The Holdovers Interview: Da’Vine Joy Randolph on Her Difficult Co-Star

In Alexander Payne’s period drama, The Holdovers, the film takes place at a New England private school over winter break in the ’70s. Just like the school’s emptied halls, the movie is carried by few performances, but the starring trio has captured audiences’ hearts. Alongside Paul Giamatti and breakout star Dominic Sessa, actress Da’Vine Joy Randolph delivers as Mary Lamb, the head cook. The Holdovers tells the story of a curmudgeonly Ancient Civilizations teacher, Paul Hunham (Giamatti), who’s tasked with staying behind with the “holdover“ students during the holiday break. He finds himself stuck with Angus, a mischievous 15-year-old, forced to spend time together and look past their differences to find what they may have in common. Randolph’s Mary Lamb remains at the school voluntarily, attempting to cope with the recent loss of her son in the Vietnam War. According to Collider’s Ross Bonaime, Randolph manages “to say so much even while saying so little,“ and in an interview with Editor-in-chief, Steve Weintraub, she explains how she captures the weight of her heaviest scenes. In this one-on-one, Randolph shares why the role of Mary Lamb appealed to her when Payne reached out with the script, what her process is when preparing to step into a role, how she finds the headspace for difficult scenes, and which “co-star“ was the most complicated throughout filming. Randolph also talks about other roles she’s most proud of, and why working on Only Murders in the Building has been the best job she’s ever had. #DaVineJoyRandolph #TheHoldovers #OnlyMurdersintheBuilding For interviews, movie reviews, and more visit FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL