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Comedian and actor Sasheer Zamata is the hilarious, relatable witch that we have all been waiting for. In the ever-expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe, a new chapter unfolds in the magical, mysterious world of Agatha Harkness in the new Marvel and Disney+ series Agatha All Along. Following the breakout success of WandaVision, Agatha All Along dives into the life of the captivatingly complex witch, Agatha (played by Kathryn Hanh), who assembles a coven of diverse witches to take on Witches Road to help her get her powers back. Joining her on this journey is Sasheer Zamata, who steps into the role of Jennifer Kale, a powerful sorceress with deep ties to Marvel’s supernatural lore.
Zamata, known for her sharp comedic timing during her tenure on Saturday Night Live, is bringing new life to the beloved Marvel Cinematic Universe. Her character, Jennifer, stands out for being a hero in her own right, despite living in a world of spells and ancient incantations. While other Marvel witches might immediately conjure images of existence like Scarlet Witch, who can bend reality with a mere thought, Jen’s magic is different. It’s less about magic hands and non-human abilities– she doesn’t possess the wild, otherworldly powers fans have come to expect from the MCU’s supernatural characters. Instead, Jennifer is someone who has been stripped of her magic, left to rely on wit, resilience, and centuries-old skills to survive.
Schön! recently sat down with Sasheer Zamata to discuss her own witchy lore, how exactly she prepared to take on the role of Jennifer Kale, and what she hopes fans take away from the wonderful witches in Agatha All Along.
First off, congratulations on your upcoming role in the Disney+ and Marvel series, Agatha All Along! How excited are you for fans to finally see the show?
I’m so, so excited. We finished shooting this last June, and I have been waiting for this moment – it felt like forever, but we’re finally here! This show is a dream for me – witches, magic, Marvel – it really is all the things that I love in one package. I would be a fan of the show if I wasn’t even a part of it, so I’m just so ready for other people to see it too.
This project is vastly different from your previous roles. How did this one come about? Was being a part of a Marvel franchise something you’ve always wanted to do?
Yes! This definitely is quite a departure for me – I am a comedian, an actress and all the things, but my background is mostly in comedy. So, to be asked to be a part of this, I assumed I was going to be the comedic relief of the show. I do have funny moments for sure, but there’s a lot of drama and a lot of horror elements in this show. It’s really a mix of everything. I got to do things in this show that weren’t required of me in many other shows, and I’m so glad because I was really able to stretch my range and flex my muscles in a show like this, and I hope that more of that keeps happening! I was already a fan of Marvel before I entered the universe – I was a fan of Wandavision, I was a fan of a lot of the movies, and I always wanted to be a part of the MCU in some sort of way, and to be able to enter in this kind of show is really amazing.
In the comics, Jennifer Kale is known for being heroic, a role model and a hero in her own right. Was there something specific that stood out to you when reading for the role?
The thing about the MCU is that they take inspiration from the comics, and they morph and shift the stories for the cinematic universe, and so there are definitely influences of Jennifer Kale from her comic history, but we definitely did craft kind of a different type of character for this show, and I hope people like it! I love playing her. She’s very sarcastic, kind of prim and proper, and very begrudgingly going on this journey and literally getting her hands dirty. It’s so fun to play a character like that, and you really kind of see her and the rest of the coven unravel through this journey. I think it’s really fascinating to see where she ends up compared to where she started this journey.
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Without giving any spoilers, what can you tell us about Jennifer Kale and her story in this series?
Well, when you meet Jen she’s a self-care guru. She’s like a health influencer, and she’s a potions witch, so she’s been using a lot of that knowledge for profit. She’s kind of felt a little bit on the outskirts of the witch community, and when Agatha tries to recruit Jen into this mission, Jen is really skeptical because Agatha has proven herself to be very distrustful for centuries. Jen is kind of distrustful of people in general, so it is kind of a leap for her to really trust anybody, and that’s kind of what she has to go through on this mission. She has to try to open herself up to other people that she doesn’t know or trust. I think people are going to really like seeing the adventure and the growth that Jen goes through.
I imagine that preparing for a role in a Marvel series would be a little different than most other acting jobs. Was there anything specific you did in preparation for bringing Jennifer Kale to life?
Well, it’s nice to be on a show like this because all of the writers and producers are really nerdy about witches, and I am too, so I was already doing research of witch history and lore for my own stand-up. I was already writing material on this for my special, and then when I got the call to audition and actually got cast for the show, I remember emailing the producers and being like “do you realize you hired a witch?” [laughs] It’s crazy. We knew we wanted to incorporate the science and alchemy and chemistry aspects to my character, and so we were all kind of researching things like– what are the historical elements of witches and medicine and healing powers? It was so fun to be able to send articles back and forth between me and the producers about different things we read, or documentaries we would watch, or if there was a specific podcast we listened to. It’s my kind of learning– it’s my jam, and I felt so lucky to be able to work with these kinds of people who agreed.
Yes! Are you a fan of the movie Practical Magic at all?
I am a very big fan of Practical Magic!
Yes! Watching your character in the bits that I’ve seen so far– Jen reminds me so much of Sally and Gillian from that movie!
Ohhh – I love that! I can definitely see the similarities there.
Other than the historical research you did for the show, were there any other witchy movies or series that you pulled inspiration from for your character?
