Carrie Preston Reveals Why Elsbeth Always Has Many Tote Bags

Fans of Elsbeth have been curious about the character’s peculiar habit of carrying bags everywhere. Carrie Preston, who plays Elsbeth Tascioni, recently shared why this detail is vital to understanding the character.

Elsbeth Tascioni, introduced in The Good Wife, has evolved from an eccentric individual into a uniquely memorable character. She initially appears to be a scatterbrained woman, easily distracted and constantly babbling, leading many to dismiss her. However, her exceptional legal prowess becomes apparent when she steps into the courtroom, consistently winning cases.

This character trait continued in the spinoff The Good Fight, with Preston earning an Emmy Award for her role. Now, Elsbeth has her own show on CBS, set in New York City, where she aids the police and delves into murder cases. Her quirky mind helps her uncover clues to catch the killers.

The show has been a success, quickly earning a second season, praised for its unique twists. Viewers see the killer from the beginning and experience the thrill of watching Elsbeth piece together the puzzle. Her distinctive style remains, including her bright-colored suits and a peculiar tendency to carry tote bags almost everywhere, some of which are quite large. This, as it turns out, is a deliberate character choice.

While Elsbeth carried some bags in her appearances on The Good Wife, this trait has been amplified in her spinoff. Elsbeth is often seen carrying multiple and sometimes sizable bags, to the point where other characters comment on this odd habit.

“[She] was like, ‘I think she needs to be always carrying a bunch of things, with all of her papers in there.’ So it became a really fun accessory, but it also became a real insight into how her brain works. She has a lot of ‘bags’ in her brain, if you know what I mean, a lot of compartments. She’s constantly going back and picking out little things that she saw 20 years ago and going, ‘I can use that here,'” Preston shared in discussing the creation of this trait.

This feature carried over to the spinoff series as Elsbeth requires more and larger bags while handling murder cases, necessitating more “room” to take in clues. The bags also serve a practical purpose in producing evidence.

Preston shared another clever touch regarding the bags, revealing a subtle hint for viewers about when Elsbeth is about to catch the killer.

“Once I have got the killer and I’m ready to go in and frame them, I don’t have the bags. In those final scenes, when I come in to bring in everybody to arrest the murderer, I don’t need those [bags] anymore,” Preston explained.

Indeed, paying close attention to episodes of Elsbeth reveals that Elsbeth stops carrying the bags just before she unveils the killer and their methods. Notably, in the season finale, where the killer’s identity is hidden from the audience, Elsbeth’s baggage becomes significantly larger to handle the more complex case.

This nuanced detail adds depth to the character and provides fans with an intriguing insight to watch for. It’s one of the many reasons why Elsbeth has resonated so well with viewers, and hopefully, this continues into season 2.

Elsbeth season 2 premieres Thursday, Oct. 17 at 10/9c on CBS.

Source: TVLine, CBS