Why Myha’la (‘Industry’) is Playing the Long Game

Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso

Lemonada Media

Society & Culture, Film Interviews, Tv & Film

4.8 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 25 September 2024

⏱️ 59 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

For actor Myha’la, the role of a lifetime arrived less than a year out of college. “Lightning struck,” she says, “and in so many ways I have been preparing my entire life to be here.” In this case ‘here’ is Industry’s Harper Stern, a fiercely ambitious New Yorker who has come to London to join Pierpont, a prestigious financial investment bank.

With the season finale of HBO’s breakout hit approaching, we sat down with Myha'la to discuss all things Industry (4:42): how the evolution of Harper can be charted by her changing hairstyles (8:05), her recent pivot into “ethical investing” (10:45), and the Gen-Z qualities she best embodies (14:04). We also discuss the actor’s first experiences singing and dancing (16:00), her time as front-woman of a Christian Rock band (20:30), and a formative experience at her Catholic high school (23:01).

On the back half, Myha’la reflects on her years at Carnegie Mellon (34:55), her views around “method acting” (39:30), the first day on the set of Industry (42:55), the personal investment she’s made in Harper Stern (48:00), a humbling performance never far from mind (53:50), and the ‘picture’ she’d like to paint as an artist in the years ahead (56:50).

This conversation was recorded at Spotify Studios and Pushkin Industries. Thoughts or future guest ideas? Email us at [email protected].

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey there it's Michael Lewis, author of Going Infinite, The Big Short, Money Ball, and Liar's Poker.
0:05.0	On the latest season of my podcast against the rules, I'm exploring what it means to be a sports fan in America,
0:10.0	and what the rise of sports betting is doing to our teams, our states, and ourselves.
0:16.0	I'm heading to Las Vegas and New Jersey and beyond to understand America's newest form of
0:20.7	legalized gambling.
0:22.0	Listen to Against the Rules on America's number one podcast network, IHeart.
0:26.0	Open your free IHeart app, search against the rules, and start listening. Pushkin. You're going to the show. Today to close out our two-part industry miniseries, Myhul. She broke out in 2020 for her
1:18.0	performance as Harper Stern, a self-made ambitious college grad who recently uprooted her life from New York to
1:24.7	London to work in finance. In the latest season of industry, Harper's life is
1:29.4	dramatically upended as she transitions from working the CPS desk at Pier Point to becoming a glorified
1:35.5	assistant at Future Dawn, a self-proclaimed ethical investment fund.
1:40.1	As I mentioned on Sunday's episode with Ken Leung, who plays Harper's former boss, Eric Tao,
1:45.4	the frayed relationship between Harper and Eric is the one that I think best anchors the show.
1:51.5	It's a dynamic that still in season 3 continues. the Some of the ideas industry continues to circle, the perils of ambition, how class is often felt but not spoken,
2:08.0	and when it feels like to try to make something of yourself in your 20s,
2:12.0	when you don't have a backup plan or a safety net.
2:16.0	These are ideas, my holler herself, growing up with a single mother in San Jose, told me she understands
2:22.3	all too well. And so we get into the parallels between her and Harper. We also talk about her
2:28.1	years at Carnegie Mellon and why she believes when it comes to acting, process is personal.
2:34.2	To that end, if you haven't listened to part one of our industry mini-series featuring
2:38.9	actor Ken Le Young, you can do so wherever you are listening to this right now. I also want to note that
2:45.1	we will be back with another new episode this Sunday who will be with an actor
	...

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