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EXCLUSIVE: “Rizzoli & Isles” star Sasha Alexander talks season 3 and lesbian subtext

Since the first moments Sasha Alexander‘s Dr. Maura Isles and Angie Harmon‘s Det. Jane Rizzoli stepped on screen together, the show’s lesbian viewers have noticed something special. It wasn’t just the pair’s striking good looks together, but their genuine chemistry and frequent closeness that made our subtext-loving hearts sing. Rizzoli & Isles has amassed a large lesbian and bisexual female fanbase through its first two seasons. Now, with the show poised to premiere its third season on TNT in three weeks, we’re all anxious to see if our favorite not-gay gay cop show continues to serve up healthy helpings of LLBFF canoodling, Totally Gratuitous, Totally Gay Touching and — of course — eye sex.

Still, when last we saw these two lovely ladies of law enforcement, things were beyond tense. During a stand-off between Maura’s biological father/gangster Paddy Doyle and the police, Paddy shoots FBI Agent Dean (who happens to be Jane’s flower-bringing possible boyfriend) and then Jane shoots Paddy. Or, in other words, it’s complicated. The cast and crew has been back filming in Los Angeles (done up to look like Boston, naturally) since March and are currently shooting the sixth episode of the 15-installment season. From the set in between takes last week, Alexander spoke with AfterEllen.com about our favorite ambiguously gayzzoli duo. AfterEllen: Now Season 2 ended on quite an emotional cliff hanger. It’s hard to forgive even a LLBFF for shooting your biological father. How different will the Jane/Maura dynamic be when the third season starts? Sasha Alexander: Well the third season begins moments after that event. We do see their initial reaction and response to all that drama. Maura is definitely spinning from all of that. There is a lot of anger and misunderstanding between her and Jane in terms of what just happened. They pick up at a place that is very intense for both of them. Maura has her dad in hospital and her mother in hospital and is really angry at Jane.

They are just in a place of a standstill. We don’t quite know how this will affect them. But then, come the second episode, something happens that brings them back together. They slowly make their way back when they start to realize what went down. Maura is coming to the realization that Paddy Doyle is not a good guy. This incident will bring them into a much deeper relationship and they do come out of it stronger.

AE: Given the natural chemistry between Angie Harmon and yourself, how was that conflict to play? Was it hard? For many viewers, it’s that chemistry that attracted them to the series in the first place. And are you anything like your characters in real life? SA: Having them in conflict explores more color and gives us more layers to develop for those characters. Not everything has to be funny and hanging out in the spa. But it was very hard to play many times. Angie and I are joking around on set and have to turn around and play this. We even have a huge cat fight.

The characters are not us at all. We’re both very different. What we bring to it is the element of having the connection to each other and the humor. We’re both very physical, we like physical contact.

AE: It sounds like Jane and Maura will have a rough go of it in the start, but won’t be mad at each other all season, which our readers will be happy to hear. What else can people expect from the third season? I assume the Paddy Doyle storyline will continue and there will be more with Maura’s mother? SA: Yes, we are obviously dealing with Paddy Doyle being shot. He leaves some clues for Maura to find her biological mother, which she does. And that comes with a whole other set of complications. That is definitely one storyline that we get to dive deeper into.

There is an interesting storyline with a new character who is a possible love interest for Maura, played by Eddie Cibrian. He is kind of an interesting cat. He is an artist, but she meets him on an autopsy table because they think he’s dead until he’s not. So it is kind of an interesting way to meet someone. But for Maura the big one is definitely getting to meet her biological mother.

AE: Now you mentioned love interests coming up with Cibrian guesting. Our readers and your lesbian and gay fans have been pretty adamant about the friendship/relationship between Jane and Maura being central and not too interrupted by male romantic foils. SA: Oh, no!

AE: Do you understand that desire and do you feel blowback from fans when that happens? SA: Well, absolutely. They absolutely have their opinions about it. Look, I don’t think either Jane or Maura are getting married or into some big thing anytime soon. So, their relationship with each other is number one. But you’ve got to keep it spicy. We’ve got to keep new people coming in and out.

AE: Last season the mainstream media really latched on to what gay female fans have noticed from the start — the chemistry between Jane and Maura and that sly “are they/aren’t they” a couple vibe that you guys sometimes put out. Were you surprised that fans caught onto that immediately? And were you surprised that it made its way into the mainstream discussion of the show? SA: Yeah, a little bit. Definitely. I mean you don’t really know what you have until you start editing it and putting it together. The fact that some people interpret it as that is, you know, fine. Look, we definitely have chemistry. Whether that’s a straight guy thinking we look hot together and wanting to see us make out or a gay woman that loves the idea that these women are together.

And we have an interesting chemistry. We physically don’t really look alike and we’re very complimentary to each other. And there is a sexiness to that. We’re very different types of women and both have a certain appeal to people. It’s not that people don’t like Jane, but like Maura, or vice versa. It’s that they love the pairing. They love how that clicks. And I think that’s a really special quality to have.

