Christina Ricci, the leading lady of the new Amazon Prime series’s Z: The Story of Everything, opened up to Net-A-Porter in this week’s The Edit. The former child star revealed what it was like finding fame at such a young age and why she’s thankful modern technology didn’t exist then. She also discussed how she navigated her career as she got older and how becoming a mother and a wife has transformed her outlook on life. Ricci was shot by Steven Pan and styled by Tracy Taylor in Monse (which she also wore to this year’s Golden Globes), Loewe, Proenza Schouler, Carmen March, and Ann Demeulemeester, and divulges what it’s like trying to find the right fit for her 5’1″ frame. Take a peek below to find out how Ricci’s talent and perseverance took her from the 8-year-old star of one of Hollywood’s biggest franchises, The Addams Family, to the lead in a series on one of today’s top streaming services.
Christina Ricci on being grateful for social media’s late start…
“I did things in public that were so ill-advised. I’m so thankful there was no social media back then. My publicist never had a child, I believe, because she had promised her firstborn to so many journalists to quash stories about me. But I had no sense of reality, because I was plucked out of reality when I was eight years old.”
On marriage, motherhood and shedding immaturity…
“Marriage shows you your flaws in how you deal with things, and having a child forces you to grow up at the speed of light. I’m a completely different person than I was before I had my child. Because I was so celebrated for being a child, I think I held onto that immaturity for a very long time. It was the thing that made me special. Then at a certain point, like 35, it’s not so special to be immature.”
On breaking away from Hollywood’s control…
[Having just spoken about the cancellation of Pan Am in 2012 and then being fired from another TV show at the read-through stage] “I was actively looking for opportunities for myself. It was really horrifying and unpleasant, and I felt like I had been used. Since I was a child, I’d been doing what other people told me to, and I decided, that’s not for me anymore. I’m going to shape my own experiences.”
On her first role as a leading lady…
“I’ve never been cast in this sort of romantic lead. I’m not a traditional leading lady. In life people look different, but in movies there is a certain standard of beauty. It doesn’t bother me that people didn’t see me that way, because I did see myself that way.”
On the difference between “bravery” and “lack of consideration”...
“Zelda [Fitzgerald] and I share a lack of forethought. People call it bravery, but it’s not; it’s a total lack of consideration of the downsides. She made a lot of choices early on that were easy and then she paid for them later.”
On the dangers of sugarcoating the truth to kids…
“When I was a child, I was told ‘Life is just not fair, honey, and you’ve got to make the best of it.’ I don’t think anyone is telling their kids that anymore, and it’s important. Life isn’t fair; the right thing doesn’t always happen for you.”
On balancing acting with structure…
“There’s so much downtime with being an actor, that if you don’t create structure and routine for yourself, you will lose your mind. I write packing lists, I check things off, I get to the airport early. That’s who I am.”
On going blonde for Z: The Beginning of Everything…
“I’d secretly wanted to go blonde for a really long time. I actually wear a lot of wigs in Z…, but I used it as an excuse, and I’m shocked by how much I love it. It’s like the way little girls love sparkles – it’s just such a pretty color.”
On dressing appropriately for both size and age…
“I love looking like a ‘lady’. There’s nothing I like more than a tiny little Chanel suit and big jewelry. I’m 5”1 so I’m obsessed with proportion – I really have to have a waist, or it has to be super-short…and I am too old now to wear anything super-short without feeling ridiculous.”
