Jane Seymour on Ben and Kate: Playing the Most Inappropriate Mother on Television

On January 7, 2013, FOX held a press call with Jane Seymour ahead of her guest appearance on Ben and Kate, airing January 8 at 8:30 p.m. Seymour plays "Wendy," the outrageously inappropriate mother of "BJ" — the scene-stealing character played by Lucy Punch. The episode marked Seymour's first appearance on the series, with producers already discussing a recurring role.

Meet "Wendy"

"Wendy is very competitive with her daughter and she's always putting her down," Seymour explained. "She points out things about BJ — like the fact that she has big shoulders and looks like a statue. BJ comes right back at her and refers to her mother as a 'cat.' Her mother tries to outdo her daughter at every possible occasion." The character's most defining quality, however, is her complete lack of maternal instinct when it comes to men: "Wendy has a habit of coming on to pretty much anyone that comes around — any guy, including, inadvertently, Buddy, who is seeing BJ. She thinks nothing of getting involved with BJ's men. In fact, she's done this in the past and doesn't understand why her daughter would find anything wrong with that."

Seymour described the character with evident relish: "There's nothing remotely motherly about her. She's a bit of a piranha really. She'll do whatever suits her. She's not terribly concerned about BJ at all. She's pretending to be a mother — she's acting the role."

How she got the part

The casting came together through a convergence of connections. Rob Corddry, who plays "Buddy" on the show, had recently worked with Seymour and suggested her name. "Apparently they said, 'Oh, we've just hired her.'" At the same time, Lucy Punch — who plays BJ — turned out to be a friend of Seymour's daughter, and had also recommended her. "The producers hired me before everybody put their ten cents in, but it was nice to know that everyone around them was trying to get me the job anyway."

On comedy — and why it has to be real

Seymour has been doing comedy since Wedding Crashers opened the door, and she's clear about what makes it work: "With comedy, it's got to be real. If it doesn't come from a real place then it really isn't funny. There has to be a reality to whatever it is you're doing and it has to make sense to your character. Even if it is the most bizarre behavior on the planet, it's got to be completely normal to the person playing it." She praised the show's writing as the foundation for the improvisation that the cast layered on top: "It's so well written to begin with that when you improv, you're improv'ing on what they already have going there." Of Lucy Punch specifically: "She's got this really droll, dry way of talking. We could have gone on forever. We could have improv'ed a whole episode easily."

What's coming up

Seymour used the call to preview several upcoming projects. Freeloaders — premiering the same night as the call — is a comedy based on the true story of Adam Duritz of Counting Crows, whose friends spent seven years living in and partying at his Hollywood Hills home while he was on the road. Seymour plays a Beverly Hills real estate agent hired to sell the house. Lovestruck, due in April, is a musical in which she sings and dances to a Lady Gaga number and plays a choreographer, alongside Chelsea Kane and Sara Paxton. And later in the year, she plays a grandmother in the new American Girl film. She also mentioned a recurring role on Franklin & Bash was being discussed, after receiving a text from the show's creator the week prior.

Jane Seymour's episode of Ben and Kate — "Reunion" — aired on FOX on January 8, 2013.

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