The Sinner: Alice Kremelberg Talks Percy Muldoon, Failed Attempts to Solve Past Seasons’ Mysteries

Spoilers

After watching The Sinner Season 4 Episode 1, it’s impossible to imagine anyone could play Percy Muldoon as beautifully as Alice Kremelberg.

She makes connecting with Bill Pullman as Harry Ambrose effortless, and if you know how he plays Harry, you know that takes some skill.

We had the chance to chat with Alice about many aspects of The Sinner and what you can expect as the story unfolds.

Alice Kremelberg in The Sinner Season 4 Episode 1

What was your knowledge about The Sinner before you got the part of Percy Muldoon?

Oh, I was already watching and a fan. Yeah, I loved the first three seasons and really love how different they all are. So I definitely was a fan before I got the part, so that was a nice treat.

Yeah, that makes it a lot more fun.

Yeah. Yeah. I had to re-watch it to make sure I knew everything.

Oh, good, good. You’re right that every season feels different, and this one has a very unique genre feel to it. How do you think fans are going to react to this new location?

It’s so different, so hopefully, everybody is excited by a new location. I mean, we shot in Lunenburg in Nova Scotia. It’s supposed to be Maine, but it’s such a beautiful picturesque fishing town, and we really just felt so grateful to be there. It’s such a beautiful location. So yeah, I really hope that people are excited by seeing a new location.

And first of all, they’re surrounded by water and everything.

The Bluff - The Sinner Season 4 Episode 1

Oh, yeah. It’s so beautiful.

Yeah. And there’s all those really colorful houses and everything. It feels like a set, and it’s just the most beautiful town.

Was it as idyllic filming there as it looks on the screen?

Yes, absolutely. I mean, I was in New York during all of the last few years and during COVID and everything. This was the first job back, and it was in the most beautiful, nature-filled place. It was just a really welcome change.

It looks like someplace I’d want to visit.

Yeah. I’d like to get back and do something else. For about three weeks out of quarantine, we were able to go out on the lobster boats and really kind of get a sense of going lobster fishing and pulling up the traps and learning about the town.

I was kind of surrounded by water and kind of tucked away. It’s such a beautiful place to be and study and work. And then it kind of felt like a vacation work trip.

Oh, sure. There’s a scene in the premiere where Percy is on the water and kind of explaining how it has a personality of its own. Did you experience that while you were there?

Absolutely. Yeah. I mean, I’ve always been very connected to water and grew up by the water, as well, on Long Island in New York. And so, that was a kind of an easy thing to drop into. But I was lucky enough to be close to where that scene takes place. And so, I asked Derek [Simonds], the showrunner, I was like, ‘Do we know where this is shooting yet?’ A few weeks out. And he was like, ‘Yeah, it’s right here.’ And I was like, ‘Great.’

It’s a small town. It’s an easily walkable town. And so, I would kind of go there when I was working through the scene and stuff and just sit there and listen to the water and kind of meditate and take it all in.

It’s such an easy thing to drop into. There were moments filming the scene with Bill, who’s incredible, as everybody knows, where I would say the line, and then the waves would crash, or the birds would chirp. And we were looking at each other kind of knowingly like it speaks to us now. You know?

Alice Kremelberg Attitude

Oh, that’s so cool. Percy is at the root of the season’s mystery, appearing to walk off the edge of a cliff while Harry watches. What’s your take on this troubled girl?

I mean, it is the beginning of the mystery for sure. And we’ll see in the future episodes, slowly, piece by piece, what is happening with her and she really is a complex character and is dealing with a lot, is dealing with a lot of grief and guilt and a heaviness of depression and all these things kind of going on, trying to confront a lot.

And we see her try to work through that throughout the season.

It’s a really exciting character to play, someone who has so many layers that we get a kind of glimpse of throughout the season, seeing each new part of it and how she’s dealing with everything, one way or another. She kind of tries and fails a lot. So she feels really human to me, so that was awesome to get to work on her.

Well, I was going to ask, she’s so enigmatic, especially at the beginning, so what did you focus on of hers to bring her to life? What traits did you feel?

It’s interesting because we go back through time, and we’ll get to see a lot more in the next few episodes. But in each period of time that we see her, it’s a completely different face of this person — same person, different circumstances.

And then we also get that tease at the end of this first episode, which is the figment Percy. So there’s a lot of different versions of this character. And the first scene, you were saying that she’s enigmatic and sure that it all wasn’t one thing, right?

So we’re seeing her in all these different aspects of her life. And in that first scene that we played with, and we did some takes that were a little bit more weighted, or heavier, or slower.

Alice by the Fire - The Sinner

And this take, I remember, kind of post was like a bit more covering. You know? There was more of a mask, and I think we’ll ring more as the season continues. What I like to think about with this scene and how it ended up was the kind of how much we don’t know about this person. And that goes both ways for Percy and for Harry.

There’s such a full life that we don’t know what’s going on when we first see them together. And they’re both really struggling with so much and trying to face their own demons. And on the surface, it might be harder to tell.

And that I think is something we hear a lot and it’s helpful to carry around during life of like you never know what’s going on beneath the surface, and people can be really good at hiding those things that they’re struggling with. So it’s a little bit of a song to mental health and the anxieties and depressions that people are holding.

Do you think that even though Percy was carrying a mask and trying to play off her issues that Harry connected to her nonetheless and could see through that mask?

Oh, yeah.

Save Me - The Sinner Season 4 Episode 1

And that’s kind of what bonds them, I think.

