Halle Berry on role as pregnant astronaut in new series "Extant"

Halle Berry is now taking herself into space, and television. In the new CBS sci-fi thriller "Extant," Berry plays an astronaut who returns from a year-long solitary space mission, pregnant.

"When I read it, I thought, wow, what an amazing character," Berry told CBS News. "That's what I'm looking for: a new challenge. Something I hadn't done before. This Sci-Fi was so rooted in family and grounded, and the characters were complicated indeed. I thought hmm, this could be really wonderful."

This is Berry's scripted television premiere, and she is thrilled about the jump to a new medium.

"I have never looked at TV as a negative," Berry said. "As I was doing well in my movie career, I always came back to do television movies. I go where the work is. I go where the characters are. And I'm happy that other people are starting to do the same thing. The lines are blurring."

As far as the main character's unexplained pregnancy goes, Berry isn't giving away any secrets.

"You find out, but slowly," Berry said. "It's very mysterious, it's very suspenseful, and there are many twists and turns along the way getting to that resolve."

This is the actress's first time working closely with Stephen Spielberg, who is executive producing the show, and she is very excited about the experience.

"He is wonderful," Berry said. "And nobody knows the genre better than Stephen Spielberg."

Berry is known in Hollywood not just for her dynamic roles, but also for backing an anti-paparazzi bill which is now a California law.

"I did it because I had no choice, and when you have no choice you attack something from a different way," Berry said. "I couldn't take no for an answer because living the life we were living, with the crush of paparazzi from my kids, just wasn't gonna work."

And according to Berry, the law is working.

"I have had no paparazzi since January first, since that law went into play," Berry said. "I was in the LA airport the other day, paparazzi ran up, my security guy said 'she has her baby with her,' and they walked away."

Berry's new show "Extant" is premiering July 9 on CBS.