Sigourney Weaver had an icky alien burst out of her chest, so a chilly Royal Oak afternoon is nothing. Several days after our phone interview, where Weaver was shooting in the setting for the Griffith family home, she wrapped herself in a hoodie and did some warming-up exercises for the pride parade scene in the Lifetime drama, "Prayers for Bobby." She's lit up the silver screen as part of the "Alien" and "Ghostbusters" series, but this is the actress' first made-for-TV film. To speak with us, she broke from a daunting (and pretty impossible) task: Turning her gay son into – gasp! – a straight man.
What scene are you shooting today?
Well, today we're shooting the scene where I send my husband and two sons, including Bobby, off hiking – which I hope will be the manly experience that turns him around. It doesn't work, needless to say (laughs).
Where are you guys shooting?
I'm not sure (laughs). But it's not a secret, I just am not sure of where we are. We're somewhere around Birmingham.
What initially attracted you to 'Prayers for Bobby'?
I have many gay friends, my daughter's godfather is (playwright) Christopher Durang, and some of them had more receptive parents than others, but it was not easy for anyone – and it continues, in certain parts of the world, especially, to just be painful. Kids are thrown out, they're condemned, they're "cured" and it's just – it takes a lot of grace for the un-gay people to guide their family through this and a lot of work on the family's part to sort of get over whatever preconceptions they have.
I mean, it's cuckoo to me that it's against the law for homosexuals to be married; that to me is against the Constitution. I can't believe that people in the Supreme Court, who are supposed to be the wisest of all of us – it's just like slavery; it's the same thing.
I think it's terrible … it's so much worse than a scandal, because it kills people all the time. … It's a tragedy that we're not further along. I just hope President Obama will come in and set them straight.
When's it been like shooting in Michigan?
I love it. I'm so glad we were brought here. Our crew is fantastic. The people taking care of us here couldn't be more lovely. It's such a beautiful part of America and I hope I get to come back here and work on something else.
Any good finds, like restaurants, while you've been in Michigan?
Oh, my dear, we're kind of ball-and-chained to this set, but I hope to come back – and any recommendations I'd love to have.
