From Savai’i to Hollywood, Frankie Adams has navigated the acting world with a discerning eye for roles that combine power and vulnerability. She’s soon to star in her biggest role yet, as Candy Blue in The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart. Dan Ahwa finds out why she’s one of the
The depressive teen, the sci-fi trooper, the Pacific goddess, the overstayer, the ingenue. At 29 years old, Frankie Adams has lived a thousand lives.
Like the outfits she’s slipped into for this accompanying photoshoot, there’s no hesitation when the New Zealand/Samoan actor assumes a character — whether assigned or harnessed by her own free will.
If you asked her to cry on cue, she’d have no problem turning on the waterworks, so emotionally fraught are the characters she’s collected and tackled over the years.
“I think acting does help you navigate and manoeuvre through your own understanding of the world,” she says speaking over Zoom from her base in LA, dressed in a classic actor off-duty uniform of a simple white T-shirt and black overalls.
“When I did One Thousand Ropes, for example, I didn’t quite have the tools then or the experience to know how to shake off those really emotional scenes. Viscerally you experience them — even though in your mind you know you’re doing a script.”
The nation was first introduced to Frankie as the precocious 16-year-old Ula Levi on Shortland Street in 2010, a New Zealand actor’s rite of passage. After 278 episodes, she eventually graduated to more complex roles requiring an even deeper level of emotional maturity — whether it’s playing Tasha Goodwin, the runaway inmate on the Australian drama Wentworth; or the troubled pregnant teen Ilisa in director Tusi Tamasese’s poignant 2016 film One Thousand Ropes. Then her stint as gunnery sergeant Bobbie Draper in the American sci-fi drama The Expanse, and the terrifying reality of performing live in last year’s theatre adaptation of Tusiata Avia’s formidable The Savage Coloniser Show.
These days, the actor, who studied drama at Auckland Girls’ Grammar School and was trained under the tutelage of revered New Zealand actor Miranda Harcourt, explains she’s been able to turn the tears off as quickly as she can turn them on, undressing the heavy cloak of emotional turmoil at the end of the day that some of her acting choices demand of her — physically, mentally and spiritually.
“You have to quickly become emotionally attuned and vulnerable. When I was younger, I would go home and not know how to feel better. Now that I’ve had more experience, I have more of an understanding of how scripts work, and what my purpose is. I can leave it behind me. Tomorrow is another new day.”
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Advertise with NZME.It’s the type of psychological gymnastics required to play Candy Blue, the name of her latest reincarnation in Amazon Prime’s forthcoming seven-part television mini-series adaptation of The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart.
Based on the compelling 2018 international bestselling novel by Holly Ringland, the series is led by showrunner Sarah Lambert and director Glendyn Ivin, and features an ensemble cast including Alycia Debnam-Carey, who plays the adult titular role of Alice Hart, beloved Australian actors Asher Keddie and Leah Purcell; and acting doyenne Sigourney Weaver, who also serves as one of the show’s executive producers.
Filmed in New South Wales and the Northern Territory in Australia in 2021, the series is faithful to the source material. Centred on the violent upbringing of Alice Hart, a young Alice moves in with her estranged grandmother June (played by Sigourney) after her parents die in a tragic house fire.
June’s role running the Thornfield Flower Farm provides the perfect backdrop to the narrative’s connection with the natural world. Her book of Victorian references for flowers is an alternative language of how to communicate in a world where words are left unspoken. The pendulous Sturt’s desert pea, for example, translates to “have courage, take heart”; and the fiery Grevillea honey shrub translates to “foresight”.
But it’s the farm’s other purpose of providing a safe haven for a group of abused women that offers a real foundation to the layers of embedded narratives unfolding throughout the plotline. One of these women — or “flowers”, as June calls them — is Candy Blue, who lives up to the dichotomy of her name by possessing a light-hearted spirit yet brimming with a dark past, connecting her directly to June’s own painful family history.
