What You Don't Know About Amanda Seyfried
Amanda Seyfried's big break came when she was cast as Karen in Mean Girls and she's been one of the busiest actresses in Hollywood ever since. Seyfried went on to star in the musicals Mamma Mia! and Les Misérables, as well as romances including Dear John and Letters to Juliet. Most recently she earned a Golden Globe nomination for her role as Marion Davies in Mank.
The Pennsylvania native also had supporting roles on the small screen, such as HBO's critically acclaimed drama Big Love and the teen noir hit Veronica Mars. She's also racked up an impressive list of awards and nominations, including two MTV Movie Awards and two People's Choice nominations (via IMDb).
Seyfried, who is known for her gorgeous eyes, has been included on People's 5Most Beautiful People list so it's hard to believe that she was actually bullied at school about her appearance. And her first big acting gig – didn't exactly end well. It's safe to say she's having the last laugh on both fronts. Here's what else you don't know about Amanda Seyfried.
Amanda Seyfried was fired from her first big acting job
Amanda Seyfried is a Golden Globe nominee, but her first acting job didn't exactly go smoothly. In fact, she told Backstage in 2010 that her As the World Turns character was written off the series because of her performance. "I'll be honest, I was pretty bad starting out," she confessed. "When I was 15, I was on As the World Turns, and I was so bad they had to ship my character off."
She added, "I was devastated. You always think [getting fired is] the end of the world. I remember crying on the pier near my house on the Hudson River."
A year before Mean Girls was released, Seyfried had a recurring role on All My Children in 2003 — so it's safe to say she redeemed herself and then some. Her story is a reminder that you should never give up on your dreams just because one gig doesn't work out.
Amanda Seyfried was bullied at school as a kid
Amanda Seyfried was a model as a child, but she has shared that she was bullied at school about her appearance. "[I modeled] just because it was glamorous and because people let me. I was made fun of at school for being pale and ugly," she said (via Toronto.com).
She's also described getting through her formative years as the "toughest challenge" she's faced. "It was tough and I was bullied, but it doesn't last forever," Seyfried explained (via Tulsa World). "I wish I could tell my 16-year-old self don't listen to mean girls! They're just there to make you feel bad and the truth is they feel bad about themselves too — that's why they do it."
The star missed a lot of school due to her acting career (via Biography.com), but she graduated from high school in 2003 as scheduled and enrolled at Fordham University. However, Seyfried didn't make it to her first class because she had a screen test for Mean Girls and was running late.
"I was on the phone with both of my parents. My dad was like, 'Just leave!' My mom said, 'No, no, no, go upstairs! Find your class!' And my dad was like, 'Just go home, sweetie, it's not for you,'" Seyfried recalled (via Self). "I never saw myself going to college, so I went home. And I got the call to do Mean Girls that week."
Amanda Seyfried is open about her mental health
Amanda Seyfried has consistently been open about her mental health. In 2010, she told Glamour that her anxiety made it difficult to have a social life. "It's sad, actually, because my anxiety keeps me from enjoying things as much as I should at this age," Seyfried said at the time. She also described her panic attacks, saying that "'it feels like you're going to die. There's nothing scarier."
In a 2016 interview with Allure, Seyfried once again spoke out about living with OCD and anxiety. "I'm on Lexapro, and I'll never get off of it. I've been on it since I was 19, so 11 years. I'm on the lowest dose," she shared. "I don't see the point of getting off of it. Whether it's [a] placebo or not, I don't want to risk it. And what are you fighting against? Just the stigma of using a tool?"
The actress also spoke about the stigma of mental illness and how it's treated differently than physical illness. "A mental illness is a thing that people cast in a different category [from other illnesses], but I don't think it is. It should be taken as seriously as anything else," she told Allure. "You don't see the mental illness: It's not a mass; it's not a cyst. But it's there. Why do you need to prove it? If you can treat it, you treat it."
If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness Helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.
Amanda Seyfried wanted to be an opera singer
Before deciding on an acting career, Amanda Seyfried planned to become an opera singer (via ClassicFM.com). She stopped her classical training when she was 17 — something that the actress said she regrets. However, she has gotten to showcase her beautiful voice in Mamma Mia! and Les Misérables.
The star also has a brief musical scene in Dear John (via Bustle) where she plays guitar and sings. The song is titled "Little House," and surprisingly, Seyfried also wrote the lyrics. It's featured on the film's soundtrack.
She downplayed her guitar skills, however, but her co-star Channing Tatum disagreed. "On a scale of one to 10, one of my friends being a 10, I would be, like, a three," Seyfried told MTV News.
However, Tatum told the outlet, "She's very, very humble and she's an amazingly talented and gifted artist. She won't say it."
As of 2015, Seyfried was still taking voice lessons and expressed that she would like to do more musicals (via Broadway.com). Although she didn't land the role of Glinda in the Wicked film as she hoped, Seyfried showcased her vocal chops again when she reprised her role as Sophie in the 2018 Mamma Mia! sequel.
Amanda Seyfried lives on a farm
In addition to an apartment in the West Village of New York City, Amanda Seyfried and her husband, Thomas Sadoski, own a farmhouse in upstate New York. According to US Weekly, she's owned the property since 2014 and the family has stayed put at the farm throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
"I live on a farm. It's what I've always wanted," she explained (via US Weekly). "Now, with this pandemic especially, we've been able to just stay. We don't even get on the train and go to the city."
Seyfried takes care of the animals that she owns, which includes horses, goats, dogs, and turtles. She says that farm life has a grounding effect on her. "You see these animals, they don't need much and they give so much without meaning to," Seyfried told USA Today in December 2020. "And you can really put things in perspective a lot easier when you're surrounded by animals and people who work really hard."