I don’t know if there were any other series that I used to help with this show in particular, but I am a big fan of many witch things in the media! I loved American Horror Story: Coven, especially Angela Bassett’s portrayal of Marie Laveau– that blew my mind. Hocus Pocus obviously, Sabrina the Teenage Witch– it’s so nice that we’ve already experienced so many different types of witches in the media, and I think what’s great about this show is that you’re going to see a lot of different types of witches in one show, and I hope that when people watch it, they themselves can identify with a witch, or many witches in this show. I hope that they can take away that they can also access their own magic within.
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I know you can’t speak much on what happens in the show outside of what has been shown in the trailer, but can you tell us what it was like behind the scenes working with such an incredible cast? Do you have any favourite memories from your time filming?
I mean, the cast is so, so great. It’s really wild how talented everybody is. It was so nice to be on a project where everyone really brought their A-game and really wanted this project to be the best, and I think it shows. It was just a fun crew to be a part of, we really did form a coven. We had a coven text chain and we would all text each other when there was a full moon [laughs] or retrograde. I think one of my favourite memories – well most of my favourite moments involves Patti Lupone if I’m being honest. She’s such a joy, she’s so funny, and out of everyone she probably has the most energy. It’s astounding, we would always be like “are you tired?” and if she was, we would never be able to tell. One really funny moment was– you know, we would have to sit on our cast chairs, sometimes in a tent, sometimes in a corner of a stage, and towards the end of shooting we all wanted to lay down. Patti kept joking, but not joking, about wanting to get an equity cot, which is a thing in theatre where it’s in your contract to get a cot to sleep on or nap on when you have like eight shows in a week. It’s not necessarily a thing that you get when you’re shooting a television show [laughs] but she was like, ‘we’re going to make this happen.’ She just kept demanding, out loud, “we need an equity cot!” Eventually, someone got us a cot!
The wardrobe in this show also has some fabulous looks from what I’ve seen in the trailer and the first couple of episodes. Do you have a favourite look from your character’s wardrobe that you can tell us about?
Honestly, they’re all so great. When we go into this kind of 70s vibe, I have a Donna Summer-esque look where my hair is really long and fluffy and I have a flower crown. My dress is really long and flowy and I have these high boots with tassels on them, which made a lot of noise when I was walking [laughs] so I had to kind of be still when we were shooting. That was a really fun look because I’ve never looked like that in my life, or even for other shows I’ve never needed to look like that, so it was fun to be able to dip into a whole new world.
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I know, even if it may not be allowed, a lot of actors like to take a little memento from their character. Did you happen to keep anything of Jen’s?
I sure did [laughs] when you first met me, we’re in my self-care store, and I have a candle that I use as my prop, and so I took the candle home!
I love it when actors create playlists for their characters to listen to before work or when preparing for a role. Did you make a character playlist for Jen? If so, what kind of songs did you have on it?
I don’t necessarily have a playlist, but I do feel like I listened to a lot of Fleetwood Mac when I was there. It felt so appropriate and the perfect theme to what we were doing. It also just got me in a nice groovy vibe.
I have to ask – I know in previous interviews you’ve talked about your time during the Disney College Program. I actually did the DCP in Disney World in 2007 and 2008.
Wait, we may have been there at the same time!
No way, really?!
I’m pretty sure I also did it in 2007!
Oh my gosh no way– I lived in Chatham Square.
Yeah, so did I!
I have so many amazing memories from those days! What was your favourite memory during those times?
So, I was a character performer, but I also did puppets! I was the Sebastian puppet in The Little Mermaid Show! It was really fun to do. We had to be dressed in all black because they painted the puppets in this black light paint, and we would walk on stage in complete darkness and so you couldn’t see the humans, ideally you just see the puppets. But, the way the theatre was laid out, the only door if there was an emergency was to the outside. So you’d open this one door during the show and sunlight would just pour into the room, and you would see all of these adults that were just cloaked in black, carrying puppets [laughs] it really ruins the magic. It only happened once when I was there, but it was just a really funny thing.
During those times, did you ever imagine that you’d be a part of a Disney show now?
I mean, I was hoping! I actually thought that because I did the Disney College program I would have an ‘in’ [laughs] like Disney knows me, we’re besties! I remember auditioning for a Tokyo Disney show after I did the College Program, because I was on whatever email list that would get email breakdowns for acting opportunities, and they were looking for a big band jazz singer for Tokyo Disney. I had never sung jazz, it was not in my wheelhouse [laughs] but I was like ‘this is what I’m gonna do!’ I went to New York and auditioned, and did not get called back. I was like – hold up, Disney is my family! I thought I had an ‘in’. They couldn’t care less [laughs] but then later I had many Disney jobs, and I’m so glad.
I was going to say, I think you’re doing fine now! [laughs]
Yes, it all worked out!
You’ve always been outspoken about feminism and women’s empowerment and have tied that into a lot of the work you’ve done. Marvel and Disney have done such a great job with this series in the sense that the story is about combining the powers of strong, incredible women to help another woman who has lost her powers. What message do you hope fans walk away with after watching Agatha All Along?
I hope that people watch this show feeling like you can do anything with a group of people who love you. There’s definitely strength in numbers, and there’s also strength within. I hope that people feel like there’s a little bit of magic in all of us.
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Agatha All Along is streaming now on Disney+.
photography. Kim Newmoney
fashion. Taylor Orear
talent. Sasheer Zamata
interview. Rachel Martin
