EXCLUSIVE Interview with Morena Baccarin: Anna Vs. Diana and The Visitor’s Search for the Human Soul

Aliens could not have come in more beautiful packaging than Morena Baccarin who plays Anna, the leader of the Visitors on ABC’s V. This season, these reptilian aliens’ grand agenda targets the elimination of the human soul and presents a complicated mother-daughter relationship between Anna, her mother Diana (Jane Badler), and Anna’s daughter, Lisa (Laura Vandervoort).

I was honored to be able to speak with the alien queen (and most beautiful and elegant Companion this side of the ‘verse) herself at this past weekend’s Women of Sci-Fi themed Sci-Fi Expo in Dallas, Texas.

Check out our conversation below!

SciFi Mafia: The mother-daughter relationship in these last few episodes of V has really given dimension to your character, Anna. How does Anna’s relationship with her own mother, Diana (Jane Badler) whom she has held secretly captive all these years after taking over her reign as queen, color her plans for her own daughter, Lisa (Laura Vandervoort)?

Morena Baccarin: Yeah, her relationship with her mother reminds her of the revolution. She thought that her mother didn’t have what it took to stay queen and to keep going with the plan to invade Earth. So she overtook her mother. I think it gives her that fear that maybe Lisa is going to be doing that to her and she’s also looking for signs from Lisa if she’s weak and is not going to be able to fulfill her destiny.

SFM: Is Anna seeing what we’re seeing of Lisa at all?

Morena Baccarin: Oh, she’s suspicious for sure, but Anna has seen less than the audience.

SFM: This season on V, the search for the human soul is an intriguing concept especially from an alien point of view. How is this a game-changer for both sides?

Morena Baccarin: I have to say that the search for the human soul is a weird concept I think for the show to have because it’s kind of interesting because the soul is what makes humans human. So it was a good thing for them to sort of hone in on and what are the V’s going to do? That’s something that’s so not tangible and Anna’s a little disappointed by that concept. She doesn’t know if it’s going to be something that she’s going to be able to hone in on and extract. So she has to figure out what to deal with that and we’ll see in the end if she’s going to use it to her benefit.

SFM: Do you think this situation gives an unfair advantage to the humans?

Morena Baccarin: Yeah, I think it’s a very fair advantage actually, which is the being human advantage. The very thing that the V’s seek is the thing that makes humans so great and persevere.

SFM: What do you think V shows people of the possibilities of human-alien interaction?

Morena Baccarin: It’s always been a thing I’ve been curious about because we live in an enormous universe of course and we don’t know what’s out there and there’s a possibility that there’s something out there. Although, I just… I don’t know if you saw this, a tweet on $hitMyDadSays that said something like “Aliens traveling hundreds of thousands of light-years to come take over Earth is like you traveling millions of miles for Arby’s.”

[laughter on both sides]

It’s a pretty fair guesstimation that if aliens were going to take over the world, they would have done it by now, because really… like, what do we got?

SFM: I guess, maybe the soul!

Morena Baccarin: Yeah, maybe our soul – to try to figure out our soul!

SFM: And I gotta say that I love every one of your outfits that you’ve ever worn on anything!

Morena Baccarin: Thank you!

SFM: As a costumer, I just drool over your wardrobe. On V, do you get to keep any of the clothes? It looks like it’s all tailored to you.

Morena Baccarin: I don’t [get to keep them]! It is all tailored to me. Actually, I don’t want it at the end of the day. I have worn it for sixteen hours and eight days straight. I don’t want it. It’s uncomfortable. It’s exhausting! But I do love it, it’s great.

SFM: Wonderful. Thank you very much for taking the time to talk with SciFi Mafia!

Morena Baccarin: Thank you.

My sincerest thanks to Morena Baccarin for spending some time with me at the Sci-Fi Expo. Stay tuned for more from the Women of Sci-Fi themed Sci-Fi Expo, and check out the tv spot and sneak peeks from tonight’s episode of V, “Unholy Alliance” below!

TV Spot: V – Unholy Alliance