New Lioness Roars: Genesis Rodriguez Spills Secrets Behind Josie’s Fiery Intro and Her ‘Hard, Hard Yes’ (VIDEO)
The following contains spoilers from the first two episodes of Lioness Season 2, now streaming on Paramount+.
CIA station chief Joe McNamara has a new Lioness to train, and this kitty has claws.
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Whereas the Season 2 premiere of Paramount+’s Lioness revolved around Joe (Zoe Salda?a) working with a team of “gray guys” to rescue a U.S. congresswoman who’d been abducted by a Mexican cartel, the second new episode was about Joe’s hunt for a new Lioness to acquire intel connecting said kidnappers to the Mexican government (if not also China).
Joe wound up setting her sights on Captain Josephina “Josie” Carrillo, an Army helicopter pilot whose estranged uncle is the leader of the Chihuahua-Coahuila cartel that orchestrated the abduction.
When Joe met Josie, though… words were said, given how the CIA nearly compromised the base from which Captain Carrillo’s outfit operates. The women traded F-bombs, accusations, insults and nearly some punches, before Joe pulled Josie into a nearby office to make her Lioness pitch.
In the TVLine video above, Genesis Rodriguez (The Umbrella Academy), who plays Josie, reveals that the explosive meeting above “was not on the [filming] schedule” for that day, “due to weather, so that was a surprise” for both her and Salda?a to dive into that meaty material on the fly.
Heading into that confrontation not 100% prepared, though, “adds that extra tension of the chess match” between CIA operative and pilot, Rodriguez posits. The result, she attests, was “the greatest day ever,” because “I was there with her, [going] at each each other.”
In the video above, Rodriguez goes on to break down the “Do you love your country?” scene that followed, where Joe simply and repeatedly asked that question before laying out for her recruit what exactly was being asked of her. Josie, though, makes clear that she is well aware of the Lioness program in general — namely, how she’s never met a woman who walked away from her mission.
Assaying Josie’s hesitancy to offer up a simple “yes,” Rodriguez explains, “She absolutely knows that once she says yes, she knows what she signing up for — possibly sacrificing herself. And that’s the choice, that’s the hard, hard yes” that she eventually offers, with a tear rolling down her cheek.
Press play above for much more from Rodriguez, including what it was like being assailed with so many F-bombs, what sort of Lioness Josie will make, and what it’s like to be part of a cast that boasts Salda?a, Nicole Kidman, Jill Wagner and other women of substance.
Want scoop on Lioness, or for any other TV show ? Shoot an email to [email protected], and your question may be answered via Matt’s Inside Line!
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