Paget Brewster Is Enjoying Her Run On ‘Birdgirl,’ But Remains “Very Optimistic” For A ‘Criminal Minds’ Return

Paget Brewster is many things to many people, depending on when they were first introduced to her work. For a precious few early devotees, she was a talk show host in the Bay Area (yes, really), while others first fell for her at the same time Joey – and then Chandler – fell for her on Friends. Truth be told, it could be any number of a dozen different roles, but the one that’s probably found Brewster the most substantial number of fans over the years is Emily Prentiss, unit chief of the Behavioral Analysis Unit on Criminal Minds.

Alas, Criminal Minds closed up shop on CBS in early 2020, and while there have been continued rumblings about the show being revived on Paramount+ in the near future, it still hasn’t happened yet, but Brewster’s still been able to keep busy: in addition to serving as a narrator of the Disney+ documentary series Behind the Attraction and taking on a role in the new indie film Hypochondriac, she’s also been voicing the titular character in the Adult Swim series Birdgirl, which has just kicked off its second season.

Thankfully, even with Paget’s packed schedule, she was able to make time to hop on the phone with Decider, during which time she expressed her love for Birdgirl, revealed how both Behind the Attraction and DuckTales made her cry, discussed the current status of the Criminal Minds revival, and admitted just how much she hates having to audition on tape.

(Spoiler alert: she really, really hates it.)

DECIDER: So what’s going on?

PAGET BREWSTER: Well, I just finished the last pickups for Birdgirl season two. It’s so sad!

Hey, chin up. Maybe there’ll be a season three. You still don’t know.

I hope so. I really hope so. I think it’s even funnier this season, so I’m really excited…and I really hope so!

Well, that first episode of season two… That’s something.

See, we keep going back, and we’ve re-recorded, so now I don’t know which one was 201.

That would be “The Wanky.”

Ah, yes, with the toy and the crazy old Geppetto-style guy?

That’s the one. 

See, I haven’t even seen them yet!

Oh, my lord. I should send you some screengrabs. They’re something. So as far as season two goes, how excited were you that the show had gotten a second-season pickup? 

Well, you told me when they announced it officially. [Laughs.] But we were already recording for season two. Because, you know, it takes a year and a half! So I had known, but they hadn’t announced it, and no one told me that they’d announced it until you did! So after I told my boss, Erik Richter, he said, “Oh, well, they just announced what we knew six months ago!” So I get most of my Birdgirl news from you!

I’m proud to be a source. So did you find that season two gave you a better chance to explore the characters of Birdgirl and Judy Ken Sebben?

Yes! And there is starting to be more of a… [Hesitates.] I mean, I wish I could say I knew what I was doing coming out of the gate. [Laughs.] Because [the character of] Birdgirl started, what, something like 17 years ago on Harvey Birdman? But the differences between Birdgirl and Judy have grown in the writing and just how I’m voicing it. So it’s become more of a split personality, but they know each other. I don’t even know how to explain it, because the show is crazy. The show is psychotic. I hadn’t seen it until the first season started airing, and it’s pretty nuts.

Well, I know in the first season there was a dial that the character of Meredith could use to speak directly to Judy.

Right! So now we’ve just re-recorded a scene where Birdgirl and Judy are speaking to each other in a mirror, because they see each other. So it’s very weird, and they do have a tonal difference in the voice. Judy’s kind of neurotic and makes bad decisions and has to admit to her failings, because she’s constantly failing. Birdgirl, less so. Birdgirl’s, like, “No, I’m doing what I’m doing because I’m Birdgirl.” But they’re both messed-up sides of the same weird coin. But it’s definitely grown, which is exciting, and I’d love to see how bombastic season three could be, because I don’t even know what this season’s going to look like. [Laughs.] It’s out there. No one appears to be worried about, “Oh, don’t make that joke,” or, “We need to be politically-correct about this.” But also, it’s not political. Like, I’ve noticed that a lot of comedies and people are just becoming political. And I just want entertainment. I want to be entertained. I don’t want to think about ideology. I don’t want to be educated on anything. I can make up my own mind by following the news, if I can find an unbiased source.

So I love that Birdgirl is just this bizarre mishmash of characters and problems and inappropriate workplace behavior. I just was so excited reading the scripts, going, “Oh, we’re gonna… I’m gonna say that?” [Laughs.] So I love it. It just makes me so happy. It’s escapist, and it’s what I want entertainment to be, especially when you have the boundless possibilities of animation. So it’s been extremely satisfying, and I’m very sad that we just finished the last pickups. I’m gonna miss ’em!