Angie and I have a joke on set, when a scene isn’t totally clicking and we’re working on it we sort of go, “That’s OK, we cut great together.” That’s a great thing. That’s what you look for in casting roles. It gives us a lot of flexibility in not just playing these roles but being more playful when we play them.

In real life many people who are close to their friends are like this. We’re not playing these characters in any way that is not natural to the way people behave when they are close to a person. We are naturally touchy feely with the people that we love. We are comfortable with our bodies around the people that we love and care for. And we do the same things with these characters, whether it’s touching each other in a scene or showing affection. That is kind of all natural.

What works for me is the fact that regardless what the interpretation is, whether that’s a sexual relationship or not, that these are two smart women who are positive role models. Women who are not these catty stereotypical types who are fighting over who looks cuter. The fact that we can dig deeper into a friendship that can have conflict, that can be funny, that can be sexy — that to me is what I am like with my girlfriends. And I admit there is some boob grabbing going on on set. I am not going to lie and say there is not. And not just her and I, it’s all the ladies on set.

AE: Our readers are going to be really happy to hear that. SA: I’m not kidding. All the women who work here have an incredible rapport with each other and the men can get incredibly uncomfortable. This season there’s a lot of talk of penises. There’s a lot of penis talk. I don’t know what is going on. You’ll have to ask (series creator) Janet Tamaro about it. And whenever it happens it’s like the room is just silent. And Angie and I are giggling like seventh grade girls.

AE: Hm, well I don’t know if our readers will be as glad to hear about the penis talk.

AE: How do you feel about your gay fans who read into the subtext, love it and actively cheer it on. Do you like to see that? That they take something and interpret it in their own way? SA: Yeah, I like that they interpret it in their own way. That’s what you want with any kind of entertainment — that people interpret it in their own way. The most important thing is they have a character or characters they relate to that in some way affects them and make them feel things. So I think that’s fantastic. That’s the ultimate goal that people care.

We don’t set out and think about that when doing the scenes at all. I remember in the first season before it aired, we’d already shot stuff before anyone ever thought these characters would be fantastic gay icons. But I love it. We never thought that we were doing that. But again it’s just chemistry. You can just be on screen and in the same space with someone and that’s what you kind of get from it. I mean, I am a married woman and I see the two of us on screen and it’s sexy. My husband even in the very beginning said you’re hot together. You don’t have to play that, it just is.

I just say a lot of the videos they make on YouTube and all the fan stuff can be hysterical. They can take a picture of the two of us sitting on a bench and they’ve somehow Photoshopped it so she’s just touching my knee enough and I lean my head just enough so I’m going in for a kiss. I think it’s brilliant. It’s really, really funny. AE: Both you and Angie seem very interactive with fans. You respond a lot on Twitter. Sounds like you’ve seen fanvids and things like that. Have you enjoyed interacting with fans like that and seeing the things they create about the show? SA: Yeah, they’re pretty amazing. I mean we both get so many not only wonderful gifts and creative gifts, but pictures and books they have made for our birthdays. It’s really incredible. But again the most important thing is that they relate to these women — they remind them of their sister or their best friend or their lover. Whoever it may be, who they feel connected to. That dialogue opens up. I like the interaction and I like that they care where the dialogue is going. That part of the whole Twitter universe is fun for me.

There is something so powerful to the international aspect of television. I have fans from Brazil to Germany to Japan. You get this fan mail and you’re like someone is on the other side of the planet and they felt the desire to sit down and write to you about what this character makes them feel. That part of it is really beautiful.

AE: I know when the show started there was no inkling that people would latch onto the subtext the way they have. Do you ever see it yourself on the page when you read a script? Do you ever tone it up or tone it down on purpose? SA: I don’t because honestly I am a lesbian at heart. I love women. I was raised by my mom and my aunt. I am a girl’s girl. I am very close to women in my life. So that kind of intimacy is not strange to me. I as an adult have slept in bed with other women friends. None of that reads to me at all. But was I surprised? No. Initially I thought people were thinking that because it is sexy. But maybe not, because it’s subjective.

At the end of the day, it’s what turns you on. If at the end of the day it turns you on to think of them in that way, great. If it doesn’t, fine. I mean, in the books they are much more separate as characters. They don’t interact as much. But for me, at heart, none of it is really weird. I’m a physical person. We joke around a lot, even when we have physical stuff together we kid around a lot and are both touchy feely. And that may translate, that comfortable part of our relationship.

AE: I know you’re also close friends with Jessica Capshaw from Grey’s Anatomy and she plays a gay character on that show. Do you ever compare notes about your lesbian fanbases? SA: We do now, because it has grown so much for both of us. Obviously, she’s playing a lesbian and I am not. She is out on her show, so it’s different for her. But so many people think that she and I are sisters or look alike. It’s funny when we met 15 years ago, it really was, “Oh my gosh, you remind me of Sasha Alexander” to Jessica and they’d say it to me about Jessica. We’d say literally who is that? And when we met it was like, “Oh, you’re this person.”

