Westworld: Thandie Newton vents “frustrations” with Maeve’s storyline
The most recent season of Westworld brought an end to the story of Dolores Abernathy — or so we’re led to believe — but left both Maeve and Charlotte intact, with the two of them both facing a new world full of endless possibilities.
Thandie Newton has played Maeve since the beginning and done a wonderful job of it, even as the show has changed pretty drastically from season 1 to 2 and 3. Maeve started as one of the many robotic hosts designed to entertain visitors to Westworld, but soon took her fate into her own hands and did everything she could to escape the theme park, and then to find her daughter.
In season 3 she was in a new position, being manipulated by tech trillionaire Serac into trying to stop Dolores, something Newton viewed as a step back for her character. Speaking with Vulture, the actress explained why she’s found Maeve’s later storylines less compelling.
"Well, season one, the evolution of this robot who then has the revelation that she’s not human, and that she had a past that involved a child, and the betrayal of that, and then using information to empower herself — it was such a powerful story. I’m not surprised that it hooked people in. And then the second and third season has Maeve with a different directive, but it’s not her own. She’s following other people’s leads, by and large. In the first season, she was driving, dominating, pretty straightforward. I think Maeve is a metaphor for the dispossessed in the world, and she’s become that kind of leader, but she’s not had a chance to lead, and I don’t think she necessarily should. She certainly doesn’t want to."
It’s an astute observation, and one that might make fans long for the good old days of season 1. And perhaps Maeve’s character arc will return to something akin to the early days next season, but it doesn’t seem like Newton is pushing the showrunners in any specific direction. “I like to stay sane about my position, which is that I am being employed to tell someone else’s story,” she said. “Where I do have a degree of choice is in taking the role, but once I’m in it, I’m a team player. I do have frustrations with Maeve, but that’s part of her story line.”
Whether Maeve will be a team player or a force of her own next season remains to be seen, but it’s possible she’ll get more screen time with the show’s focus is no longer on Dolores. She’s unlikely to join Charlotte’s vendetta against humanity, so there’s a chance she’ll have her own storyline again — or at least one that’s not almost entirely controlled by outside forces.
Westworld cast and crew talk season three, tease four. dark. Next
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