Kate Box was in Chicago recently when someone yelled, “Hey, sexy”.
At first, she was taken aback. Then she realized she’d been recognized by a fan of award-winning Aussie crime comedy Deadloch, using her police detective character’s nickname. Ironically, she was in the American city for a Wentworth fan event – in which the terrifying prisoner she played, Lou Kelly, became a standout in yet another cult hit from Down Under, albeit for very different reasons.
“It’s thrilling to be stopped on the streets and have people ask questions about your career,” she says with a wide smile. “I’ve been quite humbled that the shows have had such an incredibly big reach.”
The 45-year-old actress has racked up an impressive list of film and TV credits over the course of two decades. The beauty of her current run of success, she says, is that it’s in diverse Australian content – stories that start conversations and show the diversity of the country we live in. For that reason, she’s got no desire to leave our shores and try and make the jump to Hollywood.
“I’ve got to a point in my life where I have the fortune of being able to be a little more selective in the stories I tell,” she says of what drives her choices. “I can align myself to projects that I love and believe in and to people whose politics and humanity align with me.”
It also, says Kate Box, comes down to family.
“And I’m balancing life as a parent [she shares three daughters with former partner, actor Jada Alberts]. I have to weigh up if I feel okay stepping away from my babies for a bit. I took eight months off last year just to be with the kids, so each project you ask, can I manage this one? It’s a big juggle, constantly.”
One that made the cut was SBS drama Four Years Later. Filmed in Mumbai and Sydney, the series uses both Hindi and English language in a thoroughly modern Australian romance that crosses continents and cultures. Kate plays Gabs, best friend to leading lady Shahana Goswami’s Sridevi – an her instant Australian family.
“Gabs is Shrudevi’s first friend that she makes in Australia,” says Kate. “That friendship kind of reminded me of when I watched my kids at the park. When before even knowing someone’s name, they’re like, ‘Oh mum, this is my new best friend for life.’
“There’s this gorgeous commitment to care between Shrudevi and Gabs from the moment that they meet each other. And I think as we get older, friendships become more complicated because our lives becomes full.
“We could meet somebody that could be a potential extraordinary friend, but it passes us by because … life, you know? And the beautiful thing about playing Gabs is that she meets this person and goes, ‘This won’t pass me by. ‘”
Friendships, we muse, are our very first love story in life. And modern love stories seem to be Kate’s niche – no matter the genre she’s playing in.
“Maybe I’m a romantic,” she says. “There’s just so much joy and electricity to be found in budding love. And in the world we live in, surely we need as much of that as possible.”
Four Years Later is on now on SBS and SBS On Demand.