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As a performer, shes been at the center of nearly every kind of movie there is.
Currently, shes on the small screen withBig Little Lies, playing the nemesis of Reese Witherspoons character.
Credit: Miramax/Everett Collection; Paramount/Everett Collection
Ironically, the two were kin inWild, where Dern played Witherspoons mother.
For Dern, her role as Ruth Stoops in 1996s abortion satireCitizen Ruthstands above and apart in her filmography.
Ive never fallen in love with a character more, she explains, laughing.
There was not a scene where I wasnt barfing or fing or vomiting or burping.
I was just a disgusting mess!
She credits Payne for his confidence in the material, and in her far-out performance.
No one had laid the rules out yet, you know?
Hed made his thesis film at UCLA, but this is his first professional feature.
He put his trust in Ruth.
He loved her, and he believed in her, and she could no wrong for him.
Theyre real symbiotic characters, she laughs.
But Dern sees some potential in the pairing of herCitizen Ruthlayabout and Witherspoons machiavellian politician.
I wanna do a sequel, Dern says.
Tracy Flick and Ruth Stoops in a heist, or a road picture.
because they are the biggest sshow in town, man!
