A Milbridge native kicks off her first starring role on TV tonight.
Katie Aselton is part of the ensemble cast of the comedy “The League,” debuting at 10:30 p.m. on FX. “The League” is about the men in a ridiculously competitive fantasy-football league and the women who love them.
Aselton, 31, plays Jenny, a stay-at-home mom and wife to Kevin, a perennial also-ran in the league. Rumor among the league’s other players is that she runs Kevin’s team.
She described Jenny as having “a good strong grip on what’s going on,” she said in a phone interview. “She’s a guy’s girl, and likes to hang with the boys. She has a great relationship with her husband, with healthy give-and-take. She’s influential in Kevin’s fantasy team, and knows her fair share of football.”
Jenny has more tolerance for the time and energy that the men sink into their league.
“She has a competitive streak, and enjoys that about the guys,” said Aselton, whose parents, Carl and Ora, still live in Milbridge and whose sister, Mary Budd, lives in Bangor. “The boys have a lot of growing up to do, but Jenny can put up with a lot more than the other women.”
Aselton’s husband, Mark Duplass, plays Pete, the reigning champ in the league. They have a young daughter.
“Many stay-at-home moms make their children the center of their universe,” she said. “I have a different viewpoint to bring to the table about being a mommy. Jenny can’t decide if she wants another child or another cocktail.”
“The League,” created by husband-and-wife team Jeff and Jackie Marcus Schaffer, is largely improvisation.
“It takes a lot of faith for a network to take a chance on a show that has no scripts, that’s all improv,” Aselton said. “Jeff and Jackie give us a detailed outline of what they want. It’s very collaborative, with conversations about every scene.”
Duplass and Aselton got “The League” roles thanks to their improv work in such past indie films as “The Puffy Chair” and “Intervention,” created by Duplass and his brother, Jay.
Their agent gave a copy of “The Puffy Chair” to the Schaffers, and “They loved it,” Aselton recalled. “They thought we were just what they were looking for.”
Such experience pays off as much of the cast have stand-up or improv backgrounds.
“As an actor, you’ve got to be on all the time,” she said. “There’s six others that are constantly on their game, so you have to be on your toes. It gives me a chance to be a little bit more creative. It’s very challenging, and it’s enjoyable in the end.”
Aselton took an indirect route to acting as a career. She gained the Miss Maine Teen crown at age 15, and finished as first runner-up at the Miss Teen USA pageant. She attended Boston University School of Communication for two years, when she decided that she wanted to act. She went west to Los Angeles for a school, getting a handful of roles and meeting Duplass. She then honed her craft in a two-year program at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City.
Aselton has a number of other projects in the works.
She co-stars in the film “Feed the Fish,” starring Tony Shalhoub and scheduled for release next year. She also is in the Duplasses’ first studio film, still untitled, which will star John C. Reilly and Marisa Tomei.
She also has directed her first film, “The Freebie,” which co-stars Dax Shepard. She is seeking placement for it at film festivals.
“It’s like ‘The League,’ in that I wrote a treatment with a detailed outline,” she said. “We shot it all in 11 days. It’s about a married couple who decide to give themselves a free night with other people, and what it does to their marriage.”
Now Aselton is focusing on “The League,” which runs for six episodes.
“We do it so fast that the end result is natural and real, while still being heightened and funny,” she said.