Super Women: Supernatural's Pamela

Sonja Bennett

By Mary Borsellino
April 1, 2007

Canadian actress Sonja Bennett has appeared in a wide variety of film and television roles in the last five years. To Supernatural viewers she's Pamela, the young woman who contaminates Sam with the lethal demon virus in season two's 'Croatoan'.

Sequential Tart: I'd really like to hear about what making Fido was like for you. The photographs I've seen of you in your makeup make it look like it was an absolute blast to do.

Sonja Bennett: Fido was an extremely satisfying film to work on. When I read the script I knew it was special — everyone that read it did. A lot of people turned down more lucrative jobs to be a part of this film and when the entire crew and cast is working on a project for love, there is an excitement on set. I learnt so much watching Tim Blake Nelson work. Perhaps because he is a director as well as an actor he approached scenes as a whole, not just from the point of view of his character. He was obsessive about the details of his characters' costume and props. He made me want to be a more detail-orientated actor. The only person I spent more time with than Tim Blake Nelson were the wonderful make up people — five hours in the morning before the crew is called in and then touch-ups constantly. I had contact lenses that make my eyes look cloudy so I was almost completely blind. I had to hold onto someone's arm whenever I walked anywhere and I have a very small bladder so I didn't drink a lot of water on set!

ST: Do you have a favourite of the roles you've done? Any that you look back on and wince about?

SB: My favorite role was playing Daisy on Godiva’s. The show is about a group of employees at a restaurant and I played a pastry chef named Daisy. Daisy was the first time I played a character that was generally optimistic — and it rubbed off on me! The set was a working kitchen so we would actually cook food in the scenes. The cast began to work like a well-oiled machine — like the employees of a restaurant, I suppose.

In my theatre school, we shot some short films. I rewatched them a few years ago and ... I'm putting on some kind of weird accent. Not even British, it's like German or something. And I have no idea I'm doing it. That made me wince.

ST: A number of your roles have been in horror films and shows. Do you enjoy working in the genre? Are there particular challenges it presents you as an actor?

SB: Yeah, I do enjoy working in the genre. You get to go to work and play in blood and guts. I gained the respect of my little brothers working in this genre! The challenge as an actor is to activate my imagination. To play make-believe the way I did when I was child. It's like, "and the fog is coming ... and it just ate your friend ...." What does fog-eating look like?!

ST: What was making 'Croatoan', your Supernatural episode, like?

SB: It was a blast. Jared and Jensen are both really sweet, generous actors, Robert Singer (the director/executive producer) sang during set-ups, and I got to play a demon. What else can a girl ask for?

ST: I read one interview with you where you mentioned that an executive once told you that you were "pretty, but not TV pretty". The fact you're able to mention that as an anecdote shows that you know better than to actually believe nonsense like that, but I imagine it's still pretty rough to stay positive in an industry with such insane rules about beauty. How have you avoided falling into the low-self-esteem trap?

SB: I'd been lying if I said it's easy to stay positive. Generally a few times a year I will feel myself "falling into the low self-esteem trap" and I do struggle to get out. I have at this point come to terms with the fact that "I am what I am." I work out, I brush my teeth, I put on mascara ... what else can I do? I look how I look.

When I feel like I'm falling into bitter territory I get out, away from the industry, even if it's just for a few days. I spend time with people that do other things for a living. I spend time with kids. I make a list of the things that are the most important to me in my life and guess what? Work is never in the top five. Focus on friends and family. Stay connected to the world. When I watch the news and see what's going on in the world I start to feel like an ass for having spent half an hour of my day obsessing about my eyebrows.

ST: Is there a particular kind of role you'd love to play?

SB: I want to be in a kung fu movie. I want to do that crouching tiger, hidden dragon style of fighting. It may be a tall order considering I can barely walk in a straight line but ... there you have it.

ST: Is there much difference between the experience of being in a Canadian production and an American one?

SB: The advantage of working on an American production is the pay is better and you have more time to shoot. The advantage of a Canadian production is that chances are it took a long time to get green-lit so there has been a lot of thought and energy put into it at a script level. Canadian productions are almost a labour of love.

ST: Do you have any upcoming projects you'd like to mention?

SB: Fido comes out in the States next month!

SonjaBennett.ca — Sonja's official site
INDB listing — Sonja's entry at the IMDB