'ITS BEEN AN ADVENTURE'

THE HOLLYWOOD ICON'S LATEST PROJECT IS A LOVE LETTER TO WOMEN SET IN THE HEART OF AUSTRALIA

- Nikita Lee

Playing strong, no-nonsense women on screen has become something of a forte for Sigourney Weaver over the years, so it's understandable that she would be drawn to one of the most combative characters to come out of Australian literature in recent years.

The 73-year-old actress takes on the role of June Hart in The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, a seven-part series based on 2018's internationally acclaimed debut novel by Holly Ringland. June runs a flower farm, Thornfield, which also acts as a refuge for troubled women to start over, free of shame and judgement from society.

"I've never played a character like June- she has so many layers. She's very loyal, she's quite fierce in her own wvay, she's very sceptical of the male society...of how people treat women in this refuge," Weaver explains of her complex character. "She wants to protect her community from this outside world and I think she does a terrific job."

The book, and series, deals with confronting issues such as domestic violence, with June's young granddaughter Alice (played by Alyla Browne) escaping a violent father and turbulent home to live with the women on the flower farm.

"It's a cause very close to my heart because the statistics in America for domestic violence are so shocking," Weaver says. "Holly says this is a love letter to women and what women can do, supporting each other and also taking care of each other... it's such an important message."