Interview ‘Special Ops: Lioness Toronto Native Laysla De Oliveira’

The Extra Mile sat down with Toronto native Laysla De Oliveira last week at a glamorous hotel in Downtown Toronto to talk all things Paramount and Special Ops: Lioness.

JURGEN: Hi, I’m Jurgen Sosa here with The Extra Mile and Laysla De Oliveira, star of the new Paramount+ original series Special Ops: Lioness. How are you? 

LAYSLA: I’m great. I’m so excited to be talking to you today.

JURGEN: Me too! Did you have fun at the Premiere last night?

The Canadian premiere was hosted at the TIFF Lightbox Theatre in Downtown Toronto on July 11th. De Oliveira was in attendance for the screening and an enlightening Q&A afterward. Not only was De Oliveira glammed like a movie star, but she’d proven just a few minutes prior that she can act next to the world’s biggest ones. During the Q&A, she revealed she’d once lived in the building above this exact theater… bring her success story full circle.

LAYSLA: I had a lot of fun at the premiere last night!

JURGEN: A full circle moment for you, eh?

LAYSLA: It was so full circle. And the fact that I got to celebrate it with my family and friends. I couldn’t have asked for anything more special. I’ve been waiting for this thing to come out.

JURGEN: Of course. Well, I loved it! I thought it was so amazing. I watched it again this morning.

LAYSLA: You did?

JURGEN: It was so so good.

LAYSLA: Thank you.

JURGEN: So you’ve played key hunting demon on LOCKE & KEY, metal melting power possessor in CODE 8, light manipulating mutant in GIFTED, lost pregnant lady in IN THE TALL GRASS… in just a few words, how would you describe your character Cruz in Special Ops: Lioness?

LAYSLA: Cruz is a fighter. That’s one word to describe Cruz. She’s somebody who’s leaving, you know, she’s trying to get out. She’s domestically abused… trying to get out of that life… just trying to find purpose. She joins the Marines, she finds her place, she’s good at it. Then she get recruited by Zoe Saldana’s character to become a Lioness and she goes on this incredibly physically and emotionally demanding journey.

JURGEN: She’s amazing. She’s inspirational. I loved her so much. I’m so excited to see more of her.

Some heavy hitting roles on De Oliveira’s resume include projects in fantasy and/or science fiction genres. Since starring in guest roles on shows like Covert Affairs and Nikita early on in her career, this would be De Oliveira’s first time stepping back into the world of spies. 

JURGEN: Now, I feel at this point you’re a seasoned professional in the sci-fi/fantasy genre. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe this is the first role you’ve taken on in the world of war and spies and international espionage. Were there any challenges going into this sort of genre from an acting perspective, besides the physical?

LAYSLA: It’s obviously a lot more emotionally challenging. It also is incredibly artistically fulfilling in a different way. What I like about sci-fi is you really see everything come together at the end, you know? Whether you’re grabbing a tennis ball and they insert—I don’t know—a car there or something. This is just so raw and gritty and real that you really do have to go into a heavier place and it becomes a game of endurance. This was a really big lesson for me. How am I going to be able to endure this emotionally? You know, because we shot for seven months. But I felt so incredibly lucky that I could watch the greats. Anytime I had a question I was like… what are they doing?

JURGEN: Master class in the moment.

LAYSLA: Master class for real.

JURGEN: Now, The Extra Mile is all about going the extra mile… going above and beyond in anything that we do and anything that we cover. I wanted to ask if there’s anything, whether it’s in your acting or just in your various aspects of life, that you do to go the extra mile?

LAYSLA: When you can meditate. Whether it’s taking time with your eyes shut in the morning or putting on a song that really inspires you and closing your eyes… just that feeling. Or going on a hike and just spending that quiet time with yourself I think is so important and I think it helps in your daily life. It definitely helps me in my work life. I’ve also started doing, like, the ice baths on your face.

JURGEN: No…

LAYSLA: Yes! In the morning. It’s actually great. It’s tricky but I’m doing it.

JURGEN: Now, you had the pleasure of working with one of the biggest writer/showrunners that’s working right now, Taylor Sheridan. I was just curious if there was any particular moment or breakthrough in this process from start to finish where the original idea or the original script changed based on your collaboration with him?

One could call Taylor Sheridan the current King of Paramount+, as it’s his show Yellowstone and its various spinoffs keeping the streaming service in league with its many competitors. Now, Paramount welcomes his sixth original series with Special Ops: Lioness. But beyond his impressive feats in streaming, Sheridan also has an extremely personal creative process which he references in his interview with James Hibberd at The Hollywood Reporter. 

LAYSLA: When he chose me to play this part, there were only two episodes written. He’s just really good. I think he likes to cast his people first and then he kind of writes to the person. So it was really just a big treat every time the script came in. He’s like here you go! Hot off the press. And you’re just like oh my gosh oh my gosh. It’s very exciting.

JURGEN: Do you feel like there are pieces of Cruz still in you even afterwrapping?

LAYSLA: Definitely. It took a little bit to… I don’t want to say get rid of because any character you do they live in you but this moment is really great, when I get to put on the sparkly outfit and celebrate her. Because she goes through such a challenging journey, I’m really excited to be in a moment where I can celebrate Cruz versus going through her journey because it’s a little bit heavy.

JURGEN: Do you feel like this project pushed you farther than you have ever been?

LAYSLA: I would say that’s a true statement. It was so incredibly artistically fulfilling and I loved being pushed to that level.

JURGEN: Totally. Well, I think people will be very excited to see that work!

LAYSLA: Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.

JURGEN: No, thank you! I appreciate you having me here and sitting with you. It’s been an amazing time.

Since De Oliveira and I are both Canadian, the two of us continued to thank each other for another full minute before the interview ended. You can stream the first episode of Special Ops: Lioness on Paramount+ on July 23rd, 2023.

[Interview by guest blogger Jurgen Sosa]