What You Don't Know About Sarah Paulson
Sarah Paulson is an award-winning actress who has been appearing on television, in films, and on Broadway since the 1990s. On the big screen, she has had roles in movies such as 12 Years a Slave, New Year's Eve, Ocean's 8, and Glass, though she may be best known for her work in TV shows like American Crime Story and American Horror Story. In 2016, she was part of The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story, and she will appear in the upcoming Impeachment: American Crime Story. And, of course, since 2011, she has been involved with AHS, playing different characters and also directing the episode, "Return to Murder House," in 2018 (via IMDb).
While many are familiar with her acting, there is much more to know about this talented star. Down below, there are some little-known facts to learn and to love regarding her career, relationships, health, background, and more!
Sarah Paulson doesn't always watch her own work
According to a Vanity Fair article from 2016, Paulson did not watch Blue Jay, The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story, American Horror Story: Hotel, or American Horror Story: Roanoke ... all things in which she was featured.
"I'm in this new kick of never watching anything I do anymore," which she said started when she portrayed Marcia Clark in O.J. Simpson's story. "It was the first time in my career where I really felt such an onslaught of complimentary, effusive reactions to the show itself and to my work on it that I started to get very nervous about my typical way of watching something and ripping it to shreds when it's my own work. I thought, 'What would happen if you didn't do that this time, and you just let it be what it is and don't attach your own feelings to it and let it stand on its own and just enjoy people saying nice things? What if you do that instead?'" (via Vanity Fair).
Sarah Paulson says her sexuality is a fluid situation
Between 2004 and 2009, Paulson dated Cherry Jones, an actress who has been in series and films like 24, The Handmaid's Tale, Erin Brockovich, and The Village (via Us Weekly). Before this relationship, Paulson had only been romantically involved with men and was even engaged to playwright Tracy Letts. She told Broadway.com that, when it comes to her sexuality, "it's a fluid situation."
Since 2015, Paulson has been in a relationship with Holland Taylor, an actress who is 32 years older than Paulson and has appeared in television shows such as The Practice, Two and a Half Men, and Hollywood, and in movies like The Truman Show and Legally Blonde. According to Taylor's time on the Bravo talk show, Watch What Happens Live, the two started following each other on Twitter, Taylor slid into Paulson's DMs, and the rest of this love story is history (via O, The Oprah Magazine).
Sarah Paulson was diagnosed with melanoma
As mentioned, Paulson's career as an actress has made headlines and is pretty well known by fans. However, she had a health scare a few years back that some people may not know about. Once, when Pauslon was traveling on a vacation to Puerto Rico, her fiance suggested that she get a mole on her back looked at by a doctor. After the biopsy, it was confirmed that she had melanoma. "I was 25 years old. Who thought it could happen to me?" she said in the Chicago Tribune.
The skin cancer was caught and surgically removed before it had a chance to spread to other parts of her body, and now, according to her Twitter account, she tries to stay safe by staying out of the sun and wearing an SPF 45 sunscreen all day and every day, which is a smart thing for anyone and everyone to do.
Sarah Paulson considers her mother a hero
Paulson was born on December 17, 1974, as stated by Stylectory. She lived with her parents, Catharine and Douglas, in Tampa, Florida, before they got a divorce when she was five years old. After that, she moved to Maine with her mother and sister, and they ended up in New York City. There, her mother worked as a waitress, and Paulson spent her summers with her father in Florida.
Paulson's mother was only 27 years old when they moved to New York, a time Paulson discussed with Internet Archive: "She didn't know a single person in New York City. She got a job at Sardi's Restaurant. ... She was so brave to be basically a debutante in Tampa, Florida, having a cotillion and a coming out ball — and she picked up and brought her two kids to the greatest city in the world, not knowing anyone. My mom's kind of my hero that way."
Sarah Paulson knows what her death row meal would be
While Paulson has acted in a variety of genres, she has appeared in several horror, psychological, and thriller flicks and TV shows, such as Bird Box, Glass, Run, American Gothic, Ratched, and American Horror Story. So some of her fans could want to take all of that a bit further and find out, say, what she would choose as her last meal to eat ... ever.
A few years ago, she did an interview with HuffPost. When asked what her last meal on death row would be, she had the perfect answer: A filet mignon, well-done, fries, and a pint of cookies and cream ice cream. When asked how she would end up on death row, she replied in a way that shows that she does have some limits and some drawn lines when it comes to thinking about and sharing all things creepy: "This is a disturbing question."