The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Elizabeth Banks - “Call Jane” & Destigmatizing Abortion

Episode Date: October 30, 2022

Actor Elizabeth Banks discusses her film “Call Jane” about The Jane Collective of Chicago, which provided abortion health care pre-Roe v. Wade, the dangers and desperate situations people find themselves in when they don’t want to be pregnant, and her goal to destigmatize abortion procedures. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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egos and accounts of the extraordinary power of decency. Listen on the I-Heart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. You're listening to Comedy Central. Hey, you have such a nice audience. Elizabeth Beck, they're a wonderful audience. Welcome to the Daily Show. Thank you. Thanks for having me. And congratulations on creating what I think everyone is going to enjoy as not just a heartfelt film but a film that in more ways than most feels completely apt for these times. My character Joy seeks out an abortion when her life is in danger and it's life or death for her and this is a woman who

never thought she'd seek out abortion care. And when she gets there, it's in 1968 Chicago, abortion is illegal. This is Pre-Roe versus Wade. And she meets a collective of women called the Janes. These are real-life women. The story's based on a real-life group, a Jane collective of Chicago, who provided abortion care, abortion health care to nearly 11,000 women in the late 60s before abortion was legal in Illinois in Chicago.

It's a story about bravery in the face of everything that stands against you because in the story, you know, we meet to a woman who's living like a cookie-cutter life. You know, your character is just like, she's living her life. She comes from a conservative family, but we don't really talk about that. And it's almost not about the politics, per se, but it's about how society was oppressing women at this time. Yeah. And what feels, again, pertinent to this moment, is seeing her not just fight for herself,

but for every other woman who needs to have an abortion and can't afford it. Yeah, that I'm fighting for them to have that abortion that they don't know they need yet. Wow. Yeah. Right? Don't worry, I'll fight for you.

I'll fight for you. I'll fight for your daughter and your wife and your mom. Don't worry. It really is a powerful story, though, because this is, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, tho, thi, tho, thi, thi, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, tho, tho, tho, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. thoo. tho. thothis this is what this is what what gets me about the film is you think first of all you would think this film was made now that's the first thing you you you started planning this and you film this how long ago I first read the script nearly three years ago and you know we we had the pandemic and we finally got to make it get Sigourney Weaver and to be this amazing activist so she really still I the film and the the film and I I I I I I I I th. you you you you you you th. you th. you th. You th. You th. You th. You th. You th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. th. I thi thi. thi. th. thi. th. thi. th. thi. thi. th. thi. th. th. th. th. th. aver in to be this amazing activist. And you know, I think at the time we knew that there were what we call abortion deserts in America, which are areas where abortion was so inaccessible that basically people were

living in a time that was like pre-ro. And this film really presents the dangerous, often desperate situations that pregnant people found themselves in when they didn't want to be pregnant. And you know, we all know that abortion bans don't, you know, they don't solve abortion because as long as there have been pregnant people, there will be people that don't want to be pregnant. And this film reminds us that their safety matters, right? That we can re-center women and the health care that they need and make sure that it's safe for them.

And safety relies on legality, frankly. And that's sort of the time that we are now talking about. It was 1968 in the movie, but it's today in 14 states. It also showed a side of the conversation that is necessary but painful at the same time. You know, the film isn't flippant when it comes to talking about abortion. You know, you know, there's the scene, for instance, where we're in the room. We're seeing a lot of what the procedure is, we're seeing the pain, we're seeing what the woman goes through. And I wanted to know why you felt it was so important

to have that in the story. Some would gloss over it, some would say, oh, no, no, we don't want to put that in because it makes it complicated, but it felt like it this lie frankly that that anti-abortion activists will say which is that abortion can kill you and that is simply not true. Abortion is very very, very, it's safer than getting your wisdom teeth out. It's safer than a colonoscopy. So the Janes didn't lose a

single life. They performed 11,000 abortions, didn't lose a single life. And so I think partly why th thly the thly thly thly the thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly the thirty thirty the thirty the thirty the thirty the the the the thirty the thirty the the the the the the thoom. I the the thirty the. I thoom. thoom. Abortin, th. Abortin, th. Abortion is th. Abortion is that abortion is that abortion is that abortion is that abortion, that abortion, that abortion, that abortion, th. Ab abortion, th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th th th th th th th th the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, thin, the, abortion the, abortion is the, abortions is the. Aborte, abortion is the. Aborte, abortion is the. Ab single life. And so I think partly why we wanted to put the procedure in was just to normalize it, you know, just to de-stigmatize the entire process and to show you that she was fine after and went and had spaghetti. Right. It's like it's a procedure that somebody is having to have autonomy over their lives. You also choose to have many funny moments in the film, which somebody to, which, which, which, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, autonomy over their lives. You also choose to have many funny moments in the film, which somebody wouldn't think at first, you know, if I said to you, oh, there's this film