Yeah. I think regardless of the mask that she can play with, they both have this understanding of gaps within each other and recognize a kindred spirit and a mirroring of sorts.

It’s the link that Ambrose follows, and a reason why I think he gets so wrapped in this case is that he really feels connected to her.

Whenever she walks to the end of the cliff, and she looks behind her, how do you think things might have been different if she had seen that Harry had followed her?

Oh, that’s a great question.

Not if he had reached out, but if she had seen him. You know what I mean? Especially after that initial connection.

Yeah. Yeah. It really may have veered the entire season off course. [laughs] I’m trying to be cautious and answer this without giving too much way. That’s a moment that we’ll come back to throughout the season — what is Percy looking at? What does she see? What’s happening in that?

And so, it takes until the very end for us to really know what’s going on in that moment. But I think it would be safe to say that if she did see Harry, there may have been a different outcome.

Percy at a Nightclub - The Sinner

And I really enjoyed the scenes that you shared with Bill Pullman. Of course, they’re great. But the whole cast is spectacular. What was the dynamic like on set? How were you all getting along?

Oh, my God. Everyone was amazing. I mean, we bonded, and we were in a very hard time like it still is now. We were lucky to one have a job to begin with, but also kind of stuck in this really beautiful place together. And we were testing three times a week and really safe, with all the COVID stuff.

And we were able to have extra time and rehearse and these moments. And Frances [Fisher] and Neal [Huff] and Michael [Mosley] and everybody. Everybody’s energy was so happy and grateful to be there. And everyone fit their characters so well.

It was really amazing to build these families out and seeing some of the sibling stuff that Neal and Michael have. And Frances is just such a powerhouse. So like getting to see all the things that I’ve missed and seeing David [Huynh] and Cindy [Cheung] and Ronin [Wong] have their family scenes, like all these things, you’re not there when they’re shooting. So amazing.

And we got to have real time together. So that was a really special experience that came out of a really difficult time because we were such in a bubble, when we were there, not being able to see anybody else. And so, it really did feel like a kind of an amalgamation of a theater piece. That was so neat, getting more time and things that you don’t usually get with TV.

Alice Kremelberg in Red

I’m going to be speaking with Michael Mosley after you actually, and then I’m going to talk with Frances next week. So I was wondering, what do you think I should ask Michael? And what should I ask Frances?

I think Michael and Neil had such a great connection. There’s a fun dynamic playing out. So you can ask Michael … You can ask them both a similar question. You can ask Frances who your favorite son is?

Okay.

She’ll get a kick out of that. And Michael, you can ask him one of two things. There was a lot of physical blocking fights. So you can ask him something around that. I forget what episode it is, but I pull him off in a fight. It’s in the trailer, so I’m not going to anything away.

I pushed myself into that. I was like, ‘Can I break up the fight? I think Percy would break up the fight.’ [laughs] I kept trying to make sure that she had agency. [laughs] But yeah, you can ask Michael’s favorite moments working with Neal because I think they had some really special moments together.

Alice Kremelberg attends the "Orange Is The New Black" Final Season World Premiere

And do you have any special moments with Michael? What was your dynamic? You were playing a close uncle and niece.

Yeah. Michael was amazing to work with. He has almost a bottle episode in episode four. We had little bits before that, but that’s when we really got to work together more deeply, and that was so fun. It felt so at ease working with him. He’s such a pro.

As people start watching, they’ve just watched the premiere, and they’re going to start formulating opinions on the mystery, of course, how far off the mark do you think those early opinions are going to be in correlation to the end?

I’m so curious about that; I can’t lie because I’m such a person who guesses everything. I mean, not correctly, but I try. [laughs] And knowing what I know, I’m like, ‘What are they going to know? Where are the clues?’

So I’m really curious about people who are going to pick up on it. Or if they do pick up on something, I think it’ll only be a half-truth, if that makes sense. Hopefully, the way they’ve structured it — they’re so great. So there’ll definitely be many, many surprises. I hope people are off. I hope people are far, far off.

Alice Kremelberg at 2019 Ask for Jane Premiere

How far off were you in the three seasons? Doing your own sleuthing while watching the first three seasons, how close did you come to ever figuring things out?

Oh, oh my gosh. I think I was off every time. I was so far off, I was like, ‘Something’s up with this.’ And then I’m like, ‘Oh, no.’ Yeah, yeah. I think I guessed wrong every time, so hopefully…

People follow in your footsteps?

[laughs] Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. And finally, how would you describe The Sinner Season Four in three words? Oh, my goodness. Oh, gosh. I’m so bad at these. If it’s all in one go, I’ll say, ‘Everyone’s a sinner.’

That’s perfect.

Alice Kremelberg at Ask for Jane Premiere

What’s coming up next for you?

I’m just kind of recuperating a bit. I’m working on some of my own stuff and reading and stuff like that. And then just refreshing and getting back to the grind, as they say. But yeah, I’m looking at creating some stuff myself as well and moving slowly. So we’ll see. But I’m really excited to see how this all unfolds.

Well, yeah. And as you know, it’s a very popular show, so it’s going to be fun, watching it all play out, I’m sure, from your perspective.

Yeah. I can’t wait. I can’t wait. I hope everybody likes it!

The Sinner airs on USA Network on Wednesday nights at 10/9c.

*This interview was edited for content*

Carissa Pavlica is the managing editor and a staff writer and critic for TV Fanatic. She’s a member of the Critic’s Choice Association, enjoys mentoring writers, conversing with cats, and passionately discussing the nuances of television and film with anyone who will listen. Follow her on Twitter and email her here at TV Fanatic.

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