In its first global premiere, Lifetime is to bring Return to Zero to the small screen starring Academy Award, Golden Globe and Emmy nominee Minnie Driver, alongside Paul Adelstein, Alfred Molina, Connie Nielsen and Golden Globe and Emmy winner Kathy Barker.
Based on a true story, Return to Zero tells the gritty and emotional story of Maggie (Minnie Driver) who lives a happy life until the still birth of her child whose heartbeat is lost just a few weeks before due date.
"Maggie is a life coach; she is happily married and pregnant with her first child. She believes in the law of attraction and she’s a happy person. Then this terrible thing happens to her and she’s cracked wide open. I think when she gets put back together she’s a very different person, but a much stronger, more considered, more compassionate person." Minnie says of her role.
Noting that "being a mother adds a depth that you can't possibly imagine", the actress is happy to take on the responsibility of telling a story "worth telling."
"To make it real without being sentimental or overly tragic, but an honest portrayal; that's what really attracted me."
As a couple, Maggie and husband Aaron (Paul Adelstein) attempt to go on with their lives but realise their loss has changed their relationship forever, grief constantly nipping at their heels.
Close to separation and with infidelity abound, Maggie falls pregnant once more and the pair have to reunite, facing another terrifying pregnancy that will truly put their strength and love for one another to the test.
"It was good that the film was shot in under a month because it was an impossible place to live and breathe in." says Minnie.
"But I did, I lived in that place the whole time we shot and I was surrounded by really good people, which was great. But I couldn’t put that down and just pick it up the next day, I found I had to stay there and I’ve never experienced that before. I leave my work and go home. But this one definitely stayed with me, but it was a short shoot so that worked out."
With a countless amount of roles under her belt, you'd think Minnie wouldn't be able to pick a favourite, but Dahlia Malloy from The riches may come close.
"I'm a white middle class English girl and the idea of playing a southern crack addict gypsy was really a long way away from who I am and I liked that. It was really fun."
On the topic of motherhood, the seasoned actress says she simply just wants to have fun nowadays, taking jobs "that mean I can take him with me or be around where he is."
"I've definitely lightened up on the whole ambition thing for myself, I just want to be happy because I see that in him, I want to feel the way that I do when I'm with him because it's kind of addictive."
She has hopes to make a film in the future "about the incredibly varied lives that women are living in other countries, particularly out of the first world", as it's "important that we know that about each other", and says that her impatience is the worse thing about Minnie Driver, but the best is that she's "a good time! Right? If you hang out with me, we have fun." We believe her.
Return to Zero premieres in the US and Canada on Saturday, May 17 at 8/7c on Lifetime, coming to the UK just a day later on Sunday, May 18 at 9pm on Lifetime (Sky 156 & Virgin 242).
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