ON THE SET OF SUITS | GINA TORRES (JESSICA PEARSON)

When you saw the script from 5/10 and saw what was going to happen to Mike, did you wonder immediately, “Am I the one that turned him in?”
Yeah. We’ve all sort of had these little secret fantasies about what our characters would and wouldn’t do. And why wouldn’t Jessica set fire to the house? Nobody listens to her anymore anyways. It’s a little frustrating.

How soon into the back six do we find out who turned Mike in?
Very soon. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It’s not who you think it is.

How does his arrest affect Jessica and the firm?
Oh God, all bets are off. Basically, what happens is everyone … It’s a very human thing. What plays out over these next 6 episodes is everyone starts aligning themselves, just in terms of survival, just for survival. Where are your loyalties, who do you love, who have you been with the longest? There is no … It’s just so emotional. These are very cerebral, very cunning, very intellectual people. They’re chess players. What happens is it’s a very emotional six episodes because everything’s on the line.

Jessica just found herself almost ousted from the company itself. Jumping into something like this, what’s her train of thought handling something as big as this?
She is blindly trying to save her firm. That is what she’s trying to do. What was wonderful for me is in that last episode, I think it was 5/10, you really got to see her sacrifice. I think Jessica’s sort of been in this ivory tower. It’s a little bit of any ivory tower for 5 seasons where she’s just kind of gliding by and delegating and telling people what to do. There aren’t any real cracks. She always knows what’s going to happen. Little is said about what she did and what she gave up to get to where she is. You realize this really is all she has. This is her baby. This is where all the eggs are. The six, it’s just about saving it, and I think as the audience now, you really understand what it means to her.

We were talking with Rick before and he was mentioning that there was something that his character’s going to be dealing with beyond the Mike arrest. Are things that Jessica’s going to be dealing with beyond trying to save Mike?
I just said Jessica’s trying to save the firm. It’s a balance between the firm and the people, and ultimately the people are the firm, and vice versa. It’s wrapping her head around that. I think that you’ll see it’s that struggle.

Doesn’t that take a hit on the firm’s reputation if Mike is thrown under the bus?
Jessica: Of course it does, absolutely. That’s what I mean by all bets are off. Everything’s tainted now that has come to light. Even just the possibility that might be true. There’s no reason to believe that it’s not. Everybody’s really pretty shady in this world. It’s not beyond the realm of possibility. It’s really about how many people knew and how deep does it go.

Are we going to see any of Jessica’s wrath now that all these sacrifices are coming to light? Is she going to strike back in any way?
As we shoot these last few episodes, you really … As I was talking to our director Anton, it’s kind of like you don’t have time … You’re getting things done. If you’ve ever had a tragedy in your life, or if there’s ever something like this huge mountain in front of you, you just get busy getting it done. Getting to the other side. Then when the final chip has dropped, then you can curl up into a ball and weep for two days.

She’s always been a really good chess player. She likes to move people around. Can you talk about the smaller moves or tease, or maybe some of the bigger moves that she has to make, or pawns that she has to sacrifice?
I think that’s going to be illustrated best in our cast list.

Harvey was a regular in 5/10, but looks like he’s coming back and Mike’s his protégé. Jessica’s trying to save this company. I guess they’ll be butting heads in a sense. What can we expect between Jessica and Harvey?
Jessica and Harvey … We’re really not butting heads. Everybody’s on the same side. It’s just tensions are really high because somebody’s freedom is on the line, an entire firm, life’s work. Harvey and Jessica are okay, we’re married. It’s that thing. I think I have a line in one of the episodes, which is, “You’re taking care of Mike and I’m taking care of everything else”. I remember when I read that, I’m like, “Oh, yeah, we really are married.” (laughs) It’s such a partner’s thing to say, and that’s where we’re at.

What has the relationship between Jessica and [Jack] Soloff been like in the last 6 episodes?
It’s everywhere. It’s up and down. He was a very interesting character to show up when he did, at a time that he did, where we need allies. But is he to be trusted? Has he proven his trust? Will his ambition override? There’s that. How much do I give this person? How much do I trust this person? He says he wants to be on our side. He says that he’s on board. I don’t know.

Are there other aspects of the firm that you’d like to explore? Or other characters that you think it would be cool if we brought in somebody to play off of or things you’d to work with?
The possibilities are infinite. That’s one of the reasons why I love this Jack Soloff character. There are other characters that we talk about that you never quite see, or see rarely. It sounds like a cop-out question; it’s not my job. Not my job to figure out who all else is in these offices. I just look when the stencils change, from day to day. The one on my door I’m sure will change at some point.

I think it’s interesting. We boast about all of these partners that we have and the room’s full when they come to vote. Who the hell are these people? It’s great when a voice is heard all of a sudden. Very interesting, he … Just another grinder who is down there doing his thing and saw his moment, and I think that’s very real. I think it’s very real out there. Everybody wants their place in the sun.

You said that she was in an ivory tower, and last year she almost lost her company. How have you enjoyed playing a more vulnerable side and are were going to see a little bit more of that this season?
I think it’s great. I think the more human any of these characters can become, I think the more engaging they are for the audience members. I think as much fun as it is to put on the cape and have us be these impenetrable super heroes, that only gets you so far. To keep everybody interested, you have to be able to plug into their humanity. It was wonderful to see, especially that flashback with my now dead ex-husband. To see that once upon a time she really tried to have it all, she was going to be that girl, and it just didn’t happen. She fights for these relationships. It’s not just that she’s fighting for the firm, it’s not just that she’s cold-bloodily more money in my pocket, more this. She fights for these relationships and to understand these men and women that she works with. She’s hard and it’s tough love, but ultimately it is love and it is respect and we’re all in this together. I think that helps. I think it helps everybody just understand the world that we’re in.

It’s very clear that Jessica hates to lose, refuses to lose. Is she afraid of loss?
I think she’s wired that way. I think she’s wired to win. She’s competitive. She’s certainly smart. We often say, “Oh, she’s the smartest person in the room,” and she’s worked at that. She’s earned that position. I don’t know if it’s so much she doesn’t want to lose, as much as she believes there’s nothing she can’t do. There’s no obstacle that she can’t get through or past. That’s what drives her. That’s her skillset. How do we make this better, how do we fix it, how do we get past it. Yes, the more simplistic way of putting is, she’s not going to lose. I think there’s certain people she doesn’t want to lose to. Ultimately, it’s I’m going to make this happen for myself. Look what I’ve created. I want to do this.

When it comes to the firm itself, there’s the Mike stuff going on, but it’s also going to be business as usual. Can you tease anything about any cases or divulge any cases seen in politics?
Are there any cases? No, no, it’s about the trial.

Are we seeing a time jump from 10 to 11?
No. I’m in the same outfit. (laughs) That’s how I remember. No, I’m in the same outfit.

Can you tease what the scene’s going to be like when we see Jessica learn what’s happened to Mike?
You got to wait for some things. That’s what you’ve got to do. I don’t think it’s going to be pretty.

Are there multiple sets of the same outfit?
That’s why I’m drinking water like this. No, just one. I don’t get shot. I don’t have to change anything out. No, it’s just one. It’s pretty much one of everything. This was made for me. Specifically made for me. There are a couple of things. Quick fashion aside. At some point every season, they have shopped out the city. They have shopped out Toronto. There’s nothing left. The seasons don’t match up, so we’re between seasons and that’s when they start building things from the ground up and pulling things and looking at past couture shows, seeing what they can pull and stuff like that. This is a special one.