Elizabeth Banks Says She Is Only Just Now Getting Leading Lady Offers: 'I'm Often the Comic Relief' (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Elizabeth Banks.Photo:Christopher Peterson/SplashNews

Christopher Peterson/SplashNews

Still, she points out that she’s very rarely the actualleadof a movie — let alone a serious movie like her new film,A Mistake,where she plays both a New Zealander and a surgeon who gets caught up in a scandal at the hospital.

“It’s really only been in my second life as an actress here that I’ve started playing the lead role,” Banks, 50, tells PEOPLE.

Elizabeth Banks in ‘A Mistake’.

She’s a comedic force, which, in a way, may have prohibited her from exploring her range.

“I’m often given more comic relief parts,” she says. “So to have this offer felt like, wow, I’m going to be in every scene of this film, playing a character that’s very good at their job, it’s all very serious.”

The story ofA Mistakefollows a surgeon training another fellow trying to save the life of a patient who has sepsis. When she allows her colleague to cut and he botches it, the move may (or may not) have led to the patient’s death.

“I’m somebody who puts a lot of faith in doctors, and this was a reminder of how human doctors are,” she says. “They have bad days and off days, and days of learning, and days where their confidence is low. So I just felt like that was a fascinating idea, just that this could and does happen.”

While Banks is thrilled to explore new roles, she’s also busy with her production company, Brownstone Productions, which she formed in 2002 with her husband, Max Handelman. The company produced hits likePitch Perfect,The Beanie BubbleandCocaine Bear.

She’s also currently filming and producingThe Better Sisterwith Jessica Biel. Beyond that, the creative force has eleven other productions in the works through Brownstone.

She continues, “But I also want to continue to surprise the industry and myself, so no one can just check a box and say, ‘Oh, this is an Elizabeth Banks thing.’ I hope lots of people think lots of different things could be an Elizabeth Banks thing.'”

A Mistakeis now playing in theaters.

source: people.com