Carrie Preston Says Her ‘Elsbeth’ Bags Are Key to the Character — But Causing a Real Physical Problem

Home TV News May 10, 2026 9:03am PT Carrie Preston Says Her ‘Elsbeth’ Bags Are Key to the Character — But Causing a Real Physical Problem Awards Circuit Podcast: “Elsbeth” star Carrie Preston on her show's unique spin on the whodunit and all those guest stars. Plus, the 10 Questions quiz. By Michael Schneider Plus Icon Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large franklinavenue Latest Tucker Carlson on ‘SNL’ Critiques the Met Gala and Slams the ‘Michael’ Movie for Ignoring ‘The Part When He Was a White Man’ 12 hours ago Pete Hegseth, Kash Patel and Justice Kavanaugh Hit the Bar Together to Celebrate Iran War, Alcohol on ‘SNL’ Cold Open 12 hours ago Ramy Youssef on Making Fox News Melt Down After He Taught Elmo Some Arabic Words on ‘Sesame Street’: ‘You Feel This Ramp-Up of Islamophobia’ 2 days ago See All Dan Doperalski for Variety On CBS’ “Elsbeth,” one of the title character’s defining quirks is the number of bags she carries around, usually to the scene of a crime. Star Carrie Preston tells Variety‘s Awards Circuit Podcast that it’s a bit of a heavy lift — pun intended. “Don’t ask any crew member to tell you what I really think about the bags at this point,” she says. “They are wonderful, and of course, they are part of the character. But logistically, carrying them around and taking them on and off my shoulders, we’ve had to really work on it — because I was starting to have some physical problems. Like, ‘got to go to physical therapy’ kind of issues. And so we had to figure out what we put in the bags to make them look like they have stuff in them — but be still light enough for me to have them on my shoulders all day long.” Related Stories Bad Bunny Transforms Into an Old Man for Shocking Met Gala Look