Oscar nominee Rosie Perez has been making star turns on TV and in movies for several decades now, and has never come across as someone who's unsure of what her next move will be. When she was asked to take on a role in Kaley Cuoco's new HBO Max series The Flight Attendant, she originally said no, and is now opening up about why she didn't want to join the show.
The HBO Max dark comedy The Flight Attendant managed to secure itself some good buzz simply by being announced as the first show to star Kaley Cuoco after her 12 season run on the meghit sitcom The Big Bang Theory. But, once reviews and audience reactions started to roll in, it became clear that Cuoco had chosen a great project with which to align herself, as many have raved about not only her performance, but how the show balances the mystery and comedic elements.
Rosie Perez, who plays one of Cuoco's friends in the series, is now talking about why she turned down her eventual role of Megan Briscoe several times. And, it's something that I bet a lot of people will be able to understand. Perez recently told Collider:
Well, I loved the material and I really did want to do it, but I hate flying. I hate traveling. I hate the whole thing. I’m over 50 and I like to stay home. So, I was like, ‘Nah, I’ll pass.’ And she insisted on meeting with me. I was like, ‘No.’ They were like, ‘She’s not taking no for an answer.’ And so, I met with her and I guess they didn’t tell her why, they just said that I passed. She said, ‘What is it?’ I said, ‘Well, I hate flying.’ And she goes, ‘You do know it’s called The Flight Attendant?’ I said, ‘Yeah, I know.’ She goes, ‘Oh, my God, you have to do Megan. You just have to do Megan. You have to do this character. No one else will do. No one else.’ She goes, ‘What are your other concerns?’ And I said, ‘You know, I’m a professional, honey. I don’t like to waste time. When I get to work, I’m on my mark and I’m ready, set, go. I can’t stand people who mess about.’ And she goes, ‘Oh, you’re speaking my language.’
Wow. It's a good thing that Kaley Cuoco, clearly, really wanted Rosie Perez on The Flight Attendant badly, or else it wouldn't have happened at all, and it would have just been because Perez hates everything to do with flying. Well, OK, not just flying, apparently, but all things dealing with traveling and not being at home, which I would think makes being an actor sorta difficult in general.
Luckily, though, Cuoco decided that saying no wasn't going to be such an easy option for Perez, and was able to convince her to meet so they could try to hash out whatever issues she was having with the story or what was to be Perez's part in it. Cuoco was able to talk Perez into doing it, so it sounds as though it turned out to be the best move for both.
The Flight Attendant focuses on Kaley Cuoco's Cassie, the titular flight attendant with a wild streak who finds herself in a heap of trouble when she dallies with one of the first class passengers and wakes up to find him dead in bed next to her, but with zero idea of what happened and whether or not she actually did the dastardly deed. As she tries to figure out what happened, she relies on her family and friends, including fellow flight attendant Megan, to help her get through.
It's great that Rosie Perez was already fully on board with the basic story of The Flight Attendant, because if she hadn't been, I doubt that even meeting with Kaley Cuoco and finding out that they seem to have the same work ethic would have been able to change her mind about joining the series.
You can still catch Rosie Perez in The Flight Attendant, which airs new episodes weekly on HBO Max every Thursday. For more on what to watch right now, check out our guide to fall TV and see what new Christmas movies and specials are coming up!
