Some of the biggest stars of the year’s most celebrated shows enter our photo booth—which was inspired by Andy Warhol’s famed series of Polaroid portraits—and share insights into their work
Photography by Davey James Clarke
Adam Scott, “Severance”
“When we started shooting the first season, I got there and saw the sets and how full the world was. And seeing the props and costumes and everything. The thing that first occurred to me was, ‘If I’m gonna do this right, I have to take everything that I’ve learned so far in 32 years or whatever, and I have to use all of it to play the role properly.’ What’s the Liam Neeson thing from Taken? All the skills that I’ve acquired.”
Uzo Aduba, “The Residence “
“From the first script, I could very loudly hear [Cordelia Cupp’s] voice, I could hear her cadence, I could hear how she processed information. There could be a kiss of lipstick on a glass and from that she would be able to extract all of this information about who took a sip out of that glass. Why does she know that? Then I realized: Oh, she processes information quickly. Well, why? She’s really, really smart. Why is she so excited about that thing? Because she loves her job. When those wheels start spinning, that gets me excited to know more about this person and how she came to be.”
Aimee Lou Wood, “The White Lotus”
“If you had an actual douche playing Saxon, it wouldn’t work. The reason why you’re patient with him is you do see [Patrick’s] goodness shining through. You do see his potential.”
Patrick Schwarzenegger, “The White Lotus”
“When [Aimee Lou Wood and Charlotte Le Bon’s characters] are telling me about the threesome… Aimee decides to grab an apple. Little does she know she has to eat apples for the next eight hours straight. I’m spiraling out of control and [she’s] just chomping on this apple, and it’s such a beautiful metaphor.”
Alan Cumming, “The Traitors”
“I don’t think there’s ever too much—thus far, anyway—when it comes to my costumes. Some of the ideas, I think, ‘Oh, my God, that’s insane.’ And then the more I think, ‘Eh, fine.’ I don’t believe that less is more, clearly.”
Noah Wyle, “The Pitt “
“I was really moved by the letters I was getting [from ER fans who went into medicine], I was really moved by the stories they were telling me, and I was really bothered that I was no longer relevant. I wanted to inspire another generation to go into this work because we need them. The ones that are there are burning out. And I wanted to both identify the problem that they were telling me and to try to come up with some methodologies and solutions, both practically for hospital flow and emotionally for practitioners’ health, that we could put into the universe as a medicinal aid.”
Ben Stiller, “Severance”
“I’d never done a series [with a second season] before, how you sort of build out the story and the world and keep it going was an interesting experience. The thing in television is if you do a season that people like, it’s not over. It’s like, ‘OK, now make a second season and make it hopefully better. And different. And surprising.’”
Stephen Graham, “Adolescence”
“Acting is not a game of golf; it’s a team sport. It’s a proper game of footie.”
Melanie Lynskey, “Yellowjackets”
“I feel really lucky to be on a show where three seasons in, I can still be surprised by the character and the choices being made and the craziness of it all. If I have to get a plumber, I’ll read every review of every single plumber. I don’t make any decision lightly. So it’s fun to play someone who gets 50% of the information and then just acts upon it.”
Michael Urie, “Shrinking”
“I play this character named Brian and throughout Season 1 his catchphrase was, ‘Everything goes my way.’ Then in Season 2, they started referring to me as a narcissist. They would be giving direction, ‘Don’t forget, you’re a narcissist.’ And I was like, ‘Am I?’ I started to freak out. Had I been layering this in? Is this part of the fabric of my character? After Season 2 came out, a stranger said, ‘I love that show, and I’m a therapist. You, you’re such a narcissist.’ And I was like, ‘OK, I guess I’ve been layering it in.’ I guess a narcissist doesn’t know they’re a narcissist, and an actor playing a narcissist doesn’t know they’re a narcissist. Weird.”
Julianne Nicholson, “Paradise”
“We thought we were making a fun, escapist, sci-if thriller and even questioned the believability of [my politically well-connected billionaire character] Sinatra being in the Oval Office. We had no idea how close we were [to reality].”
Jessica Williams, “Shrinking”
“I started getting therapy in general [when] I was 18. In the beginning, there wasn’t really that much known about [my character] Gaby. They wanted her to be a therapist that felt fun and someone that would make viewers go, ‘Where do I find a therapist like that?’ I think Gaby is the best therapist of the bunch, but I’m so biased.”
Sharon Horgan,“Bad Sisters”
“The show’s about grief and loss in the second season. I’d recently lost my dad. I felt that anything that was emotional I would just go to pieces. … In this [one] scene, my character is dealing with something that’s so huge and awful. How do I make it to the point where I break down? You go into the scene tense and ready for it, but you have to hold it back until you get to that moment. I found that really hard.”
Billy Bob Thornton, “Landman”
Sterling K. Brown, “Paradise”
Andy Garcia, “Landman”
Credits
Fashion Editor: Michaela Dosamantes.
Market Editor Daniel Victoria Gleason
Fashion Assistants Natalia Zamudio
