Exclusive Interview: Savannah Basley Talks ‘SurrealEstate’ Season 2, Being the Representation She Didn’t See Growing Up, the Women Who’ve Uplifted Her, and More

Savannah Basley, recognized for her dynamic performances in notable projects such as The Art of More, Wynonna Earp, and Reginald the Vampire, stands out as one of the industry’s most captivating young actresses. Whether eliciting laughter or bringing audiences to tears, Savannah’s versatility is a testament to her talent.

This fall, she reprised her role as Zooey L’Enfant in Syfy’s SurrealEstate, a must-see series that follows real estate agent Luke Roman (Rozon), Susan Ireland (Levy), and an elite team of specialists dealing with haunted and possessed houses. These unique cases challenge the team to research, investigate, and “fix” supernatural occurrences, providing closure and closings amidst their own struggles with personal demons.

Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to speak with Savannah about SurrealEstate Season 2, being the representation she didn’t see growing up, the women who’ve uplifted her, and more!

PC: How did you discover your passion for storytelling and the arts?
Savannah: It sounds cliché, but since I can remember, I’ve been creating my own little worlds. I didn’t have many friends growing up, so I spent a lot of time by myself. It was one of those things where I could sit in a room and entertain myself for hours because I would come up with these crazy worlds.

One thing that I have vivid memories of was the Harry Potter movies. I remember when I finished watching them, I would bounce around the living room and couches pretending that I was playing quidditch. I would watch all the behind-the-scenes extras that they had on the DVDs. I loved those. I would watch the entire movie, and then I would sit there and watch that. If there were four hours of behind-the-scenes footage, I watched it. I loved it. It’s always been something that I’ve done.

I used to do a lot of singing when I was younger. On my mom’s side of the family, all of my uncles are amazing musicians. That’s something that was always part of my childhood.

PC: You’re one of the stars of SurrealEstate, and this is the longest you’ve lived with a character. You’ve had the opportunity to shape her from the beginning. What were some of those early decisions that you made regarding Zooey that weren’t necessarily on the page? What’s been the most surprising part of this journey thus far?
Savannah: That’s a really great question. What I love so much about the SurrealEstate team is that they’ve been so trusting and open to that collaboration. It’s such an amazing feeling. They always want to know your feedback, especially at the beginning. George [Olson] was very graceful with us and let us discover the characters, allowing us to ask a lot of questions.

At the beginning, we were going for this goth-type of look for Zoey. She meshed into alternative. For me, I always wanted to put someone on screen that I would have wanted to see when I was younger. Once again, that sounds cliché, but I’m mixed. My mom’s White, and my dad’s Black. I didn’t get to see a whole lot of representation like that on screen.

It was either hip-hop-oriented fashion [and characters] or they were very geeky, odd one out. I was always like, “Well, I’m kind of like this. But I’m also kind of like that.” So I’ve always wanted to put someone on screen that very much looked like me. I was very adamant about having her hair in natural styles. I was like, “If people can see that on screen, especially in an office setting, maybe they’ll realize that they can wear their natural hair when they go to work.” That was a really big thing for me, and everyone was really on board. It’s been so amazing because everyone has been so supportive. We all really love the show and everyone. Everyone really wants everyone to be happy with what they’re doing.

PC: So much of Zooey’s journey this season has been about finding her purpose, which you brought so much depth and vulnerability to. As an actress, how did you create the space for yourself to dive into that arc?
Savannah: Good question. Thank you for acknowledging that. Zoey’s been a really big trip for me. It’s been a lot of fun to dig into those things. As an actor, I was ready to dig deeper into this character. Everyone was so on board. The writing this year really allowed for that journey. I was so excited to do it.

It’s one of those things where you channel things that happened in your past where you’re like, “Someday I can use this.” [laughs] It was like that for many of the things this season where I was like, “I’ve felt this way in the past.” I thought about moments in my own life and put them into the scenes to help find that understanding. I’m really glad that it’s come across in that way.

I love Zooey’s arc. She’s still in her early to mid-twenties. Even then, sometimes you’re like, “I don’t know what I’m supposed to be doing. I don’t know, and that’s completely okay.” We all have time to figure that out.

PC: You’re captivating to watch. There’s a beautiful moment in Episode 110 with August and Susan in the car that really highlights the friendship between Zooey and Susan and how they’ve looked out for each other since the beginning. It’s one of my favorite relationships on the show. Who were the women in your own life who have shown up for you in a similar way? What has it been like getting to collaborate with Sarah [Levy] and bringing that dynamic to life?
Savannah: It’s so easy. Sarah Levy is amazing. Everyone on this show is so humble and down to earth, especially Sarah. She’s one of the most humble people I’ve ever met. She’s so kind and generous, and I love being on set with her. She’s a very generous actor. All of them are. Even if they’re not on camera, they are still giving. It was very easy to create that relationship on camera.