Well, I will say that, of all the things I expected to see in a summary of an episode, I didn’t expect to read, “Judy discovers her sexuality fifteen years late.”

[Cackles.] Better late than never!

Well, sure.

And there’s more coming. I mean, I can’t tell you, you’ll have to see for yourself, but…there’s a lot coming. There’s a lot coming.

I shall brace myself accordingly. Now, I don’t think you told me this, but I’m pretty sure I read somewhere that you said you’d do a run of the episodes as Judy and then a separate run as Birdgirl.

Yeah, because – first of all – it helps the editors. Second of all, it helps me, because there’s a difference in attitude and vocal tone. It’s just easier to go all the way through as Judy and then go all the way through as Birdgirl. Birdgirl is also more demanding, vocally. She’s doing all the fighting, so all the screaming and tackling and punching… I mean, knock wood, I’ve never lost my voice doing it, but it’s possible. If you have to scream and run and fight, it’s possible to hurt your voice. But everyone’s very aware of it, so whenever I’m recording anything, everyone always says, “Okay, we’re just gonna keep all the screams ’til the end.” So it ends up being easier to do Judy, and then we go back to the beginning of the script to record all the way through as Birdgirl, and then any fighting or screaming we do at the end of the recording session, just in case it makes my voice a little raspy before I do another job. Everyone’s very thoughtful about it.

That’s nice of them. 

Yeah, when you think about how crappy on-camera Hollywood can be—”Oh, no, we’re gonna chew you up and spit you out!”—animation seems very loving, actually. They protect the people. Including the editors! It’s, like, “Oh, this poor editor can’t bounce back and forth between Judy and Birdgirl, so let’s record all of this at once and then record all of this at once…” Everybody’s treated very respectfully and thoughtfully. And nicely!

You’ve been doing quite a lot of voicework lately, and not just as different characters. I really enjoyed Behind the Attraction…not just your work, but the whole series.

Great! And that just got picked up for a second season!

And I knew that, because I heard you mention it on Doug Loves Movies.

That’s right, I did! Yeah, so I think we’re going to start recording the narration for that in December, because they’re going to go interview people for that and talk to all of those Imagineers and artists and get good in-person interviews. I don’t even know if that even would’ve been possible during the pandemic. I don’t think production was working in a way where it was, like, “Let’s fly a crew to this person,” or “Let’s have this person go into a studio.” So hopefully with all of the infections and hospitalizations going down, we can have those same in-person interviews for season two, because I loved seeing all of those interviews in season one. I almost cried in every episode of Behind the Attraction. [Laughs.] And I did cry on several of them! Not all ten, but…I just thought it was so touching, so optimistic, and so exciting. I really enjoyed that show. I’ve been… [Pauses.] Maybe I’m really spoiled. I’ve really been doing stuff I like a lot.

I mean, there are worse things.

No, that’s what I’m saying! I hadn’t even been thinking about it, but now, being older and having gone through the pandemic and looking and going, “Okay, well, what do I want to do? What do I like the most?” I hustled so hard when I moved to L.A. in my twenties, and…I’m not denigrating anything I did, but it never occurred to me to like or not like a job. I took anything and everything. Because I had to learn. I had to learn how to act. “What’s lighting? Where’s my mark?” I didn’t know anything. Acting school doesn’t teach you any of that. So I took every job. Which means sometimes… You know, you’re doing press for a thing that you’re morbidly embarrassed of. [Laughs.] Like, really, it’s a horrible, embarrassing, “I wish I’d never done that, that was a terrible experience, those people were all jerks” thing, but you have to promote it.

Now, please cite those experiences alphabetically by title, if you would.

No! [Laughs.] I’m not doing it! But you can guess. I know you can guess!

Oh, I definitely know at least one of them off the top of my head. 

Oh, yeah, you heard that whole story. No, but listen, life is long, and in a way, I don’t regret any of it, because I had to learn a lot of stuff. I mean, there’s so much to learn, and…I don’t even really know if I knew how to act until maybe the last seven years. [Laughs.] And maybe even that’s being too narcissistic! Because I’m not a very driven, “my body is my instrument” kind of person. I wouldn’t lose 30 pounds to play a role. I just am not particularly actor-ly. I work really hard, and I show up early, and I know my lines, but I’m not… I don’t know, I’m a day worker. I’m not as ambitious as a lot of people. I’m just trying to figure it out!

