Throughout her screen career, Andrea Riseborough has been something of a shape-shifter – disappearing into her characters, and starring in a significant array of stories. From the terrifying Tanya Vos in Possessor, to the ethereal title character in Mandy, to Wallis Simpson in W.E., and her recent larger-than-life portrayal of Mrs. Wormwood in Matilda The Musical, her range is so broad that it’s not always easy to connect the dots between her various performances. Now, she’s breaking out to an even greater degree in To Leslie – a drama that launched small but became a word-of-mouth must-see, eventually leading to an against-the-odds nomination for Best Actress at this year’s Oscars.
It’s the kind of recognition that’s set to not only boost Riseborough’s profile considerably, but will get To Leslie (and several of the actor’s other smaller projects) to far bigger audiences. “I love film and the most wonderful part of the process is sharing it,” she tells Empire in a major new career-spanning interview, taking place just days after her Oscar nomination was announced. “Usually [after release] you have a moment to look back and think, ‘Okay, that was that,’ and you close that chapter. But when the chapter feels nowhere near being closed and it’s only been seen by three people at the Angelika, you feel so despondent and you start really losing faith in the power that something very pure can break through all the noise. Sometimes you want to jump out of your own industry because that thing that made you want to do this in the beginning [seems gone], so you have to come back round and find it.”
In the case of To Leslie, which stars Riseborough as a woman who wins the lottery and sees her winnings disappear into alcohol and drug addictions, that word-of-mouth buzz partly came from major Hollywood names – including Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Aniston and Charlize Theron – vocally supporting the film online. But the result is that many more regular audiences are discovering the movie too. “One of the things we did, because we didn’t have campaign money, was Q&As, which cost nothing, and people can ask questions. I feel changed after having shared this film,” Riseborough says. “You have so many conversations where people just pour their hearts out. You’ve been part of something and then people tell you it really meant something to them. I’ve never had this experience before, but so many people wanted to say to us, ‘I’ve been in that [situation].’ Maybe not her position, but that dynamic.”
The hope, for Riseborough, is that the Oscar nomination draws further eyes to other independent films she worked on that may have flown under the radar on release. “The day that [the nomination] happened, Karim [her partner] said something to me that didn’t really sink in at the time: So many more people are going to see Luxor. So many more people are going to see Please Baby Please. Nancy. Here Before. It made me so happy,” she says. “The day of finding out was so odd, because it was such a surprise. The second day was like finding it out all over again. Then the third day was realising how much this will mean for a lot of people and for a lot of films that were shot in about 19 days.” Riseborough's rise only looks set to continue, whatever happens at the Oscars.
Read Empire’s full in-depth interview with Andrea Riseborough – on the Oscar nomination, what it means for her profile in Hollywood, her experiences with Madonna on W.E. and Tom Cruise on Oblivion, and much more – in the world-exclusive The Mandalorian Season 3 issue, on sale now. Become an Empire member here to access the issue in full now, or order a copy online here. To Leslie is available now on digital.
Andrea Riseborough shot on location at Big Sky Studios, London on Thurs 26th January, 2023. Portraits by Zoë McConnell. Styling: Leith Clark at The Wall Group, assisted by Delany Williams. Hair & Make-Up: Charlotte Hayward at The Wall Group. Clothing: Black slip with white puff sleeves by Rejina Pyo; gold necklace, talent’s own.