I was definitely nervous. My nerves were taking over coming in because House is a show that’s been on for eight seasons and these actors have been working together year after year not only just the actors but everybody, the crew. I couldn’t help but to be nervous at first really for the whole thing but to be working with Hugh and just to get to know him as an actor and as a person, he really blew me away. _Odette Annable: House, Dr. Jessica Adams
Odette Annable: House, Dr. Jessica Adams
Actress
By: Kamilah Wallace
Odette Annable made her mark starring in J.J. Abrams’ box-office hit “Cloverfield.” Annable went on to star in the comedy “You Again,” David S. Goyer’s horror-thriller “The Unborn” and the comedy/drama “Operation: Endgame” opposite Zach Galifianakis. She will next be seen in the thriller “The Double” starring Richard Gere and Topher Grace.
Annable began her acting career at age five when she appeared with Arnold Schwarzenegger in “Kindergarten Cop.” After taking time to complete high school and to pursue a modeling career, she landed a starring role in the Jennifer Lopez-produced television series “South Beach.” Annable stars as “Melanie” on the FOX comedy series BREAKING IN. She also played graduate student “Aubrey Diaz” on the critically acclaimed drama “October Road.” Her other television appearances include guest-starring roles on “Brothers & Sisters,” “Life on Mars,” “Monk” and “Quintuplets” and in the telefilm “Remembrance.”
Additional feature credits include “The Holiday,” “Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story,” “Transformers” and “Dear God.” She can be heard as the voice of “Amata Almodovar” in the hit video game “Fallout 3.”
House airs Mondays at 9:00 p.m. on FOX.
You must have been very nervous to work with TV’s most abnoxious Doctor, House?
ODETTE ANNABLE: I was definitely nervous. My nerves were taking over coming in because this is a show that’s been on for eight seasons and these actors have been working together year after year not only just the actors but everybody, the crew. I couldn’t help but to be nervous at first really for the whole thing but to be working with Hugh and just to get to know him as an actor and as a person, he really blew me away. He might be one of my favorite actors that I’ve ever worked with. He’s so generous and so talented and so easy to work with so it’s been a pleasure so far. Hugh is fantastic.
How many episodes will you be doing?
ODETTE ANNABLE: I’m around for most of the season. How many episodes I will actually be in will be determined later. I’ll stick around for a little while.
Was it a major adjustment for you to fall right into this role as a doctor?
ODETTE ANNABLE: Absolutely. I got the script a few days before shooting so I didn’t have time to throw myself into that world but we do have some great researchers on the show and some great medical techs. They’re on hand every single second whenever you need them so I will prepare with them. I will do my own research episode by episode into what we really do because we really don’t know where our characters are going and what we’re going to be doing per episode so we’ll take it on an episode by episode basis.
Is this a challenge for you, learning the medical terms or aspect of the show?
ODETTE ANNABLE: Yes. There are a lot of medical terms that I have to learn and this isn’t the type of show where you can just show up and wing it. You really do need to know your things and prepare so it was very challenging and still is, working on it.
You are very fortunate to be on two of FOX’s successful shows, House and Breaking In? Is this a struggle for you?
ODETTE ANNABLE: Fox is killing me. I’m very excited that Breaking In got picked up but my number one priority right now is House and working on that. So I will be doing double duty at some point. I don’t know when that will be yet. I do think the show Breaking In will start probably early in the new year so we shall see how that goes. I’m willing.
What do you find that is different and intriguing about House?
ODETTE ANNABLE: It’s a little bit different than the one from Kindergarten Cop. I’ve grown. This is actually unlike anything I have ever done, and I feel so lucky thus far in my career not to have been stereotyped. I’ve been able to do a little bit of everything but this is so different. I believe that this is a television show that’s on the highest caliber of writing and acting. I think it’s so flawlessly executed, and it’s been definitely the biggest challenge that I have had yet in my career. And I’m embracing it, and I’m taking it in, and I’m so grateful for the opportunity. The character is so intriguing, and I really love playing her every single day, and I’m just excited just to go along with the journey with the audience basically. It’s a very good thing. It’s very exciting.
Describe the dynamic or relationship between House and Dr. Adams?
ODETTE ANNABLE: She’s used to being really the smartest person in the room, and now she will be the second smartest person in the room, and she knows that when she meets House. She doesn’t have his experience or wisdom or knowledge yet but she’s truly fascinated by him as a doctor. The interesting thing about her is that she’s fortunate enough to be in a financial situation that she doesn’t have to work but she wants to. She’s there to learn. She’s very passionate about medicine and he changes that in her. He revives something that she was maybe losing for a second, and she’s sort of an overachiever with a cause and her cause is to help people. Her relationship with House—they’re going to be playing on that line and towards the end of the first episode you’ll see that they help each other. It will be definitely a very interesting relationship.
Have you any clue where your character is headed?
ODETTE ANNABLE: I wish I could tell you where my character was going and how that will develop but that’s really the beauty of television. You’re going to take the journey with the audience and it’ll be as much of a journey for me as it will be for the audience and we’ll see how that relationship develops. I have no idea where it’s going.
Did you feel welcomed walking on the set of House?
ODETTE ANNABLE: I would have to say, yes. It’s such a well-oiled machine that I was hoping that I could come in and that I was welcomed and to have the dream, and I have. I’ve walked into a group of people that really have just welcomed me with open arms and have some compassion for me because they were right there with me in the first year, the second year so they understand how challenging the show is. And everybody is encouraging, and Hugh Laurie is such a pleasure to work with as well as the other cast members and our executive producers.
Were you shy growing up and how did you manage to get out of that?
ODETTE ANNABLE: I was a very introverted child, and my parents didn’t know how to get me out of my shell so the better option for them was to throw me into the entertainment business, which I think is ridiculous but now it worked out. I was about 4-years-old and a family friend was doing commercials and they thought well let’s see what happens.
What was your first audition like?
ODETTE ANNABLE: My first audition happened to be for Kindergarten Cop and I took that role. I was only starting to learn English at that point. Spanish is my first language, so they made me a speaking character in the movie and I didn’t really know I was shooting a movie. I was just having a lot of fun with 30 kids my own age, and my parents thought well if you want to keep doing this great. If not, no worries, and I really had a great time and I continued to do it throughout the years. I’d still focus on school but my passion really was to act. It was either to be a CEO of a company, which may very well still happen, or to really push through acting and I did. I took it seriously and I’ve been very lucky and I’m so grateful to be on House now.