Well, I know you said you’re not sure if you knew how to act until maybe the last seven years, but a buddy of mine said this to me yesterday, and I think you’ll accept the inherent compliment here: he started watching Huff, and he said he really respected the way you looked so confident in a state of undress. 

Oh, it was… [Sighs.] I think that’s probably the biggest acting compliment I’ve ever received, so please tell him I said, “Thank you,” because it’s terrible. It’s so awkward and uncomfortable. But people were so nice. I think I’d done maybe one scene at that point where I was not wearing clothes. But Huff was a lot of nudity. And I remember being in the makeup trailer… [Hesitates.] Have I told you this story already, about Blythe Danner and I?

You have not!

We were in the makeup trailer, and we were already shooting the first episode of the show, and Blythe said, “Dear, have they given you this one-page topless clause?” And I said, “What?!” [Laughs.] She said, “They want us to sign a piece of paper that says the writer and producers can decide at any time that a scene will require us to be topless. I don’t even know what to say!” And we didn’t sign it. We didn’t have to. We had already signed “no nudity.”

And as it was, I was thinking, “Well, how could they have me naked? I’ve got a teenage son in the house, my mother-in-law is in the house, I’m fighting with my husband… When am I gonna be naked?” And it was a lot. There was a lot. [Laughs.] So that was very sweet of him to say, because I hated that. I really hated it. I don’t like it. Nobody wants to be naked. I mean, if you work out three hours a day, you probably want to show it off. I do not. So I do not.

You’re putting your focus on cooking, I know. 

[Laughs.] I really am! I’m putting my focus on reading my Kindle and cooking. See, that’s not very aggressive actress-ly! I’m not going to keep trying to look like I’m 28. That ship has sailed!

Obviously, Birdgirl is not your first superhero endeavor. I think that honor may go to The Specials, doesn’t it?

I…shot a pilot that I can’t remember the name of that was about superheroes, but it didn’t go. That was before The Specials. But The Specials was released and can actually be seen. [Laughs.] So, yes, let’s say that! I’m not in the big Marvel universe, but I’ve voiced animated DC universe. But I think Ms. Indestructible in The Specials is the only superhero I’ve ever actually played.

When they finally released the film on Blu-ray, I made sure to pick up a copy.

I love that movie. It was great.

And it was an early James Gunn script. Would you say he had his confidence in working with superhero material even then?

Interestingly, I think his entrance to the superhero universe was almost like Spinal Tap superheroes. The vibe of The Specials was, “This is an underdog superhero group.” And because it was confessional and done documentary-style, it was comedic, but it was also, like, what are the failings of these beings? And he’s kept that really wry, smart, funny, sometimes absurdist sense of how people want to see their superheroes. I mean, he’s great. And he just has a gift. Which he’s always had.

As far as your DC animated universe work, you’ve voiced Lois Lane and Lana Lang, but years ago I remember you telling me that there was talk of you voicing the other major “LL” in Superman’s life: Lori Lemaris.

Oh, she was a mermaid, right? Yeah, either they cast someone else or they didn’t end up doing it. I know I was at Comic-Con with Bruce Timm, and he was saying that they were talking about using that character in an animated feature. But I don’t remember what happened!

Speaking of disappointments, it’s unfortunate that DuckTales had to come to an end.

I know. It made me sad. It really broke my heart…and I didn’t know we were recording the final episode when I went in to record it! I went in, and they said [In a bummed-out voice.] “Hey.” And I said, “What’s the matter? What’s going on?” “Oh, you know, we’re not coming back.” “What do you mean we’re not coming back?” I’m just standing there with my purse, wearing my coat, waiting to go into the room. They’re, like, “This is the last episode. And, y’know, we’ve made some changes because we want to leave the audience feeling good about it.” And I’m still, like, “What do you mean this is the last episode?” [Laughs.] I was so confused. I didn’t know what they were talking about! They’re, like, “We’re not picked up.” And I burst into tears! And they were, like, “Nobody told you?” [Sobbing.] “Nobody told me!” Just crying. And then I had to go record this final episode!

Oh, my lord.

