During her 20-year career, Greta Lee has transitioned from Broadway to TV to the big screen. In 2023, Lee finally got her big break in Celine Song’s Past Lives, earning her a Golden Globes nomination for Best Actress in the motion drama category. Whether starring in independent films or blockbuster franchises, Lee brings an enigmatic star power that makes lasting impressions, capturing the heart of audiences far and wide. As she enters the chapter of her career where more leading roles are presented to her than ever before, there are two things she looks forward to most: surprises and “slowmaxxing” — it’s what “the kids are calling it”, she believes. 

You’ve shared that, coming from LA, being an actor was such an “obvious” and “undesirable” choice for most, but you persisted anyway. What was it about acting that resonated with you from an early age? 

I think I was drawn to the feeling of becoming someone else, but also to the permission that acting gave me to be more of myself. I was a very imaginative kid, and I loved observing people. I was always making up stories, paying attention to little details about people and wondering what was happening beneath the surface. Acting gave all of that a place to go. It also felt like a way of making sense of the world, which is still what I love about it.

Being the eldest of three children to South Korean immigrants, was being “the eldest daughter” ever something that shaped how you navigated decisions or personal goals?

Absolutely. Being the eldest daughter comes with a very particular sense of responsibility. You’re also the guinea pig in a lot of ways. For any oldest child, it’s your parents’ first time being parents, and you’re the test subject. I think I developed a strong instinct to be responsible and to think about other people before myself. But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve also had to learn that having your own desires and taking up space isn’t selfish. 

How did it feel when you landed a lead role for the first time in your career? 

There was a part of me that had been waiting for that moment for a very long time, so when it actually happened, I think I was almost more overwhelmed by what it represented than by the job itself. It was a feeling of, ‘Oh, someone is finally trusting me with this’. And then, of course, you have to put all of that aside and actually do the work. 

Since your breakout role in Past Lives, what has surprised you most about the types of roles or scripts coming your way? 

The biggest surprise has been the variety. I think when something like Past Lives connects with people so deeply, there can be an assumption that the next thing will somehow need to replicate that experience. That maybe I would be typecast for drama, for romance. But what’s been exciting is that the opposite has happened. I’ve been able to move into worlds and characters that feel completely different. It’s been a real gift to have such a range in roles and genres. 

How have you grown comfortable carving out your own space in this industry while staying grounded in your values? 

I think some of that comes with time. When you’re younger, you can spend a lot of energy trying to figure out what everyone else thinks you should be doing. At a certain point, you realise that your career is a very long relationship with yourself, and you have to be able to live with the choices you make. I’m much more interested now in working with people I respect, on things that make me feel alive, than in trying to fit into someone else’s idea of what my career should look like. But that’s also a privileged position to be in. 

Tell us about this “original New York Diva,” your character, Gloria, in Late Fame.

Gloria is such a delicious character because she has this incredible sense of herself. She’s theatrical and glamorous and completely unapologetic, but there’s also something underneath all of that (maybe not so far underneath).  I loved that she wasn’t interested in making herself smaller for anyone. She has lived enough life to know who she is, or at least who she wants everyone else to believe she is. She’s a true diva in the best sense of the word. New York glamour through and through. 

You play Lilypad, the smart-tablet character in Toy Story 5. What was your process or points of reference for bringing a tech device to life? How did your sons react to the movie and their mom starring in it? 

Voiceover work is such a strange and exciting challenge. You’re creating a personality and a character using only your voice. But then the brilliant animators bring it to life. I am Lilypad. Lilypad is me. We are one. I don’t know how they do it, but seriously, I feel like we look the same; we have similar facial expressions. My boys agreed! And they are obviously much more qualified than I am to tell me whether something is cool or not. I was 12 years old when the first film came out, and my boys are just a few years younger than that now, so it really was so special to share it with them. 

When filming Past Lives, you had to learn to grow comfortable with the long and lingering shots and fight the tendency to improvise. When it came to filming your first science fiction thriller, The Last House, were there any technical adjustments or instincts you had to manage? 

Definitely. Every genre has its own language, and science fiction asks you to trust things that aren’t necessarily physically there in front of you. You have to be very precise while also allowing yourself to imagine something enormous. I found that really exciting. Past Lives required a kind of restraint and stillness, whereas with The Last House, there was a different kind of tension and physicality. I love when a project forces you to discover a new muscle.