I’m always impressed with people who know their limitations and are comfortable with them. Probably because of the rarity of such intrapersonal intelligence.

Russell was amazing in The Americans and is currently staring in Netflix’s The Diplomat. This exchange is from a recent interview:

Recently you’ve done such a wide range of characters, from The Americans to Cocaine Bear. How do you find your characters?

I don’t know. My guy [Russell’s husband, Matthew Rhys] is a really serious actor. Like he can do German accents and s*** at the drop of a hat. He’s legit. And I am not like that. I have to read something and have an immediate, instinctual thing where I get it, I understand it. I can’t do everything. I have a limited amount I can do and I kind of go, “Oh, I know what that is. That’s funny to me,” you know? I’m not one of those people who goes, “Oh, my gosh, I’m gonna play a Russian drug addict. And I’m gonna get the accent. And I’m going to shave my head.” I know my limitations, and I think there’s just something about this character that I got immediately. This is closer to who I am than like a sly, cougar-walking Elizabeth Jennings from The Americans.