Oh, yeah… But those guys are wonderful, and I was really hoping it would keep going. And we kept talking, like, “Hey, wait a minute, now there’s a pandemic and we all know each other. You guys can keep writing, and we can just record remotely! Of course they’re gonna pick us back up!” [Laughs.] “Everybody’s moving pilots into animation, but we’ve already got a show! Of course they’ll pick us up!” Just stupidly optimistic, thinking we were going to come back. But it’s such a solid show. I just talked to Bobby Moynihan this morning. I guess people are making—I don’t know if it’s 3D printing—their own action figures and packaging! And I don’t know if Bobby collects the action figures or something, but he got a Della Duck action figure, and he got one for me! And he sent me a picture of it, but…it’s not a company that makes them. I guess it’s just a person. It’s, like, a hobby, people just making the things. So he got me one! Which was so sweet.

So the status of Criminal Minds coming back as a Paramount+ series… I guess it’s still a “it’ll happen when it happens” situation?

It is! And there are people who have been hired in preproduction, but none of the cast have signed their contracts yet. So I believe that ABC and CBS are still working out a licensing agreement. They have good faith, I believe, that we will be moving forward. We’ve been told, “Visit your family now, because in a couple of months, it’s not gonna happen.” So we’re all very confident that it’s going to happen. But, y’know, nothing is real until you… Well, not even when you sign the contract! Once we’ve shot the first episode, that means that Criminal Minds is coming back. [Laughs.] That’s just how this business is! And it’s all stuff that’s out of our hands. Because we all agreed in November: “Yes, we’re all onboard, we’re ready to sign.” So there’s clearly some other structure that needs to be figured out before we can start. But we’re all very, very optimistic.

In the meantime, let’s talk about Hypochondriac, a new movie in which you play a therapist.

Yes! I think it’s going to be released…probably in a limited run? I don’t know how anything works in the film world. At all. Hang on a  second, I have it here… Okay, so it’s playing July 16 at Outfest here in Los Angeles, and then it premieres in theaters on July 29, and it’ll be available on video on demand on August 5! Now, I don’t go to the theater – I pretty much watch everything at home – but it would be a hell of a film to see in the theater, because so much happens. It’s called an LGBTQ+ thriller/horror film. It’s a psychological thriller. But it’s weird. It is weird. [Laughs.] I mean, I loved it! I really loved it.

It’s based on an actual nervous breakdown that the writer/director had. He is an openly gay man, and he was in a very happy, loving relationship, and because of some childhood trauma, he had a complete mental breakdown that manifested itself in… His body hurt. It was almost, like, was he physically hurting himself, or did he have some condition? So he was going to all these doctors, saying, “What is this? Do I need a CAT scan? Or an MRI? I don’t know what’s going on!” And nobody was giving him any answers. So just to sort of process what he’d been through, he wrote this script…and then his agent was, like, “Uh, this is really good. We can probably get financing for this!” And he was, like, “What? Uh, okay!” And he got an incredible cast. Zach Villa, who I knew from American Horror Story, and he’s an exquisite actor. And Madeline Zima, who’s been around since she was a kid…and she’s still only a kid! But she’s in it, as is Debra Wilson, who’s an amazing voiceover lady, and my friend Adam Busch.

That was right in the middle of the pandemic. And I had worked with Bay Dariz, the producer, who reached out to me and said, “Hey, I’m producing this movie, if you’d hop on a Zoom and talk to the writer/director and see if it’s something you’re interested in…” It was just one day of shooting, and…I didn’t want to. I was, like, “Oh, God, I hope this is a piece of shit. I don’t wanna do anything. I’m too scared of the pandemic.” It was right in the middle of it, no vaccines yet or anything. So I didn’t want to like it…but then I loved it, and I was, like, “Okay, I’ve got to bite the bullet and do it.” And Zach Villa was the only one I knew had been cast at the time, and I love him, so I went, “Argh! He’s so good! I want to be in something he’s in!” And it was a great experience.

It was the whole thing with the masks, the testing, the swabs, and all that, and I was very afraid of getting COVID, as a lot of people were. But I’m glad I did it. It was definitely worth it. It’s a very interesting movie, and it’s really about our healthcare system and how mental illness is treated, and stuffing down trauma to the point where it hurts you. There’s a lot going on, and it’s not a bummer, but watching the movie… As a viewer, I felt like I was going crazy. And there’s a lot of gasps and scares and creepy things, and…I don’t know how they did this, because there was no budget, but it was shot beautifully. I don’t know how they pulled it together, I don’t know where they got this director of photography, but there are just some really interesting effects that they did on a budget that was…the budget for catering on your average TV show! [Laughs.] But it’s a beautiful movie.