“Candy is all of us who have ever been a little person lost, who have stories about where we come from, and the stories are easier to believe than the truth,” explains Holly in the show’s notes. “Frankie walked on to the set and in every step, and literally follicle of her blue hair, she was Candy down to the ground. She really took my breath away.”
Working alongside Holly, Sarah and Glendyn allowed Frankie to channel Candy’s energy with her own interpretation.
“In the book, it was Holly’s version of Candy, which was super-helpful for me when I was fighting for the role because I wanted it so bad. What’s so special about being an actor is that you can put yourself into the character even if it is already established. I think that’s why they cast me initially; they liked my version of her.
“Sarah wrote a whole backstory for me. She was there every day, so if I had any questions or needed any help with some of the stuff that I was challenged by, she always had an ear to listen, a shoulder to cry on. I did a lot of crying. I think we were all really aware that we were dealing with a very sensitive, fragile topic.”
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Advertise with NZME.As for her physical identity, a collaborative effort was made with the show’s costume designer Joanna Mae Park and makeup and hair designer Lara Jade Birch to stay true to the book’s distinctive physical cues.
“She’s described almost like a pin-up doll. It’s the mid-2000s, and we thought what would’ve been cool then was her dressing in clothes from the 60s. It really added to my realisation of her and embodying the character, from her strut to her accent.”
Despite the darker themes of abuse and intergenerational trauma, what does shine through in the series is a glimmer of hope and optimism, both traits essential to survival.
“I really like that you picked up on that. Because while one of the central themes is abuse, it’s also about female resilience, working together to overcome awful tragedy. You do get to see the women win and have these gorgeous friendships. You really see a richness of female connections. I have women in my own life who are different ages and from different backgrounds who have deeply influenced me to become the woman I am now,” she reflects. “So it was amazing to be surrounded by a cast who represent all parts of the rainbow.”
Equal parts maternal and free-spirited, the role of Candy required Frankie to summon as much of that lived experience — especially in one pivotal scene where she is in an emotionally charged argument with Sigourney. Even to an untrained non-actor’s eye, you can’t help but feel moved. It’s arguably one of her greatest acting moments to date.
“Luckily, we had already shot for a few months by the time we got to this particular scene,” says Frankie, who refers to the acting legend simply as “Sig”, “so we really got to know each other. She’s so kind and generous. She knew that scene was about Candy. Sometimes you’re at risk when you’re working with such incredible actors that they aren’t going to be as giving in those moments — but Sig really was. Every take she was listening and really giving me what I needed in that moment. I lost this idea that I was doing it with the Sigourney Weaver. I was just being present in the moment we had. We were all so lucky to have her there and helping everyone thrive, but at the same time killing it herself.”
So do seasoned actors like Sig offer any pearls of wisdom on set?
“One thing — and this is a very ‘actor-y’ thing — but she would always say, ‘I don’t want my scenes to be too sentimental.’ When you get scenes like this, you can so easily indulge and make it more than it needs to be. This is really important when you’re given a script like this; to ask yourself, am I making this too sentimental? Am I indulging? Is it serving the story?’ That was actually one of the scenes that got me this job because it was a callback scene,” she explains, recalling the day she re-auditioned the scene alone in her apartment while recovering from Covid.
“I just felt like that was such an important moment for the character, so my main focus was making sure those years of resentment and shame were on display. I knew it was in me because I generally think I wear my heart on my sleeve and my emotions are very close to bursting at any point. I probably had a glass of wine after it.”
The series is also another example of how Frankie’s deliberate choices in projects are in part based around a script with a wider message.
“At the core of it, I want to be a part of telling really incredible stories. Things that are written so well and acted in a way that, as an audience member, you’re almost transported into the experience and feel it as well. I’ve been fortunate to land roles that truly align with who I am and the sort of kaupapa I want to carry on doing, and how I envision my career to be.”
