Byrne back for revenge in Damages

By Neil Smith Entertainment reporter, BBC News

Australian actress Rose Byrne has been reunited with Glenn Close for the second series of legal drama Damages, starting on BBC One on Saturday.

Warning: this article may include plot spoilers.

Bryne plays an ambitious protege who works for Glenn Close's Patty Hewes

Set in the cut-throat world of high-stakes litigation, US drama Damages gripped millions of viewers when it first aired in the UK last year.

Revolving around the compelling figure of Patty Hewes, a New York attorney who will stop at nothing to win a case, the show won three Emmys and a Golden Globe for its acclaimed first season.

Two of those awards and several others went to Hollywood veteran Glenn Close for her powerful performance as the ruthless, duplicitous Patty.

Just as central, however, is her ambitious protege Ellen Parsons, who survived a murder attempt and the death of her fiance over the course of 13 eventful episodes.

When we see her at the beginning of Season Two she is hell-bent on vengeance, working with the FBI to bring Patty down.

"She's become a warrior in a way," says Byrne, the 29-year-old who plays Ellen. "She's steely and brittle and broken.

"It was almost like being in a different show this season because she had changed so much.

"Basically, I think she's running on adrenaline. That's what's keeping her grief at bay."

Unsettling

Ellen's rage consumes her so much that she begins having revenge fantasies in which she shoots Arthur Frobisher, the devious billionaire played by former Cheers star Ted Danson.

Close (right) has won several awards for her commanding performance

Her character is convinced he was behind her intended's death and imagines executing him in cold blood.

These violent scenes required Byrne to wield a shotgun, something the petite actress found both painful and unsettling.

"I'm never that at ease with guns to be honest," she says. "I don't have a relationship with them.

"My arm also got sore because it was so heavy; I could never hold it for too long. I'm no Angelina Jolie, that's for sure."

Another challenge the role of Ellen presents is her American accent - one of several the Sydney-born star has had to master over the years.

"I probably talk with it the whole time when I'm on set," she reveals. "I've been doing the accent for 10 years now, so I'm pretty relaxed.

"The only time it's tough is if I'm really tired and it's a very heavy, emotional scene. Then it gets hard."

Threatening

Fans perplexed by the show's fiendish twists may take comfort in learning the actors themselves are often just as confused as they are.

"Often we are kept in the dark, which can be a bit frightening when you are trying to do a good job," admits Byrne.

Byrne worked with Danny Boyle (left) on sci-fi film Sunshine

One scene, for example, sees the actress threatening an unseen person with a gun - a sequence she filmed without knowing to whom she was speaking.

"When we shot it I didn't even know," laughs the star. "The writers hadn't decided yet."

Byrne is on safer ground when discussing her relationship with Close, a friend and colleague she calls "Glenny".

"She is much more my comrade than a mentor," she explains. "She's very much a team player - she's really in there with you."

Byrne feels a similar affection towards director Danny Boyle, with whom she worked on his 2007 science-fiction film Sunshine.

"He's such a lovely guy - really nice and so enthusiastic," she smiles. "I had a great working experience with him."

The British film-maker is up for an Oscar this month for his latest film Slumdog Millionaire, and Byrne could not be happier.

"I'm thrilled for him and all his team," she says. "You must be proud as a British citizen to have him."

The second series of Damages begins on BBC One on 15 February.