Mira Sorvino, the Harvard-educated UN goodwill ambassador and Oscar-winning actress, appeared on "Salon Talks" to discuss her new role as an idiosyncratic NSA agent on the Sony Crackle series "StartUp." But not long ago, Sorvino tells Salon, she was wondering if she'd ever work again.

As one of the actresses who spoke out against Harvey Weinstein in Ronan Farrow's now iconic 2017 expose, Sorvino knew she was taking a considerable risk. "A year ago, we were these voices in the wilderness," she told SalonTV's Mary Elizabeth Williams, "speaking our truth having no idea what would happen to us. The night before the Ronan Farrow article came out, I thought, 'I may not ever work again as an actress. I may be blackballed for speaking out.'"

But while Sorvino "absolutely" believed coming forward could kill her career, she says that "Instead, we were the tip of a tidal wave." Sorvino spent much of the past year working to improve California's anti sexual harassment laws.

"These incredibly powerful people who thought they were completely protected by their bastions of power got exposed for what they had done," Sorvino said. "Since then, all of this agitation and solidarity expressed has been harnessed into movement that has sparked change. And we are changing things."

In her new role on "StartUp," Sorvino dove into her character Rebecca's painful past to prepare for the role. While flashback scenes were filmed that explain her dark childhood, they didn't make the cut. But, throughout shooting, Sorvino remained transfixed on how her character's backstory motivated her work as an NSA agent. "I have a mission, I have an allegiance, and I will do whatever it takes for the good of the country, my country, right or wrong, and I might do a great wrong in order to try and prevent a great wrong," she said about her character.

Watch the interview above to hear more about the show, Sorvino's dream Broadway role, and her advocacy work with the UN to end human trafficking.


Photography by Jill Greenberg. Watch Jill's TedxTalk on the Female Lens and the problem with only seeing the world from a man's perspective. And find out more about Jill's initiative Alreadymade., a mission to hire more female photographers and content creators.