AGAINST THE WALL: Rachael Carpani on Cops, Brothers, & Booty Calls

It’s no secret around here that I’m a fan of Rachael Carpani, stretching back to her work on McLeod’s Daughters, the long-running Australian drama she starred in for several years. Following her turn as Jodi McLeod, Rachael came to the U.S. to work and quickly landed a leading role on Cane, starring Jimmy Smits. Unfortunately that show was short-lived, but Rachael has made several guest appearances on shows since, including a stint on partner Matt Passmore’s A&E series The Glades. Now Rachael is leading a series of her own, Lifetime’s new cop/family drama Against the Wall.

I recently had the opportunity to join a few other reporters in a round-table chat with Rachael, and was so pleased to find her just as delightful as I’d imagined. Cheerful and bubbly, thoughtful and a bit provocative, it’s difficult to imagine anyone else playing Abby Kowalski. Rachael quite happily admits that she chased the role after falling in love with the character in the script.

“What I like about Abby is that she’s flawed, like all of us, but she has an inability to hide those flaws,” Rachael chuckles. “I thought that would be interesting to play, a woman who’s actually quite capable and strong and independent in so many ways, and then an absolute klutz and ridiculous in other ways. I thought that might be a nice contrast, to play someone completely imperfect. I remember saying to my managers, please get me in on this role!”

She recorded her audition late one night while living in Miami with Passmore (The Glades films in South Florida), praying that it would arrive in time for consideration. At first it appeared she’d missed the opportunity, but then she was called out to Los Angeles to audition.

It’s hard not to cheer alongside Rachael when she jubilantly says, “I went out there, I auditioned, they liked me and I got it!”

The youngest of four children, and the only girl, Abby is from a family of Chicago police officers and spent some time on patrol herself before making detective. The only opening for a detective is in Internal Affairs, so despite knowing her family will be furious, Abby decides to further her career by taking the job and face the consequence.  This strength of will pervades every part of Abby’s life and is the characteristic Rachael most likes about the character.

“Some may call it unbelievable stubbornness, but I like to see it as this unbreakable strong will that when she does decide to do something, when she does make a decision about something, she sticks with it,” Rachael explains. “She’s made a decision to join IA, and she does it even though her family is upset. She’s made a very clear decision about how she’s going to live her private life and no one’s going to convince her otherwise. I like the way that she marches on through, and to Hell with the consequences.”

Family dynamics are at the heart of Against the Wall, despite the precinct setting and cases of the week. Abby is particularly close to her mother, played by Kathy Baker, and most episodes end with a scene featuring mother and daughter. Abby is also quite close to her brother Richie, played by Brandon Quinn. Currently mired in an IA investigation after fatally shooting a 15-year-old boy at the end of the first episode, Richie is finding it difficult to confide in his sister. In Sunday’s episode, the pressure of their strained relationship starts to show, even as Abby is confronted with an offer to make the case “go away” by the lecherous investigating officer.

Just as Abby’s relationship with her family starts to return to normal and they accept her new job, more drama starts to erupt. By going against the grain in this area, Abby seems to have created a snowball effect of changes as more startling revelations coming to light. Rachael was mum on what kinds of changes, but I suspect one of the Kowalski brothers is hiding a  pretty big secret.

It’s not all work and no play for Abby, though. Richie’s partner Brody is on permanent speed dial for a little diversion, unbeknownst to anyone else in the family.

“She isn’t the first person I’d pick to say that she’d have a permanent booty call going, but it certainly makes her interesting!”

Against the Wall airs Sundays at 10/9c on Lifetime.