Ahead of the show’s release, DIVA sat down with one of its stars to talk all things Sirens
BY YASMIN VINCE, IMAGE BY NETFLIX
On a compound on an island on the American East Coast, Kiki does everything with her assistant Simone. They jog together, work out the best angle from which to take pictures of Kiki’s boobs, and even share the same bed. This is Sirens, Netflix’s latest hit.
It perhaps has the most sapphic vibes of any show to not actually include a WLW relationship. The core storyline of the show follows Devon (Meghann Fahy) who travels to the compound and becomes concerned by the relationship between her sister, Simone (Milly Alcock), and her boss. Men are present in the show but as Devon tries to free her sister from the cult-like situation, one fact rings true – these women are too obsessed with each other to really care about the men around them.
One of these women is, of course, Kiki, played by Julianne Moore. Her sleek bob nods enthusiastically when I mention how much her character seems to care for Simone. “Kiki is incredibly close to this young woman,” she agrees. “She’s someone who’s really in need of a friend and Simone has been a great friend to her.”
Often, women in Kiki’s position are presented as cold-hearted and cruel. Take Miranda Priestly, who is literally called “the devil” for how she treats her assistants in The Devil Wears Prada. Media time and time again tells us that powerful women must be manipulative and brutal to make it to the top. But not with Kiki. She really does care about Simone. That care manifests itself in a relationship that is “more intimate than a working relationship should be,” according to Julianne, and that can place a lot of pressure on Simone. “But she cares about her very much.”
“She needs companionship and feels very isolated on that island,” adds Julianne. “And she probably sees a lot of herself in Simone.” Kiki wants Simone to have what she didn’t – a life with friends, not acolytes. “And for Simone, I think she’s looking for stability and a role model. She’s looking for a home. So they’re both able to satisfy each other’s needs completely.”
There is a third in this relationship. Devon, Simone’s sister, arrives on the island and crashes the rose-coloured world Simone and Kiki have built. Literally – her black denim cut-offs stick out like a sore thumb in the pastels of Kiki’s island. Devon’s presence shakes things up and the messiness between the sisters soon infiltrates Kiki’s life. And Julianne loved it.
“I loved the relationship that Devon and Simone have and how rough they are on each other,” Julianne says. She has a sister of her own that she’s very close to and recalls sharing a room and putting a line down the middle, to be crossed at your own peril. “All that stuff, and the fights we’d have in the car” – that’s a real sisterly relationship to Julianne. It’s messy and intense, but “she’s the one that I rely on more than anything.”
She sees that echoed in Devon and Simone. Their messiness is what makes it realistic. “I think women’s relationships with our sisters and close female friends are messy and complicated and intense and big.” That’s what this show is about ultimately. It’s about relationships so deep that they love each other, hate each other and are controlled by each other. It’s not perfect, but it’s real.
“The reason we’re drawn to entertainment is that we see our lives reflected,” Julianne adds. “Our desires, our love for each other, our aspirations. And I think all of that exists in the show.”
Sirens is available on Netflix now
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