“High Potential” arrives in France: who is Kaitlin Olson, the heroine of the American remake of “HPI”?

Kaitlin Olson is a busy woman. Very busy. “I will never complain about it. It's the best problem to have. I feel really lucky”reacts the American actress on “Good Morning America” at the beginning of September as she comes to promote the third of the projects she is leading. But the only one in which she plays the main role. Almost 50 years old – she will celebrate them in August – she defends her High Potential in the highly anticipated remake of the French phenomenon HPI, to discover from January 23 on Disney+.

Morgan, “a fish out of water” in the middle of the police station

“I love funny, quirky and interesting characters. It really seemed like a great opportunity to do something different and special. I love our take on the detective series.”she continues about her version of the Morgane Alvaro investigations popularized on TF1 by Audrey Fleurot. Her Morgan, without an e, is as blonde as the original character is a redhead. But the two mothers use with the same efficiency the increased intellectual capacities which are incumbent on people diagnosed “high intellectual potential” to assist the local police in their investigations.

They also share the same very eccentric wardrobe, mainly composed of mini-skirts and faux fur coats across the Atlantic. “The costumes are so fun. That’s what makes this character great.”slides Kaitlin Olson on the set of the show “Live with Kelly and Mark”. (new window)She says of Morgan that she is “and fish out of water in this police station”, “appearing at crime scenes dressed completely inappropriately”. The actress born in Oregon, on the west coast of the United States, has long dreamed of the city of Los Angeles where her heroine solves cases one episode at a time.

The one who has gradually established herself as a major comic figure on the American small screen enjoys the image she projects. “I think people are surprised that I became what I am despite growing up in this state that many consider a green, hippie place. My childhood was very different.”she told in 2010 to Oregon Live (new window). Living with her parents in “a small farm” from Tualatin, “very quiet and isolated”Kaitlin Olson “loved spending time with his family and was afraid of people.” “I don’t really know how it all happened, but I started wanting to do theater”she adds.

When it comes to awards, the general public thinks it's much harder to make people cry than it is to make them laugh, but I disagree

Kaitlin Olson dans “W Magazine”

Elle “fall in love” discipline during a summer camp the summer he was 12 and made it his main subject at the local university. “At 17-18 years old, I was very young and immature. I wanted to stay close to my parents, I didn't want to move away from them”she remembers from Variety (new window). Sincerely, Kaitlin Olson “gets every role” for which she is auditioning. So when she arrives in Los Angeles with her diploma in hand, she imagines that “It’ll be easy.” Proposals are rare but the actress hones her impeccable comedic timing within The Groundlings, a cult improvisation troupe in Los Angeles that she describes as “great training ground”.

In the early 2000s, Kaitlin Olson stood out in the series Curb Your Enthusiasm – renamed Larry and his belly button a VF – a The Drew Carey Show. But it is with Philadelphiathe longest-running sitcom in the United States, that it leaves its mark. There she met her future husband and father of her two boys, Rob McElhenney, creator and actor of the soap opera. “I fell in love with him on the set of this series, I love seeing him in his element and he is a big fan of mine. We have a lot of fun! It's funny because our characters hate each other and are so mean to each other.”she smiles on “Good Morning America” (new window).

In parallel with PhiladelphiaKaitlin Olson plays the crazy nannies in Very Bad Nannylends his voice to Destiny in the Pixar Finding Dory and to a character from Simpsons before landing the role of DJ Vance, Jean Smart's daughter in the multi-awarded series Hacks. A score which earned him two Emmy Award nominations after the citation collected in 2020 for the series Flipped. “When it comes to awards, the general public thinks it's much harder to make people cry than it is to make them laugh, but I disagree. Both are difficult, but both require skills”she insists in In Magazine (new window).

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  Audrey Fleurot prepares for the sequel to “HPI”: “I have just received the first script for season 5”

Kaitlin Olson adore “playing a character who says, 'Fuck you!' If you don't like it, that's fine. I don't need you. I take care of what's important to me. this series, about three children who need me. That's why I like strong female characters.. The authenticity of his Morgan has already largely won over Americans. Launched in the fall on ABC, High Potential became the most watched series in six years on the channel.

>> High Potential – two episodes from January 23 then one episode every Thursday on Disney+

>> HPI – the first four seasons are available on TF1+