But also Sarah and I wanted to create this girl bond between each other in the sense that Susan is trying to be a leader at the Roman Agency. It’s that thing that sometimes happens when men in the office brush people off. Sarah and I were like we want to create this dynamic between Susan and Zooey where they’re always supporting each other and there’s this unspoken language between the two of them where if either was brushed off, there would be this look transferred between each other where they’re like, “I saw that. I heard that. I got you.”

The sassy looks that Zooey’s been giving Luke and the rest of the team are her saying, “I see what you’re doing. I don’t like it. I love you, so please change that thing.” That was really fun to build that relationship.

Also with Zooey, she doesn’t have a lot of people in her life. She’s a very loyal person. So when she chooses someone that she wants to be loyal to, she’s gung ho for them. She really respects Susan.

As far as the women in my life, there have been so many. My mom is my biggest cheerleader. I love her. She is everything to me. When I did plays and musicals in high school, I lived really far away. My mom would pick me up and drive me home. She would work all day and then would come see me perform every single day. She’d get her comp ticket at the beginning, but then she would pay for every single one. When I wasn’t sure I wanted to do this, she was like, “Savannah, do not waste your talents. You can do this.”

I did a lot of retail when I was working. There were so many women who I worked with that were amazing. I would be like, “I have to do an audition.” They’d be like, “Don’t worry, we got you.” These girls had their own lives and plans, but they would jump at the opportunity to cover my shift so that I could go and do these auditions. I’m so grateful for them. I would go into work and I’d be like, “I got an audition!” Everyone on the floor would be like, “Yeah! Savannah, you can do this!” That was amazing.

PC: You’re also no stranger to the horror/sci-fi genre, but what makes SurrealEstate so special is its use of humor. How much of that is scripted versus improvised? How fun is it for you as an actor to get to play in all these different spaces?
Savannah: Oh my gosh, it’s so much fun. I love anything horror and spooky related. I find the horror genre to be so fun. You can do so much within the space, and there’s a lot of topics that you can talk about that people may not feel comfortable talking about if you’re presenting it in a dramatic setting where it’s very intense, but if you hide it underneath the layers of horror, it a bit easier to watch. The Babadook is a great example of that. The entire movie is about grief and that whole struggle, but you’re not sitting there thinking about this terrible death that happened the entire time; you’re thinking about what’s going to happen next. That’s what has always drawn me to this genre.

What’s really fun about SurrealEstate, as you said, is the element of humor. A lot of that humor is improvised. You have to give Adam [Korson] 30 seconds after a scene because he will just keep going and going and going. Then you’ll hear someone be like, “And…okay.” [laughs] He’ll just keep going, but it’s a lot of natural stuff that just happens between all of us. It’s the little mistakes that’ll happen, and someone catches it and thinks it’s funny and we’ll end up doing it in the next take. A lot of it is improvised, but a lot of it is just Adam and reacting to what he said.

PC: Your character, in particular, is such a standout. Do you have a favorite Zooey moment from either Season 1 or Season 2?
Savannah: One of my favorite moments from Season 1 is when I get possessed, and I get to crawl down the wall. That was so much fun. I got to do that stunt myself. I was hooked up and dangling from the wall. It was scary the first time I did it because I had to go onto a handstand, and then the guys are outside the room, pulling me up. I was a really bad Spider-Man, hanging upside down. It was so scary at first, but they were like, “We got you. You can push against the ropes.” After a few times, I got really comfortable with it. By the end of it, I was bouncing off the walls. That was a lot of fun.

PC: Episode 210 is the perfect bookend to the season, but leaves the door open for so many more stories to be told. If we’re lucky enough to get a Season 3, what else would you like to dive deeper into with Zooey?
Savannah: I am hoping so much for a third season because I would absolutely love to go play with everyone again. I would love to play Zooey again. It would be really fun to dive a bit more into Zooey’s personal life and see what skeletons she’s hiding and dig up some of her own ghosts. It’d be really interesting to see one of her own ghosts pop up. I love spooky stuff, so I’m like the spookier, the better. That would be fun. It’d be interesting to see a bit of everyone’s personal lives and more stuff with them at home. Maybe one of them will follow them home.

PC: You’re such an exciting voice in this industry. As you look ahead, is there a dream role that you’d love to bring to life either in front of or behind the camera?
Savannah: There are so many. That’s such a good question. Thank you so much. There are characters and stories that I’d love to bring to life. I’d love to explore different types of Horror. There’s some really interesting stuff that’s happening down in New Orleans, in terms of the culture and the mix of everything. That would be really fun. I’m also a huge fan of Season 1 of True Detective and that darker stuff.

There’s a book called A Promise is a Promise. It’s by Robert Munsch. It’s a ghost story and I think that would be really fun. I’d love to see more indigenous stories be told. There are some cool mythologies and lore there that I think could make incredible stories. I would love to be a part of it, maybe behind the scenes. Or maybe something like Mike Flanagan.

To keep up with Savannah, follow her on Instagram.The season finale of SurrealEstate air Wednesday at 12/6 at 10/9c.

Photo Credit: SYFY