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Elisabeth Rohm touts 'Oath' as a 'very gritty, very uncomfortable show'

By Karen Butler
"The Oath" star Elisabeth Rohm walks the runway at the annual Red Dress Collection fashion show on February 7 in New York City. Photo by Serena Xu-Ning/UPI
1 of 3 | "The Oath" star Elisabeth Rohm walks the runway at the annual Red Dress Collection fashion show on February 7 in New York City. Photo by Serena Xu-Ning/UPI | License Photo

Feb. 21 (UPI) -- The Oath co-star Elisabeth Rohm said she knows not every job she takes will tackle important issues, but she relishes the roles that do.

"I'm drawn to what's real, compelling and potentially uncomfortable to begin good conversations for change," Rohm told UPI in a recent interview at the American Heart Association's Go Red for Women fashion show. "I don't always do cause-branded things, but I am very keen on them."

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Co-starring Ryan Kwanten, Katrina Law, Cory Hardrict, Leona Lewis, Kevin Connolly, J.J. Soria and Christina Milian, Crackle's action-drama about a gang of dirty cops kicks off its second season Thursday.

Rohm, 45, plays FBI agent Aria Price in the series, which was created by former Los Angeles sheriff's Deputy Joe Halpin. Its executive producer is rapper Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson.

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"It's a very gritty, very uncomfortable show," Rohm said. "The corruption that we tackle is a real thing and it never goes away and is just a fascinating, dark world."

The Angel and Law & Order alum also recently portrayed broadcast journalist Martha MacCallum in director Jay Roach's movie, Fair and Balanced, which focuses on Fox News' female personnel and their interactions with former Chairman Roger Ailes. A release date for the film has not been announced.

John Lithgow stars as Ailes, who resigned from the company amid sexual harassment allegations. He died in 2017 at age 77.

Rohm hasn't met MacCallum, the host of Fox's nightly interview and analysis program, The Story, and did not want to comment on MacCallum's political beliefs.

"It's not my job necessarily to think anything of anybody. It's more my job to figure out physically how to portray her in a way that seems recognizable and believable to the audience. But she's a professional and she asks the tough questions," Rohm said.

Playing a real person can be more challenging than creating a character, she said.

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"I tend to think a lot about the physical behaviors and accents and body shapes. I like to change for the roles that I do, but when you are playing a real character, you have to be true to who they are -- especially if they are living," Rohm said.

While there wasn't much information available about Dolly Polito, the Camden, N.J., mayor's wife she portrayed in the fact-based 1970s caper, American Hustle, at least hundreds of hours of footage of MacCallum at work exist.

"I could really study her mannerisms, her voice. We both have a very deep voice, as well. I think I was a natural fit," Rohm said.

The German-born actress and single mom of a 10-year-old daughter recently became engaged to a retired judge, Jonathan Colby.

"We're so in love and so happy," she said. "I don't know right now what the total wedding plan is, but we're talking about different versions."

Also known for her work in the TV shows One Life to Live, Heroes, Stalker, Hawaii Five-0, Jane the Virgin and The Last Ship, Rohm walked in the heart association's fashion show for the third time this month because she wanted to honor her mother and aunt, who died of heart disease in their 60s.

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"I was raised to believe that we have to turn our knowledge into power, our grief into action. We have to advocate for each other," Rohm said. "This isn't just a party. It's not just a runway show. This is a public statement. And it's a statement of life and celebration."

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