LEA SEYDOUX - OUI OUI
By BEBE GRANT

To understand the gloriously enigmatic creature that is Léa Seydoux, we must go back to the beginning. Hailing from Paris, she spent her formative years in the chic Saint-Germain-des-Prés neighborhood. She is one of seven siblings, and the family name carries weight in France, with her grandfather Jérome chairing Pathé and her grand-uncle Nicolas leading the Gaumont Film Company. This familial legacy parallels growing up in Hollywood with relatives heading Paramount and Universal Films.

Despite such an influential backdrop, pursuing acting wasn’t initially on the agenda for Seydoux, who first delved into music at the Conservatoire de Paris with dreams of becoming an opera singer. “I spent an entire childhood singing in front of my parents,” she laughs. “Acting wasn’t really a profession that I wanted to go into.”

However, Seydoux’s shyness deterred her from pursuing a career on stage. Instead, the acting world presented Seydoux with a dramatic epiphany: “I found his life wonderful. I thought, ‘Oh my god, you can travel, you’re free, you can do what you want, you’re the boss’.”

Sure enough, she delved into Inglourious Basterds, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Blue is the Warmest Colour, The Lobster, and more, gaining stellar recognition for her ability to inject so much emotional involvement into every character, every scene. Naturally, the opportunity to star alongside Daniel Craig in two Bond movies (Spectre and No Time to Die) proved too good for anyone to turn down.

Since then, the 39-year-old has cleverly sculpted box office smashes with independent and French-language movies, proved perfectly in 2024 with her role as Margot Fenring in Dune: Part Two this year, the second part of Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi epic.
 
She has also starred in The Second Act,  a French comedy written by Quentin Dupieux, also known by his stage name of Mr Oizo, the creator of the 1999 track Flat Beat.
 
The ability to seamlessly switch between such diverse factions demonstrates Seydoux’s impeccably high artistic content, sway between box office smash hits and independent cinema, and passion for both in equal measure.
 
STRIPLV: You’ve starred in several films considered Hollywood box office smashes; you’ve been a Bond girl in two movies and go back and forth between projects in your home country of France. What do you prefer?
SEYDOUX: I like working across all of those genres and throughout the world, really. I don’t ever want to be typecast or only considered for just one particular film industry as that would really dilute my work and also the things that I would be considered for in the future. So, I wouldn’t say that I prefer any of them, and instead, I value them all the same. Obviously, I love doing French films because I am French and when something good comes up that I like, then I say ‘oui’ to that. (Laughs) But largely, I like that I can adapt to most different projects, and I wouldn’t ever like to rule anything out, and more want to judge them on their own individual merits and both how suitable it is for me and me for it. I’m also not trying to be popular or keep putting myself in the limelight; I am happier having a good time working because that’s what it is: work, although I obviously enjoy what I do. It’s more about wanting the film world to see what I can offer them more than what they can offer me. I am very comfortable with how things are going and happy to keep things as they are. If something were to change in the future in terms of getting more work or offers in one particular industry, as I say, I’m not going to turn it down out of hand. I’d rather, as we say in French, call a cat a cat. Basically, saying things as I see them and then deciding whether it’s right for me and the project at the time.
 STRIPLV: You have said recently that although you like to spread yourself about many roles and genres, working on smaller roles can be frustrating. Why is that?
SEYDOUX: It can be something that could be taken out of context, but of course, I like doing roles with big ensemble casts like in a Wes Anderson movie, like my extremely brief part in The French Dispatch, as much as I love Dune. However, it’s not the actual running time that I am on screen for which bothers me, it’s more about trying to give my best performance for anything I do. Though when it’s a very small role, which was a vignette for Wes, it is sometimes tricky to get across what you’re aiming to do with the character. So, it made me think twice about doing that part, but I don’t like turning things down when I know the whole point isn’t about me; it’s about the movie as a whole, and that’s why so many big stars love working with Wes Anderson. I do like to get my teeth into a role, though, and sometimes even go down the rabbit hole to prepare and get into character, but when the screen time isn’t that much, you don’t have that opportunity to express yourself.
STRIPLV: You’ve also said that you’re not something of a natural actor, or more that you almost use trial and error in some situations to try and get it right or how you want it to be.
SEYDOUX: Yes, I would say that’s what I mean. I can do it, of course, but I don’t find it easy or relaxing. It can cause me a certain sense of anxiety, but then I like the fear of the challenge and it pushes me on to complete each scene. I use it as an adrenaline rush where I feel so full of life, and I suppose what I could compare it to for other people is something like extreme sports like skydiving or climbing a huge mountain. It’s because I feel like I can sometimes go into a role not having a total plan of what I am going to do or how I am going to do it, so I will try a few different ways of doing it, and sometimes it goes well, and other times it doesn’t. However, with it not being live like in stage theater, I do have that opportunity to go through various methods of whatever part it is I have at the time. There can be times where I might play a role which speaks to me about my life and that is much easier. Although obviously, I’m not playing myself, so I can’t just be me; I have to see what bits of the character’s intended life or immediate future is supposed to look like via the director and the script and add in the things or elements that I am familiar with. It all depends on what direction the character or the storyline is and what is agreed between myself and the director. In Wes Anderson’s movies, most of the characters are everyday kinds of people with some eccentricities or similar. I can relate to those far more than, for example, playing Madeleine Swann in the Bond movies. (Laughs) I mean, I’m not around spies all of the time, nor am I being bundled into cars by strangers or dangerous people, thankfully!
STRIPLV: Do you truly want to be in a musical one day?
SEYDOUX: Oh yes. I would love to do that, and I am going to hope that that opportunity comes along. There’s nothing in the pipeline at the moment that is concrete, but let’s hope that changes very soon.
STRIPLV: You seem genuine and honest. Well, as sincere as an actor can be expected to be.
SEYDOUX: You cannot fake it or who you are. And if you try, people will see through it. In the past, the people who might see through it would be those you worked with, but now, with the world as transparent as it is, everyone has an angle on you. And no matter what is said about those inside Hollywood with power and influence, I can tell you it is always the people who pay to watch the films who have the biggest say every time.
STRIPLV: So is this industry fairer now it’s more transparent?
SEYDOUX: The industry in America, I find it harsh on women. It’s hard for women to age. I don’t want to be afraid not to be desirable or to lose my contract. In America it’s economic, and when it becomes a matter of making money, you lose your freedom. I don’t feel comfortable with the fact that you have to check all the boxes. Being a woman on screen is easier in Europe. I’m not even sure there is a mold anymore. People have been summoning up the courage to break the mold for decades, yet for the first time now, it’s being encouraged, I feel, rather than being looked upon like an act of reckless rebellion.
STRIPLV: Do clothes make the woman, or does the woman make the clothes?
SEYDOUX:  I believe without a doubt that clothes are significant and have a transformative quality; they can alter how you perceive yourself. When I’m dressed in a way that makes me feel comfortable, I feel empowered, as if I’m prepared to conquer any challenge and take on the world. My own style is a blend of feminine, but with a touch of masculinity. It reflects how I perceive myself as a woman, simultaneously delicate and strong. So, my style is just an extension of my personality, and the rest is really playing around and experimenting with aspects of this. Sometimes, it is fun to heighten the machismo facet, and other times, I play upon the more feminine side of myself. It is both serious and deeply unserious.
STRIPLV: Of course, there is the flip side of being a woman in entertainment, and that is the fact you are a sex symbol, an icon. Do you accept that?
SEYDOUX: As for the sex symbol tag, I don’t pay any attention to it because it’s not real; I don’t allow myself to be affected by what’s written or said about me. It’s expression, it’s art. My job is to pretend to be someone else, and that then makes it difficult to accept when someone says you are like this or like that. How do they really know? It is only really in interviews that people get to understand who the real person is, and even then, this isn’t a natural environment. The questions are usually about a character anyway. I’m not saying that the perception of who I am is wrong, but it is just that, a perception. Only people very close to me really know what I am like, and I guess that makes me feel comfortable. I wouldn’t really want it any other way I don’t think.

