Looking for the right Anne involved a massive talent search across Canada, which spanned several cities and saw 2,000 auditions. Originally, famous American actress Katherine Hepburn called Kevin, recommending her grand niece Schuyler Grant (who ended up playing Diana Barry). However, since the film was a Canadian production, based on an iconic Canadian character, it was felt that the lead actress should be found within the country.
When it came to considering Megan, Kevin had a few of her auditions to judge from. As Megan recalls (in the video below), almost a year went by after her first audition before she was asked to come to Toronto to give another one, in costume. So Megan flew to Toronto, (although she missed her first flight), did her audition – the reading of which lasted from about 6 p.m. to midnight – and was videotaped. Megan recalls that when it came time to actually film the scenes she auditioned with she still remembered all the dialogue.
Megan felt so relieved when she returned home to her house in Toronto that night. But the process was not over. The next morning, she got a phone call and was told that the sound and image of her audition tape wasn’t working. She would have to audition again.
It didn’t help matters when the pipes actually burst in her home. And with only three hours or so before her flight left for L.A., Megan arrived at the audition feeling less than calm. “I got there pretty haggled and harassed,” she laughs.
Megan was actually feeling “really frazzled,” Kevin remembers. But those feelings of unease actually worked to her advantage, he says. “Because she was so beside herself, she gave a great performance.”
And Megan would continue to give great performances throughout the filming of the series. See part of her actual audition below!
