What You Need to Know About Mira Sorvino's Character in Sound of Freedom (2024)

Actress Mira Sorvino has steadily made her mark in the film industry since the early '90s, appearing in over 20 films, including Mighty Aphrodite (1995), Summer of Sam (1999), The Final Cut (2004), and Netflix's After We Fell (2021). Known for her artistic range and authenticity in her performances, Sorvino has continued to take on significant roles in recent years. This includes Sound of Freedom (2023), a film that follows a former CIA agent named Tim Ballard who decides to go on a mission to rescue children from human traffickers in Latin America.

Katherine Ballard, Tim's wife, is played by Sorvino. Based on the true story of Tim's mission, Katherine provides unwavering support to Tim as he embarks on a dangerous journey. The film is controversial and dramatized, with push back against its alleged ties to QAnon and right-wing ideologies. Nonetheless, Sorvino's portrayal of Katherine has sparked awareness and conversations that have led to changes in her personal and professional life.

The Role of Katherine in Sound of Freedom

Several scenes in Sound of Freedom highlight Sorvino's ability to display the patience, care, and confidence that Katherine provided for Tim and their family. In one scene, Katherine grabs Tim's hand at breakfast as he processes the horrific discoveries that he made at work and asks him if he's okay. In another, Tim and Katherine express deep pain as they imagine their children being taken and sold into child trafficking. Tim says to her, "Imagine walking into a room right now and seeing an empty bed. What would we do?." These moments strengthen their bond as the film progresses.

Katherine takes care of their young children, ensuring that they are safe and well-fed and that they get to school on time. There's a specific moment in which Katherine tells Tim on the phone, "Okay, so you quit your job, and you go rescue those kids." This is when things really change; Tim leaves the CIA and goes to Columbia, where he eventually attempts to rescue an 11-year-old girl and bring her back home to her family. Katherine supports him whenever needed as he is making decisions abroad. In the end credits of the film, it mentions that Tim "credits his wife Katherine for the whole endeavor."

Mira Sorvino on Katherine and Child Trafficking

In general, the film's release resulted in mixed reviews, particularly regarding how accurately the film depicted the story that it's based on. Some fans expressed how they wished that Katherine had a more prominent presence in the film, as they felt like the impact she had in real life did not match how Angel Studios portrayed the character. However, Sorvino did an interview with iHollywood TV where she talked about the character and the large-scale impact that playing Katherine had on her life:

"...just mind-boggling to me that we are allowing on our watch people to live in this horrendously exploited way whether it's labor trafficking or sex trafficking, and the worst, of course, is child sex trafficking, which this film addresses."

In the interview, Sorvino mentions that her first role in a human trafficking film project was in a Lifetime miniseries called Human Trafficking in 2005, which opened her eyes to the horrors of the industry. Sorvino goes on to talk about her first encounter with Tim Ballard, stating that she had always noticed his fight against child sex trafficking ever since she became an anti-trafficking ambassador for the UN in 2009. It is with this desire to spread awareness in mind that she accepted the role of Katherine, and was dedicated to portraying her character with urgency and care. She then complimented the film's contribution to the cause in her interview.

I'm hoping that this film contributes to a global heart [and] head change because you're really going to fall in love with the children featured in this movie. They're so soulful and empathetic. I'm a mother of four; you see your own children in them. This [film] is high art, it's beautiful... I have a very small part in it, so don't expect to see a lot of me in it but... you might cry, and you might be inspired to take action yourself.

Sorvino views her role as Katherine as a great opportunity to continue discussing these issues for a broad platform. She mentions that there needs to be more prevention and action taken so that children are protected, as well as a morality check across the world inside the heads and hearts of humanity. She will keep on highlighting the issue as she continues her versatile and well-established acting career.

Sound of Freedom

2.5/5

PG-13

Release Date

July 4, 2023

Director

Alejandro Gomez Monteverde

Cast

Jim Caviezel , Mira Sorvino , Bill Camp

Runtime

2hr 11min

Main Genre

Drama