Kiernan Shipka Recalls How ‘Mad Men’ Team “Protected” Her “Innocence”
Nearly 10 years after her run as Sally Draper ended, Kiernan Shipka has a new take on the character.
The Mad Men alum recently reflected on how the AMC show’s cast and crew “were so protective over me” while filming the mature ’60s-set series, which ran for seven seasons from 2007 to 2015.
More from Deadline
Although she “definitely had context” for what she was reacting to, Shipka explained on Jesse Tyler Ferguson’s Dinner’s On Me podcast that she was ultimately shielded from some of the show’s more risqué material.
“They were so protective over me and my kind of innocence and not exposing me to stuff that, you know, was sensitive or more adult,” said Shipka. “I always knew what I was reacting to. Like, I always knew what [my character] was walking in on. I just didn’t have to see it over and over again.”
She continued, “I think at a certain point, I was like, ‘Guys, I know what this is. Like, I’m good. I’m fine.’ But I really, like, admire and respect the way that they handled it. But I do think in my head, I was probably like, ‘I’m mature. I’m an adult. I know what’s going on here. Like, it’s fine, guys.'”
Since Shipka was 7 when Mad Men began, she was rarely allowed to watch the episodes when they originally aired. But the actress noted that she had the chance to binge the entire series during the COVID-19 pandemic, which gave her a new perspective on the character.
“I was watching [Sally] go through stuff that at the time [of filming] I was feeling in a really natural way. But now as sort of an adult, I can psychoanalyze and go, ‘Oh, no, she was grieving there and acting out.’ And at the time, I think I understood her as much as she understood herself,” she explained. “And as I get older, I kind of understand her the way that I hope she, you know, would understand herself one day with therapy.
“And there’s something really wild about seeing that because it was like, it wasn’t that I didn’t know what was going on, but I didn’t know what was going on the way that we don’t know what’s going on with us until later, too,” added Shipka.
Created by Matthew Weiner, Mad Men follows New York advertiser Don Draper (Jon Hamm) as he juggles his work life at a Madison Avenue agency, as well as his family life with wife Betty (January Jones) and their kids, plus numerous extramarital affairs. The series earned 16 Emmy Awards during its run.
Best of Deadline
Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.