Again, I’m so proud of something I did! I’m trying to think if I’ve done anything crappy lately that I should tell you about, because I’m really so excited about Hypochondriac, I’m really excited about Birdgirl, I miss DuckTales, I’m hopeful for Criminal Minds, I’m looking forward to season two of Behind the Attraction… I love doing American Dad, too! And I’m doing another show called Bad Crimes, an animated show with Lauren Lapkus that’s hilarious. It’s spoofing crime shows. So I’m doing a couple of voices on that, and I love that. Captain Fall is an animated show I’m doing that’s coming out… [Hesitates.] See, I don’t know when anything’s coming out, because it takes so long once you do the recording. But Captain Fall is with Jason Ritter, Christopher Meloni, and Bebe Neuwirth. Oh, I love her. That was all done by Zoom, and we’d do table reads and see everybody all over the place.

And I presume there’s also the possibility of you returning for How I Met Your Father‘s second season.

I hope so! I’d love that. Lori’s a crazy mom. I love that. That was fun!

Well, I don’t know if you have another interview after this, but if you do, I don’t want to make you late for that.

No, actually, I have to go audition! I mean, here. In the [recording] booth.

[Fake gasp.] You still have to audition?!

Oh, for animated stuff? Yeah, I do.

I was just kidding. I know full well how most actors continue to audition throughout their careers.

I do. And I’ll just say it: I cannot get an on-camera acting job self-taping. And I’ve studied everything. I just don’t get it. I think I kill in the room. Because my ratio used to be so good!

You’re not the first person I’ve heard complain about that. I interviewed Nelson Franklin the other day, and he was complaining about taped auditions. He was, like, “Yeah, you can do as many takes as you want, you can make it perfect, you can spice it up or whatever and make sure it’s good. But if you’re forced to go into a room, and there’s a bunch of dudes waiting outside also to go into the room, you know you’ve got one shot.”

Exactly! And I’ve studied everything. I’ve looked at every article, I’ve looked at every how-to, I got all the right lights, I dedicated an entire wall to different backdrops, I got all of the equipment, I memorized the lines… I did everything. I think I auditioned for Hacks for six different characters. I get nothing. Nothing! I think – and I’m not trying to be cheeky – I think there’s something about my pheromones. [Laughs.] If you’re in the room with me, I’m doin’ something to you. Because when I auditioned in the room, I would get one out of four jobs. But with taped auditions, I cannot get a job. I auditioned… I mean, I’m going to say 120 times over two years, and not one.

How I Met Your Father, I got that because it was the people I worked with on Grandfathered. Hypochondriac was just an offer. And there were other things that were offered to me that I just didn’t want to do. So there are shitty things that I now say “no” to. [Laughs.] And sometimes they were very good things, but I didn’t, like, want to live in a Motel 6 in Georgia for four weeks in the middle of the pandemic. I mean, my husband can’t cook for himself…and I just want to cook. I just want to cook and watch Top Chef. And animation I can do from here, because we have the studio. But Nelson’s not the only one: I’ve heard it from everyone I know. So all of us now have reached a point where we just say, “I’m not auditioning anymore. Just let someone guess if they think I’ll be alright. I’m not putting myself on tape anymore. It’s pointless.”

Well, I’ll just say that I’m disappointed for you that you didn’t get a role on Hacks, because that’s such a fun show!

I know! Because I love Hacks, and I love Jean Smart, but I’ve watched the show, and I’m, like, “Oh, I would hire Laurie Metcalfe over me… Oh, I would hire Jessica Chaffin over me…” Everything I saw, I was, like, “Yeah, I really wasn’t right for that part.” [Laughs.] But I just kept trying! I would audition for anything. I said that to my agent: “Anything – anything! – in that show, I will put myself on tape for.” Didn’t get it. But probably because I wasn’t right for it. What are you gonna do?

Well, there are other fish in the sea.

There are animated fish. [Laughs.] And I would be very happy to just do Criminal Minds – knock wood – and animation. I love ’em both.

Will Harris (@NonStopPop) has a longstanding history of doing long-form interviews with random pop culture figures for the A.V. Club, Vulture, and a variety of other outlets, including Variety. He’s currently working on a book with David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker. (And don’t call him Shirley.)