and it's about abortion, and it's about people go like, oh, wow, this is gonna be a very serious film. And it is serious, but there are so many moments where you find it likethat also feels very intentional. Why not just have it be very drab and dull? I think we all felt like the way to depoliticize this whole thing, which has become so politicized is to remind people about the stories, right? These are real people's lives that these politicians are messing with. You know, these are real women who have hopes and dreams or already have kids for whatever reason are making the decision to seek out abortion

health care. Right. And regular, real women, they have fun too, you know, they laugh. I love that. I love that. Right? Right? Right? Right. I also, my rule about this character was I just said, I don't want to cry after. Because she's so relieved after her abortion. She chooses her life. the their the their their the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the to the to to to to to to to to thi thi thi to to to to to to to thi their their their the to to to to to to to the. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right the the decision the the decision the the the the thi thi the. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. I the. It's the. It's the. It's the. It's the. It's a the. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right, th. Right, th. Right, th. Right, thi. Right, thea. she's so relieved after her abortion she chooses her life. She's a very life-affirming decision for her. She's not particularly tortured over it. She's already a mom and her pregnancy is threatening her life and she wants to stay alive to be a mom to her daughter and because she suddenly realizes when she's faced with life or death wow I have so much more life to live. I have so many things to do.

Shit, I gotta, I got a list I gotta get through, you know? And she's really has a real awakening, a political awakening and emotional awakening. And I love that for the character, I mean, total right turn in her life. Right, right. It's a change in direction because it's a moment where, you know, we don't want to spoil it for everyone, but it's just that key moment where somebody realizes their life is at risk, they need to have this procedure and then they have to fight to basically save their own life.

It's a powerful one. I feel like you're one of the more perfect people to tell this story. No, because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, thi.I's, toy.s, toy.s, their, their, their, their, their, the, all fields, whether it's business, with its film. You know, people have come up to you and they've gone like, you are, you know, you create some of the funniest films for women to act in. You're funny behind the camera. You're funny when it comes to the writing. And what I loved is something that you said recently,

which, which was, everyone will say to to the, or many, or many,, because you're doing this to show that women can do it, and you make films for the women. You said something to the effect of, well, I make films because I like making films, and I am a woman, and I'm having fun. What do you think people miss sometimes about a woman doing any type of job that they just want to do? Well, do we have, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, well, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, th. th, th, thi, thi, thi, that, that, that, that, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, I, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, I thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi, thi, th mean, that's like a deep question.

You know, I think there's a lot. We live, Roe for me, I'll speak to it in terms of the film right now, which was when Dobbs, the Dobbs decision is a decision that overturned Roe v. Way that came down this summer. When it happened, I felt foundationally like less of a free person than I did the day before. And so when you live in a society where your human rights can be taken away from you, you're kind of a second class citizen. And when you're considered a second class citizen, everybody thinks, how does a second class citizen get to direct a Hollywood movie? Wow. Like it's that deep. Do you know what I mean? It's like, it's like, you know what I mean? It's like, it's a, it's a,

it permeates society, yeah. There are people that are entitled to do things, and the women who have to fight to do things. Right. al almost almost almost almost almost almost almost almost almost almost almost almost almost almost almost almost almost, almost, almost, almost, almost, almost, almost, almost, almost, almost, almost, almost, almost, almost, almost, almost, almost, almost, and their, and their, almost, and their, and their, and their, like, like, like, like, like, like, their, their, their, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, their, like, like, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, their, the, their, their, their, their, th. thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, to, thi. thi. thi you do it? You're not lucky. You're amazing. You're truly one of the funniest people I know. And the film is amazing. Thank you so much for joining me again. I appreciate you. Thank you so much for being here. Thank you so much for being here. It's going to be in the theaters everywhere you watch movie.

Watch the Daily Show. show weeknights at 11 10 Central on Comedy Central and stream full episodes anytime on Paramount Plus. This has been a Comedy Central podcast. Do nice guys really finish last. I'm Tim Harford host of the Cautionary Tales podcast and I'm exploring that very question. Join me for my new mini-series on the Art of Fairness. From New York to Tahiti will examine villains undone by their villainy, monstrous self-devaring egos and accounts of the extraordinary power of decency. Listen on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts.