We caught our first glimpse of Officer Crane during the season premiere episode and now she’s back for more in tonight’s episode, “Over the Mountain.” Office Crane is the tough prison guard at Harlan County Jail who watches over the incarcerated Ava Crowder (Joelle Carter), wife of bad-boy Boyd Crowder (Walton Goggins).
In real-life Arriane is nothing like the burly character she portrays. The 6-foot tall blonde beauty recently appeared on the ABC drama “Grey’s Anatomy” and prior to that earned fans for her one-woman show, “Big, Blonde & Beautiful.”
Arriane plays down her looks for “Justified,” explaining, “I always want to do what is best for the character and be as real as I can in that character's skin. When I showed a friend a pic of my outfit from set, she said ‘Where are your smokey eyes and your curves?" There’s an up-side to these types of roles Arriane discovered, “Well, it definitely takes less time in the hair and makeup chair! It is great fun to be glamorous and sexy for roles, but that is everywhere in Hollywood. It is almost more fun to play tough and rough. And, the shoes I get to wear are more comfortable than stilettos!”
The talented actress seems to be enjoying the opportunity to flex her muscles as an actor, “It is so much fun to play against my type. As an actor, I love when I get roles that I have to look completely different than my normal every-day looks. That is the fun of being an actor -- getting to play dress-up every day for different roles.”
Arriane pulled from her real-life experiences to prep for the “Justified” role, “I didn't have to rob any banks or do anything illegal to get inside the system and see what's it like in jail -- haha....But, I have had real-life experience in a prison. I have volunteered many times at Valley State Prison for Women, which is maximum security prison in Northern California. The volunteer project is called Freedom To Choose, and it's a life-changing experience for the inmates and volunteers.”
