Rachel Brosnahan and Miley Cyrus Bonded Over Fur Babies on the Set of Woody Allen’s ‘Crisis in Six Scenes’

Rachel Brosnahan doesn’t consider herself a trendsetter. In fact, the 25-year-old, whose aunt is the Kate Spade, isn’t even up-to-date “on all the most trendy fashion or designers,” she jokes. “I really just gravitate toward things that I like.” But that doesn’t mean that the budding star doesn’t have a vast appreciation for style. In fact, other than Woody Allen, one of the main reasons she hopped onboard as Ellie in the upcoming miniseries Crisis in Six Scenes, was for the chance to play dress-up in a 1960s setting. And Brosnahan insists that her character is by far the best dressed on the show. “Even trying [the outfits] on, I was like, ‘Can I walk out the door with this? Can I bring this home with me?’” she says.

Brosnahan’s latest role as Ellie is far lighter than that of her character Rachel Posner in House of Cards, the Emmy-nominated role that put her career on the map. As Brosnahan reveals, appearing in a quirky comedy was a surprising change of pace from the dark world of her typical projects. So ahead of the series’s release on Friday, Yahoo Style caught up with Brosnahan to discuss her on-set bonding with Miley Cyrus over their mutual love for their “fur babies,” growing up alongside her “aunt Katie,” and how her ultimate goal as an actor is “to be unrecognizable from project to project.”

Yahoo Style: What was it about this project that attracted you?

Rachel Brosnahan: I would have played an elevator operator in a Woody Allen movie if it meant I could have anything to do with this project. Ellie is a young woman who is fairly well-off, fairly educated, pretty conservative. She is engaged to Alan, John Magaro’s character, who is staying with Sidney (Woody Allen) and Kay (Elaine May) for the summer. So that’s how Ellie is a part of this story. And it’s hard to say much more without giving it away.

The miniseries is set in the 1960s. What did you like about playing in that world?

The hair and makeup and wardrobe was extraordinary, some of the most talented people behind the scenes in every department really bringing the ’60s world to life. That was certainly one of my favorite parts. It’s a real gift as an actor to be able to walk onto a set, put on the clothes, put on the hair, and be instantly transported there without having to do very much. These outfits are incredible. She gets to wear the best clothes on the show, I think. Just outfit after outfit. Even trying them on, I was like, “Can I walk out the door with this? Can I bring this home with me?” She has very sweet dresses and coats, and she’s very fashionable, very fashion-forward.

Was it fun to work with Miley Cyrus?

It was great. I didn’t have a lot of scenes with Miley personally, but we got to spend a little bit of time together in hair and makeup and in passing and during camera tests and such. I think she’s really, really cool. She works so hard at everything that she is committed to. And I think that makes her a really good role model for her younger audience. She’s all about being yourself and exploring your passion and the exercise of reminding yourself what is important and not giving a f*** at the worst. That is a challenge sometimes, and she’s aware of that too. I think she is really something. I’ve very glad we got to meet.

Was there anything that surprised you about her?

I found her to be very down to earth. I’m not too familiar with her music or anything, but I think you just don’t expect somebody from that world to be as relaxed as she is. She’s quite an icon in the world of music today. And she loves her pets. I love my pets. We understand each other in that way. I have two dogs that are my children. They are my fur babies, and she gets that too. She’s not really involved in the scene, for being as huge a star as she is. We had such limited interaction, but I think she’s really great and I think we are very lucky to have pulled her out of retirement to do this project.

What was it like working with Woody Allen? He’s gotten an unfortunate amount of bad press lately. But when you get to know him, do you find him to be the opposite of what people have typecast him to be?

I can say from my experience on this set that he was very kind and generous and really hired people that he trusted and let them do their work. It really was a group effort to bring this thing to life. It was a very positive set. Everybody was there because they loved the work they were doing. We were home almost by dinner every night. And everyone was thrilled to be there, which really makes a difference. He’s very kind, very humble. His passion is evident. He loves making movies. He understands how difficult it can be to be an actor, and I think he really wants to make it clear that he trusts us and trusts our instincts and that we should do the same.

Your aunt is Kate Spade. So everyone must assume that you grew up in a very fashion-forward family. Was that the case?

Well, now her name is Kate Spade Valentine, as she’s got this new company called Frances Valentine, which is brilliant. She is just my aunt. She is my Aunt Katie. And we didn’t really talk about fashion when we were spending time together as a family. In terms of my personal aesthetic, I love her stuff. I’ve always loved her stuff. It’s very simple and classic, and I like to take those things and mix them with my style, which is more jeans and T-shirts and anything comfortable. I’m not super up-to-date on all the most trendy fashion or designers, I really just gravitate toward things that I like. But I do really think that I’ve seen some of Katie’s influence. I’ve seen how it’s made its way into my personal style as I’ve been getting older.

So do you have a handbag fetish by association?

Yes. I do love a good bag. I think accessories make an outfit. I can wear a white T-shirt and jeans, and with a great bag and great shoes and other accessories, that can change that outfit. I can wear the same thing every day, and you might not even know [Laughing].

You’ve changed your hair a lot lately. Do you like doing this for roles?

Yes. Well I did it originally for me. I do change it for roles, but I’m actually a natural blonde. I don’t think a lot of people know that about me because I was very dark when the general population met me on House of Cards. And then once you’re on television, you have to stay the same, at least when you are working on one show. And then a show that I was working on finished and I had a little bit of time and I thought I would shake it up, so now I’m being a blonde for a while. But I think I will probably play with it some more, as long as it doesn’t fall out [Laughing].

How do you keep it healthy with all the dyeing?

Well I’m trying not to color it at the moment. Going darker is easy. I always use the semipermanent color, and that actually always made it feel great and not unhealthy. It’s going lighter that’s been challenging. But on sets and things, I’ve been given a lot of masks and shampoos and conditioners, and I’m learning a lot about hair maintenance, which is a lot for me. I think I’m fairly low-maintenance so this is new. This blonde is a lot of work!

Is there anything you won’t do to your hair? What would you draw the line at?

No. I’m a big fan of wigs and hairpieces to change it because it allows you to be more flexible. If a role required me to shave my head, I absolutely would, but then I would have that for a while, and every other job I had would need me in a wig if it was a different look. So I think as far as you can, hairpieces and wigs allow you that kind of flexibility and allow you to truly be a chameleon in your work, which for me is one of the most exciting parts about being an actor. The goal would be to be unrecognizable from project to project as far as you can.

You’ve played a lot of darker characters. Do you ever worry about being pigeonholed in that world?

I don’t worry so much about being pigeonholed in the darker realm because I think that it’s very far from who I am. And when I first started going down that path, it felt like such a stretch for me. It felt so challenging. And it taught me a lot. I learned a lot as an actress from stretching that far. I think some of the roles I’ve been playing more recently are a little bit closer to me. This role is much lighter than a lot of the things that I’ve played before. It was definitely refreshing to play, certainly a nice change of pace. But the goal would be to never play myself and never do the same thing twice. So as far as I have any control over it, I’m trying to shake it up as much as I can.

When you have played these darker roles, like your character on House of Cards, what have you done to cheer yourself up after filming?

I believe in leaving it all on the set. That’s how I was trained as an actress, that you go to some pretty intense places while you are at work and you let it go. You leave it at work, and you walk home and do your life. And it’s important to have coffee with friends and love on my dogs. And that’s what keeps me going through all of that stuff.

Everyone is jealous that you got to spend so much time working with Robin Wright. She’s such an iconic actress.

She’s a dream. I’m so in awe of Robin Wright!

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