It’s funny that that is how we met and now that has also gone out into the universe and to fans. Now people who do not know we’re friends still say you remind me of her and you remind me of her. It’s really sweet and we laugh a lot about it. And recently someone put a Photoshop thing up where they took our heads and put them on the other’s body. She was like, “Oh my Gosh, I look so good in that dress.”

AE: In July, fans are organizing the first-ever Rizzles Con, which you and several others involved with the show are going to try to attend. This is a fan-produced and fan-organized event. What is it about the series that inspires that kind of fan dedication/love? Why were you interested in taking part? SA: Look, it’s a good question. I’ve never been in a position before of having the fans organize something themselves. So if I can, and the rest of the cast can crew can, if we can make it it’s great.

AE: Are you ready for the massive fangirl onslaught you’ll receive there? SA: Not really. [Laughs] Do you want to come be my bodyguard?

AE: I’ll be your bodyguard. But they’re all very well behaved. You’ll be safe. SA: I know. But I’ll need some support.

AE: Well let me tell you, lesbian fans are very, very loyal. So once they love you, they will love you forever. Ask Lucy Lawless or Jennifer Beals. The lesbian fanbase is very loyal and will stick with you through ensuing projects. SA: Well I’m glad. I like loyalty, it is an important character trait. So that’s important to me. Everybody that I’ve met, we’ve done contests and people have come to the set, they’ve all been great. It’s also great that this show is extending to young girls who are 14-15 years old and they’re looking at a character like Maura and sayimg, “You know what, she’s not the biggest nerd in the world.” I mean, she’s a nerd, but she is OK. So they think, “Maybe I can pursue science or math or other nerdy perceived paths I want and it doesn’t mean I have to be a certain way.” So it encourages people to go in these directions and I think that’s powerful stuff.

AE: One of the other great things about the show is it has two female leads. And that is still unfortunately very rare on TV. Why do you think that is and does that add to the appeal of the show? SA: Absolutely, it adds to the appeal of the show. The only other time we’ve seen it lately is Cagney & Lacey. It shows you the power of women in pairs and even groups like Desperate Housewives and now the show Girls on HBO, which I love, and Sex and the City, of course. I think when it clicks the power of that chemistry between women is such a positive and powerful thing. Women are the future. We are so in the forefront. We are such a strong, strong sex. We can do so much. I just want to see positive female roles on television and movies. I don’t want to be the girlfriend of the whatever. I love that, when you can have those relationships represented in a way that is accurate or a way that makes other women say, “Wow, that speaks to me.”

It’s unusual, I think sometimes because the casting doesn’t work. But let me add one other thing, it is also because they aren’t written by a woman. On our show, the books were written by a woman. Our creator is a woman. A lot of times she’ll write something that some people may not see — like all the male executives in a room might think that’s weird. But guess what, when Angie and I read it, it totally speaks to us and we totally know how to act it. And that translates.

So I think it’s a combination of things. Having a producer who has a really strong vision about being honest in her writing and writing characters that are as real as she knows them. Also having that brought to the screen by Angie and I who are both very strong women. We aren’t like dancing around it, we’re in it. You can feel that when you watch the show. I really enjoy not only playing my part but also being a part of it. There’s just nothing else on television like it.

AE: So this season do you think there’ll be enough LLBFF love between Jane and Maura to keep your gay female fans happy? Is there enough subtext still to be read in, even though there will be difficult times in the beginning? SA: There are going to be some difficult times in the beginning that everyone will sort of be uncomfortable with, because obviously everyone wants to see them getting along. But that will come fast enough. And then I think there will be a lot of cool stuff to see and watch. A lot of that camaraderie. So, yeah, absolutely.

I am voting for the flashback or more like the wet dream sequence that will somehow happen to one of us with the other. But I haven’t read it yet. What I thought was, what if Jane has like kind of a sexy dream? And in the dream she kissed Maura and something happened. And then she is so embarrassed by it, like so uncomfortable, then she can’t be close to Maura. I think Maura is more open to it, so she’d be more comfortable. She’s a little more experimental. So she’d be open to it.

AE: Get Janet on the phone immediately. Immediately. SA: [Laughs] I’ll tell her we spoke and there was an understanding. Really there is a lot of sexy and fun stuff this year. We’ve been enjoying it. The scripts are stronger than ever. The crimes are stronger than ever. It’s unpredictable. Every episode I’m like, where is this going? So that’s fun.

Rizzoli & Isles premieres on a new night and time at 9 p.m. Tuesday, June 5, on TNT. Catch up on the series read past Rizzoli & Isles Subtext Recaps here. And then come back for Season 3 gayzzoli recaps every Thursday on AfterEllen.com.

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