SEY WHAT YOU SEE

The sexy Bond girl that oozes style, glamour, and passion.

Léa Seydoux has solidified her reputation as a fashion icon due to her timeless style and effortless charm. Known for seamlessly merging classic elegance with contemporary trends, Seydoux’s fashion choices are consistently unique and captivating.
 
Her ability to effortlessly navigate between the worlds of high fashion and cinema accentuates her versatility and artistic sensibility in a way few other actresses who have crossed over to fashion can display.
 
Help comes in the shape of her sister Camille, her stylist. She also has the benefit of working with several of the world’s leading fashion brands - notably Prada, with whom she wore custom-made gowns by Italian designer Miuccia and her husband Patrizio Bertelli.

She also sported several gowns from sister company Miu Miu during the Parisian’s time in the James Bond franchise, not least during the world premiere for Spectre, where Léa was resplendent in a gold and silver sequined Prada gown which Camille got the idea for after being inspired by Carey Mulligan’s at the Met Ball in 2012, which itself was imagined from French film designs in the 1960s and 70s.
 
Being from the chic Parisian district of Passy, collaborations with esteemed brands such as Louis Vuitton and Rag & Bone demonstrate a sense of effortless class that has always sat with Seydoux.

In 2016, just four days into her new ambassadorial role with Louis Vuitton, Seydoux attended the UNICEF ball in Los Angeles on the arm of Nicolas Ghesquière —Creative Director since 2013—in a black dress devised by the French-Belgian designer.
 
She has since worn Louis Vuitton High Jewelry pieces, including a Fossils necklace in platinum and white gold, sapphire, diamonds from the Deep Time collection, and a Liberty ring in white gold, sapphire, and diamonds from the Spirit collection.

She also wore Les Gastons Vuitton Trunk stud earrings in white gold and diamonds from the brand’s Fine Jewelry collection, complete with Louis Vuitton Lana sandals.
 
These partnerships showcase Léa Seydoux’s knack for infusing renowned fashion houses with fresh perspectives while maintaining her charm and sophistication.
 
When asked what it is about French women that makes them so celebrated in the fashion world, Seydoux says, “I am not sure—I cannot speak for the perception of others.

“Perhaps it is the Paris architecture, the history, the pale skin, the way our words are formed. I don’t know. In a strange way you are perhaps asking the wrong person.”

As if her career hasn't already ascended to perennial activity, British singer, model, and actress Rita Ora is set to be even busier in the next 12 months.

The 33-year-old, of Albanian descent, continues to shift culturally from the music scene into acting, a move that shows all the accomplishments of someone brimming with contentment and confidence.
 
First up in July on