Elizabeth Banks has a lot on her plate these days as an actress, director and mother, but says there are still more challenges ahead that she’d like to tackle.
Reflecting on her time playing “Effie” in The Hunger Games, Banks said being a part of the franchise was a wonderful experience and she “cherished” her character. However, the last day of shooting proved to be a difficult one for the 40-year-old actress.
“It was a sad day and I wrapped on a day when no one else did,” she told ABC News. “It was really sort of lonely and depressing.”
Since that final day on the set, Banks has moved on to a variety of projects.
One particular project that might not be a huge stretch for the actress is as a judge for a Frito-Lay Super Bowl commercial contest. After all, she plays the judge of an a cappella competition in her film Pitch Perfect and the upcoming Pitch Perfect 2.
Doritos, @UniversalPics and @ElizabethBanks team up for the #SuperBowl http://t.co/BfKQVzYdHZ pic.twitter.com/0J5m1q5Y4O
— ComingSoon.net (@comingsoonnet) September 4, 2014
As a Frito-Lay judge, Banks will help determine which filmmaker is the winner of a commercial created for Doritos. It’s a big responsibility since the winner will win a “dream job” with Universal, the studio behind Pitch Perfect 2.
“Everybody has to start somewhere in this business and what I really love about this contest is that they’re gonna really give somebody their start in the entertainment industry,” she said. “I just felt like it was a really amazing opportunity to be supportive of young filmmakers … who want to submit their material and get seen by industry professionals.”
Pitch Perfect 2 offers the actress an amazing opportunity of her own — to try her hand at directing.
“It’s a big responsibility, but I was really excited to take it on and try to do it confidently,” she told ABC News. “[The original] was lightning in a bottle and it was such a surprise to see how the movie was received. The whole ‘Cups’ phenomenon was a surprise to all of us. It came from the authenticity of the movie, and this time around we were really aiming to do that again and be pure in our intention to tell more of the story of these characters that people have fallen in love with.”
Elizabeth Banks is "nervous" for Pitch Perfect 2: http://t.co/VGQsHv6k1D pic.twitter.com/j1izJWScf2
— Cosmopolitan (@Cosmopolitan) February 24, 2014
There is still one challenge the versatile actress hopes to tackle in the future — a challenge that will please her sons, Felix, three, and Magnus, one.
“I need to get on Sesame Street,” she said. “They’ll be my biggest fans!”
