A funny thing happened on the way to trying her hand at writing: Anne Dudek became television’s go-to guest star.
“None of those things were designed to be what they ultimately became,” explained Dudek on her recent string of Emmy-worthy guest appearances on the likes of HOUSE, BIG LOVE and MAD MEN. “Right before all this happened, I was really excited about writing.”
“I had no idea what [MAD MEN] character Francine Hanson was going be and it turned into something that was a little bit bigger, where at least for that season I sort became a presence in that show. And at the same time, the same thing had happened on BIG LOVE. I had this tiny, tiny little part which was weird and fun [playing Alby Grant’s partner-in-crime, doting wife Lura] and they just sort of kept bringing her back. And then I auditioned for HOUSE where my character was never meant to really be chosen as one of the permanent fixtures on the show. But because people really responded to that character, I was brought back. I think that’s the thing: I happened to pick things that in themselves grew into something more. It wasn’t like all of a sudden I landed all these big roles, I just landed these little things that became more than what they were meant to be which was nice.”
Particularly for the audience, who over the course of the last few seasons has come to the understanding that when Dudek appears on screen, something interesting, to the say the least, is bound to happen.