Another veteran co-star, Leah Purcell, who plays June’s partner, Twig, also left a deep impression on Frankie. Twig’s own sub-plot in the story opens up a much-needed conversation on global prime-time TV about Australia’s dark history of the Stolen Generation, prioritising First Nations stories for an international audience. The show will be available in more than 240 countries and territories when it releases next week.
“Watching her was like a masterclass in acting,” says Frankie. “I felt like her student. She’s a real mama bear. I remember watching Leah’s scenes with her and just sobbing. She’d turn to me and ask, ‘Are you alright, bub?’ I’m like, yeah, are you? Because you’re piercing my soul right now. You really feel for her and how her story is quite common among the Aboriginal community. It’s Twig’s story, and to be a little part of it is such an honour.”
Despite being brought up with her traditional Samoan mother, Frankie has only recently connected to her Aboriginal roots from her father’s side (“our mob is from north of Victoria”), giving her the tools to tap into her own exploration of her heritage as an actor. It’s familiar territory for Frankie, whose previous projects such as One Thousand Ropes, Teine Sā, The Panthers and Savage Coloniser all explore the layers of storytelling connected with her roots.
A back catalogue such as hers is surely integral to navigating Hollywood’s own shortcomings with representation.
At The Hollywood Reporter’s Raising Our Voices event in June, at the very beginning of the Writers Guild of America strike, film director Taika Waititi was vocal about the problem with Hollywood’s diversity issues, calling for the industry to “decolonise the screen”. Frankie is set to star in Taika’s forthcoming film Next Goal Wins, starring Michael Fassbender, Elisabeth Moss, Oscar Kightley, Rachel House and Will Arnett.
“Stop asking us what to do, how to fix things, all right? I’m so tired of this stuff; the diversity conversation, the inclusivity conversation, all the conversations,” explained Taika.
Joining other Pacific faces making waves in Hollywood, including Jason Momoa, Rose Matafeo, KJ Apa and Beulah Koale, does she feel like some of those barriers are finally breaking down? “I would say there’s been a bit of progress,” she says thoughtfully. “I remember early on in my career, if the character wasn’t written specifically as Polynesian, it was almost impossible to get those roles. Nowadays it always feels lovely when I get a role that’s not specifically any race, and the director simply likes my interpretation the most.”
With the release of The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, it does finally feel like Frankie will be receiving her flowers.
“One thing I find incredible is when you remember where you come from and your ancestors. It’s truly grounding.”
She transforms into another character during our shoot, wearing an outfit fashioned from tapa cloth by Vea Masila, as she is guided by arts photographer Hōhua Ropate Kurene on subtle yet graceful hand gestures. This time she is embodying the power and dignity of another storyteller, the mythological Samoan goddess Nafanua.
“This is simply an extension of who I am — but I know it’s not just me. It’s everyone on the island. It’s my mother. It’s my sisters. It’s everyone that has come before me, and everyone who comes after me. The generational and cultural pull will always be very close to me.”
In an age where artificial intelligence has surged to the forefront of Hollywood’s fight for labour rights, it’s even more pertinent to hold on to the values of honouring where you come from and how this is an invaluable part of being an empathetic actor.
“It’s especially important now when you’re doing international projects, because there’s not many of us out there. Whenever there is one of us excelling, we know the journey it has taken to get here, and each individual that makes it in Hollywood is representing all of us.
“When I performed Savage Coloniser last year, being on stage was terrifying; having to stay calm and then perform as if your heart wasn’t beating a million miles an hour.
“Before the cast went on stage, we kept saying how we could feel our ancestors were right there with us. We’d say to each other, ‘Nafanua is with us; our grandparents are with us — they’re all with us.’ They’re all here to have our backs and help us tell our stories.”
This interview was completed prior to the SAG-AFTRA strikes. The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart debuts on Amazon’s Prime Video on August 4.
Photographer: Hōhua Ropate Kurene
Fashion director: Dan Ahwa
Makeup: Kiekie Stanners at Made in Partners
Hair: Vanessa Mitchell at Made in Partners
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