After a long run on “Who’s the Boss?,” Light landed roles on “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” “Ugly Betty” and “Dallas” before joining “Transparent,” a dramedy that brought numerous Emmy nominations, and two Broadway shows that netted her a pair of Tonys.
“People feel strongly that I have integrity,” Light says. “And that matters to (audiences). They know that I would speak the truth about stuff.”
A string of productions kept her extremely busy in recent years, including an Emmy-winning for a 2024 role on “Poker Face.”
“Our industry has finally caught up with the fact that mature women have a lot to talk about,” the 77-year-old says. “And a lot of people are writing those kinds of characters. Look at Kathy Bates and Jamie Lee Curtis — they have stories to tell. I’m proud to be a part of that.”
CCH Pounder as Miss Chris in “The Terror: Devil in Silver.”
For “The Terror,” Light had to shoot in a decommissioned New York prison.
“It was pretty creepy … but it was also like a prison,” Light says.
That added to the authenticity and helped the cast address the things that make viewers scared, she says.
“It’s like the scaredy thing that happens to you when you go on a roller coaster and your heart is in your throat,” she explains. “It makes us feel alive or connected. This is not just creepy. This is psychologically thrilling, this show.”
“The Terror” isn’t another “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” Light says.
“It is about patients in a mental facility, but this is not about who can stand up for themselves. There’s no Nurse Ratched,” she says.
