Rachel McAdams talks ‘guilt’ over two-year acting break at the top of her career to ‘stay sane’
Rachel McAdams admits she still feels “guilty” about taking a two-year break from Hollywood, at the height of her career in the mid-2010s, to “stay sane.”
While reflecting on her shock decision to turn down starring roles in The Devil Wears Prada, Casino Royale, Mission: Impossible III, Iron Man and Get Smart, the 44-year-old actress revealed that her break left her wondering if she’s “throwing used to be’. it all gone.’
“I felt guilty for not taking the opportunity I was given because I knew I was in such a lucky place,” she confessed. “But I also knew it didn’t quite match my personality and what I needed to stay healthy.”
Despite occasionally regretting not taking on a role, the Academy Award nominee said she always took a step back and thought, “That was the right person for it.”
During her brief hiatus from acting, the mother-of-two, who shares a son and daughter with longtime partner Jamie Linden, said she wasn’t initially sure “why” she was taking time off.
Open book: Rachel McAdams admits she still feels ‘guilty’ about taking a two-year break from Hollywood, at the height of her career in the mid-2010s, to ‘stay sane’
Scary: While reflecting on her shocking decision to turn down starring roles in The Devil Wears Prada, Casino Royale, Mission: Impossible III, Iron Man, and Get Smart, the 44-year-old actress revealed that her break left her wondering if she was ‘throw everything away’
“I felt guilty for not taking the opportunity I was given because I knew I was in such a lucky place,” she confessed. ‘But I also knew it didn’t quite match my personality and what I needed to stay healthy’
“It took years to understand what I was doing intuitively,” McAdams explained Rushnodding to prioritize her mental health as she struggled to navigate fame at a young age.
She continued: I think I always felt like I was going to be okay; it will be fine or not.’
In the end, she credits her acting breaks over the years for “really” helping her “feel stronger.”
“It made me feel like I was taking back some control. And I think that allowed me to get in through another door,” she added.
Later, the artist stated that she felt like an “overnight” sensation by becoming a household name after her roles in Mean Girls, The Notebook, and Wedding Crashers.
The transition from a recent York University graduate, who worked at a McDonald’s for three years, to an A-lister was shocking.
‘You don’t go to theater school to learn how to deal with that. There’s no book on how to deal with that,” she said, referring to public acknowledgment and having fans ask for selfies.
Before she became a movie star, the Game Night actress was a promising figure skater, eventually branching out into pair skating.
Good prospects: Despite occasionally regretting not taking on a role, the Academy Award nominee said she always took a step back and thought, “That was the right person for it”
Just what she needed: During her brief hiatus from acting, the mum-of-two, who shares a son and daughter with longtime partner Jamie Linden, said she initially didn’t know ‘why’ she was taking time off
“It took me years to understand what I was doing intuitively,” McAdams explained to Bustle, nodding to prioritize her mental health as she struggled to navigate fame at a young age.
“I remember there was an older guy who did all the dance tests with the younger girls. We were all madly in love with him, and he was probably gay,” she mused of her childhood sweetheart. “You’re already shaking because you’re taking a test and you want to pass, then it’s freezing cold and a 16-year-old boy is sliding you across the ice.”
The Ontario native joked about being “disappointed” by her “first bra” and “ruthless boys.”
“I wanted a leopard print, but it was more of a bandeau top with a little white bow,” she recalls.
When her parents asked if she wanted to drop out of school and move to Toronto to pursue more serious, higher-level figure skating, she said, “This actually sounds awful.”
“I wanted to be with my friends and do it for fun,” she said.
Famous: The artist later stated that she became a household name after her roles in Mean Girls, The Notebook, and Wedding Crashers, which made her feel like an “overnight” sensation
A lot to navigate: the transition from a recent York University graduate, who worked at a McDonald’s for three years, to A-lister was shocking
‘You don’t go to theater school to learn how to deal with that. There’s no book on how to deal with that,” she said, referring to public acknowledgment and making fans ask for selfies
She eventually gave up skating because she hated waking up at 5:30 am
Elsewhere in the interview, McAdams gave a rare glimpse into her life as a mother as she promoted her latest role in the film adaptation of Judy Blume’s classic coming-of-age novel, Are You There, God? It’s me, Margaret.
While picking up two of Blume’s books at a bookstore, she told the writer that her son had heard about menstruation from Pixar’s 2022’s Turning Red.
She also noted that cycling with her kids is her favorite activity, joking that all of her bikes have “baby seats.”
Breakthrough role: McAdams played the famous antagonist, Regina George, in Mean Girls, which was released in 2004
Romantic Comedy: She also co-starred with Ryan Gosling in The Notebook which was also released in 2004
While playing Barbara Simon, McAdams said Blume told her to be “a really sexy mom,” while the director, Fremon Craig, told her to be “dorky.”
“I’m like, ‘What’s dorky-sexy? Where do we find the middle?’ she said.
On some days on set, she admitted to worrying about her breasts being a distraction.
“I was worried for a few days. ‘Is this too much? Is this distracting?’ she remembered thinking. “I hated thinking about that. Why do I care? But it’s hard not to.’
For her Bustle photo shoot, she asked that the images be edited as minimally as possible.
‘I’m wearing latex underwear on this shoot. But I have had two children. This is my body, and I think that’s so important to reflect back to the world,” she explained.