Pastures New
With
Amanda Seyfried
Her star turn as disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes in The Dropout has already led to an Emmy nod – and a penchant for meatier roles as a character actor. Here, AMANDA SEYFRIED talks to TYLER McCALL about her unassuming life away from the spotlight, and how longevity, luck, and learning the art of inner confidence continue to shape her
It’s a scorching summer day in New York City, one with the kind of humidity that could turn just about anyone into a diva. But when Amanda Seyfried slips into a booth in a neighborhood French bistro, she’s full of smiles as she settles in. She’s feeling particularly appreciative at the moment – at work and at home.
“I’ve never gone a day without feeling like I’ve worked really hard,” she reflects – a life that she feels “very grateful” to have. “I have no entitlement. I mean, I’m entitled to respect, I think; we all are. But I have no entitlement issues. I have many strokes of luck and a lot of hard work and a lot of being in the right place at the right time. I understand all of that.”
“I have no entitlement ISSUES. I have many strokes of luck and a lot of HARD work and a lot of being in the right PLACE at the right time”
This seems to sum up the actor’s modus operandi to keep herself grounded. She’s close with her family and to a circle of friends outside of the industry, and she centers her life in an idyllic, pastoral setting far from the Hollywood crowds: home is a farm in upstate New York, which she shares with her husband, actor Thomas Sadoski, their two children, and a crew of rescue animals. They’ve got an apartment in the city, too, but that’s really just a crash pad for when the couple are here for work. Case in point: they’re both currently shooting The Crowded Room, an Apple TV+ drama anthology from Akiva Goldsman.
“I want to be at home; I don’t [always] want to be at work,” Seyfried says. “When I am at work, I’m having a great time – and then really fucking great shit happens [when] people see your work and they want to give you an award for it, or a nomination for it.”
“Maybe it’s JUST that I was born to play that type of person… maybe it’s a one-off. But I don’t THINK it is. I want to be a character actor and I want to PLAY different people”
It’s only been a couple of days since Seyfried landed an Outstanding Lead Actress Emmy nod (her first) for her portrayal of Elizabeth Holmes – the now-infamous founder of health-tech company Theranos, who was recently convicted of criminal fraud – in Hulu’s The Dropout. The series debuted earlier this year to wide acclaim, with critics hailing Seyfried’s performance as a career best. Viewers vaulted the show into viral status, particularly a so-awkward-you-can’t-look-away dance set to Lil Wayne’s How to Love. “So proud to [go] viral with something that was so incredibly fun to shoot,” she says with a grin.
As rewarding as the reaction has been, the potential for personal acclaim isn’t what attracted he