amazing. So, it’s kind of obvious to do something like this as an actor.
Smulders opens up about Val’s relationship with his son’s stepmother, Jordan
Jordan is played by Dina Shihabi
Cobie, I really liked the dynamic between Val and Jordan (Dina Shihabi’s character) in this, and I think that was one of the most surprising parts of the episode. What was it like working with her to create this dynamic?
Cobie Smulders: Honestly, we liked each other right away. It’s hard not to like Dina, so we started a friendship right away, and this happened in the episode where there was something really fun. When I grew up, I had a mother and stepmother, and it’s a very interesting dynamic. So much more than 15 minutes should have been spent explaining this dynamic, and I think Dina and I only had two scenes where we were able to get into this dynamic without coverage of this event happening. I think we started with that in the episode, and it was a really fun energy to play.
There is a lack of communication that happens in the episode between these two characters, and also a lack of perspective on each other’s lives. It was interesting to play this game of “What is your experience? Why are you covering your experience? Why can’t you see my experience? and seeing these two women fight each other and then, in the end, come together was a really wonderful thing to play.
Dina had to carry a lot of things. She had to carry a lot of emotion and a lot of weight from this situation, and she did it beautifully. But it was very easy. It was very easy to act with her and Vella. They are wonderful human beings and fantastic actresses.
Vella Lovell: I don’t know if that’s been your experience, Cobie, but the little experiments or projects that you can do where there’s an all-female team are really cool and special. Especially working on this, it was great to have Maile in the lead.
Cobie Smulders: It’s a really female story and it’s about female relationships. It was great for all of us to be on the same team.
Lovell enjoyed doing her first dramatic courtroom scene
Your reference point? Legally Blonde
Vella, without giving anything away, I feel like the dramatic courtroom twist has been an iconic element of TV and film for decades. Was it fun for you to be involved in something like that at such an important point in the episode?
Vella Lovell: Yes, completely. Of course, I’m a comedy person. I was actually thinking about the Legally Blonde scene, which is… that’s terrible. That’s a terrible reference. But you’re right. There are so many pivotal scenes in the courtroom. It’s almost a trope we know, so it was really interesting. AND [it was] It’s a pleasure to do this with a friend, with Dina, and I feel like we found something I didn’t expect.
When I read it, I thought it would be kind of explosive. I haven’t seen the episode yet, so I don’t know which take they used, but I think the way we ended up going was not super explosive and super A Few Good Men. It was a slightly different path [that] we found, which I think was an interesting approach.
It was so cool and challenging to do a courtroom scene. I had never done one before and we all know them very well. It’s really fascinating to find yourself inside this container and trying to figure out how you’re going to do this and at the same time serve the story.
Smulders and Lovell reflect on working together
“We had an incredible team”
Did each of you have a favorite thing about working together on this episode?
Cobie Smulders: First of all, I love hanging out with Vella, but adding to what Vella just said, it’s really easy to turn an episode like this, which has really high stakes, into this really dramatic, hysterical moment. Because Vella is so talented, and Dina is so talented, we were able to make something that could be a little over the top feel grounded. We had an incredible team to put everything together. We were also all in Toronto, so it was really fun to get out of Los Angeles and hang out and meet these two lovely women.
Vella Lovell: Everything Cobie said. Cobie is so adorable, talented, funny, grounded, and amazing, so it was a pleasure. But I’ll say one thing: Cobie, I don’t even know if you remember, [but] we were thinking about a scene and I gave you this proposal or this idea, and I thought, “That’s a bad idea,” and you said, “Don’t say it’s a bad idea. Suffice it to say, it’s the first idea.” And my mind exploded. That was a really great insight you gave. Once again, being with an all-female team was an eye-opening learning experience – for her, for Dina, for Miley, for everyone. That’s a little nugget I’ll take with me.
About The Accused Season 2
Accused is an anthology series that explores how ordinary people are caught up in extraordinary circumstances. Each episode focuses on a different defendant in court, with the nuances and details of their stories told through flashbacks. The Season 2 cast includes William H. Macy, Ken Jeong, Debra Winger, Mercedes Ruehl and Mike Colter.
Accused season two airs Tuesdays on FOX.