Catherine Lough Haggquist Talks ‘Motherland: Fort Salem’ Season 3 and What She’ll Miss Most [Interview]

It’s always sad when a TV series says its final goodbye, and that feeling is incomprehensible for the fans and cast of Motherland: Fort Salem. For Catherine Lough Haggquist, who plays General Petra Bellweather, the series is a setting where she found a new family and immense joy.

Motherland: Fort Salem Season 2 saw the introduction of the Camarilla, the beginnings of the Great War, and an anti-witch concoction created with the intent to eradicate witches from existence.

By the end of the season, the leading trio escapes the confinement of the government via the help of friends and family, Alder returns to the mycelium, and Petra has a newfound ranking as General.

The finale also saw a heartfelt goodbye between Abigail (Ashley Nicole Williams) and Petra before the Unit’s unfortunate departure for safety. Petra’s entire world is her daughter, so it’ll be difficult for her to navigate this season without that sense of connection.

I recently had the chance to speak with Catherine Lough Haggquist about her role as Petra Bellweather and her character’s struggles this season and what she’ll miss most about the series.

Motherland: Fort Salem Season 3 is currently airing on Freeform, and we’ve seen Petra’s struggle first-hand. “She goes on quite a ride because, you know, she finally gets the job she wants, and then the whole world falls apart,” Haggquist said.

“There’s not only the balancing of that responsibility, but also the concern for her daughter, family, and the implications of all of it. So, she doesn’t have any days off. She is fully engaged from the minute we start all the way through.”

Motherland: Fort Salem Season 3 Episode 2, “The Price of Work,” sees Petra venture down a risky path that cost Alder her leadership in the previous season. In fact, we see Petra tell Anacostia that if she starts to go too far, Anacostia must put her in check.

Could this be a sense of foreshadowing for Petra? Haggquist doesn’t think so.

“Petra’s strength is also her clarity around the code of what she’s supposed to do. I think the struggle she would have had to send Abigail away, knowing what’s going, would have been torn right up to that line, if not slightly across it.”

“But I think she is also very aware of how to play the game, which is how she’s gotten to the level she has. She abides by her code, but she is challenged and tested. I think she is at her core who we’ve known her to be,” Haggquist continued.

“The Price of Work” also allows viewers to get another glimpse at Minerva Bellweather (Liza Huget). Haggquist says that with Abigail gone, viewers will get a sense of evolution in Petra and Minerva’s relationship this season as they navigate the challenges ahead.

For Haggquist, the appreciation for Eliot Laurence’s (Creator) allegorical writing style and ability to create interpersonal dynamics in the series that directly correlate to our current circumstances is extensive.

“At every step throughout this journey, I’ve been aware of how much, from the masks to using our voices as women, and the iconography — it’s so relevant to our current state. That’s part of why I’m so grateful for having been a part of this world in general. There’s so much value it adds to the conversations we’re having, informing people about options, and how to navigate these difficult conversations and spaces.”

“I also think it is a cautionary tale to what happens when these things go unfettered, unchecked, and can be a clear and present danger. There are more parallels to come,” Haggquist said.

Haggquist and the cast couldn’t help but be shocked at how much was written, filmed, edited, and released in sync with the tragedies happening in our country.

“It also makes you aware that there’s nothing new under the sun. With those of us who don’t learn from our history, we are doomed to repeat it. We need to learn and evolve past these sticking points in our politics, social evolution, the way we treat each other, and in our diversity and inclusion efforts.”

Many series don’t get the opportunity to tell a complete story without being abruptly canceled beforehand or canceled midway into their season. Thankfully, Freeform gave Eliot Laurence the heads up, allowing the writers to create a fitting ending.

“Whatever happens, I can’t help but be super grateful that Motherland: Fort Salem will be a complete experience for people and invite people to explore us five to ten years from now. And hopefully, the elements of Motherland: Fort Salem remind them of the battle days from a new vantage point where we’ve learned those lessons and are doing better.”

“But if not, then hopefully it does the job it’s doing now, which is inspiring people to confident bravery, using the power in their voices, standing up for what’s right, to being inclusive and diverse for all people, and try to leave the world better than they found it,” Haggquist said.

The female empowerment and diversity within Motherland: Fort Salem has been one of its highlighting features since day one.

From the leading trio to Petra, Minerva, and the biddies, there’s a multi-generational representation that isn’t put in a specific box. And they all play a critical role in the story. This is one aspect that has stood out to Haggquist during her time on other sets during and after the filming of Motherland: Fort Salem.

“You see a world where these people exist, function, have roles, responsibilities, and value. To me, that has been so incredibly meaningful. We are not supplemental to anybody else’s story; we are the story. And it was just an amazingly powerful experience,” Haggquist said.

Not only is Petra Bellweather the General of Fort Salem, but she’s also a full-time mother. Being able to showcase the complicated nature of being a working mom and Petra’s perseverance is a highlight for Haggquist.

“I think Petra was written to be struggling with it and that it wasn’t easy for her. Just because she ascended to this place didn’t mean it wasn’t without its next-level challenges when she reached these goals,” Haggquist said.

“There was never a magic moment where everything just worked out for Petra, and there wasn’t an easy moment where it all just worked out, or someone swept in to save her. She just had to keep going. I’m proud of being an example of that and not fictionalizing the ease of motherhood.”

Being a part of a series like this is such a memorable experience, one that Haggquist will never forget. “I loved going to work every single day. I loved the laughter, the challenges of the work, seeing the growth over time of our younger stars into these amazing women on screen and in life. It’s just it’s been such a gift for me as a person.”

“And I think it’s shaped my acting, my teaching, and my mentoring of younger actors. It was literally a life-changing experience. I’m walking away with friends who will be by my family for the rest of my life, and you can’t beat that. To be making old friends at this point in my life is now a real, meaningful gift that I am very present in appreciating,” Haggquist continued.

One significant benefit to being part of the Motherland: Fort Salem family is the outpouring of love from fans from all over. Haggquist says it’s an experience she could appreciate thanks to her first intensive fan interaction, which began with the series Once Upon a Time.

While Haggquist is only in that series briefly, it opened her eyes to just how vital minor roles can be and the impact they’re able to make. It was her first fan convention for Once Upon a Time in London that allowed her to experience the reality of fandom for the first time.

“That realization, in terms of — it’s not about you as an actor, it’s about the story you’re contributing to — made me ready to receive the love and appreciation from the Motherland: Fort Salem community because I knew how to contextualize what we were creating and that they were part of this world.”

“Switches are part of the Motherland: Fort Salem community. They are part of this story. I appreciate them for making this experience for me such an enriched one because of their messages, words, and memes,” Haggquist said. “It’s such a gift because it hits in a different way and has made my life more joyful because of those interactions.”

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*Featured image credit: Kristine Cofsky Photography

Motherland: Fort Salem airs Tuesdays at 10/9c on Freeform.

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