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Saoirse Ronan, a two-time Oscar nominee by age 21, shared insights into her acting process in a 2016 Interview Magazine conversation with Jodie Foster. When asked about her approach to roles, she said that her decisions are mostly based on instinct.
“It’s always been based off of instinct,” she said.
She made this remark to explain how she chooses projects, relying on gut feelings rather than overthinking. At the time, Ronan was promoting Brooklyn (2015), in which she played Eilis, an Irish immigrant in 1950s New York. Her career began with a breakout role in Atonement (2007), earning her first Oscar nod at 12.
Saoirse Ronan further discussed moving to London at 19, seeking independence and anonymity. She felt a strong connection to New York, where she was born. Ronan also shared that she followed the advice Emma Thompson had given her about valuing real-life connections.
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“She said to me—"If your job is to play real people, then you need to be surrounded by real people in your everyday life,"” Ronan shared.
As a young actress, Ronan’s candid responses revealed both her instincts and uncertainties, navigating fame while staying grounded.
Saoirse Ronan’s instinct-driven career choices
When Jodie Foster asked how she picks roles, Saoirse Ronan emphasized her intuitive process, saying,
“And whether it’s about a script or whether to live in this city or live in that city, if you’re questioning it, maybe it’s not quite right for you.”
This approach led her to Brooklyn, in which she played an Irish immigrant, a role that echoed her own roots and homesickness. She explained, when she moved away to London, she was only 19, about six months before making Brooklyn.
So by the time the film was made, she was still very homesick. Her performance earned her a second Oscar nomination, following her first at age 12 for Atonement (2007), in which she played Briony Tallis.
Saoirse Ronan's career began early with roles in The Way Back (2010) by Peter Weir, The Lovely Bones (2009) by Peter Jackson, Byzantium (2012) by Neil Jordan, and Wes Anderson's The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014), in which she played Agatha. She expressed how much she cherishes her early experiences, adding that she can still clearly recall what it was like to be a kid on a movie set. She also stated that this childishness was something one should cherish for as long as one is still making movies.
However, she also admitted to insecurities, telling Foster,
“The older I got, the more insecurities start to take hold of you. I felt exactly the same way as you; that I’m going to forget how to do this.”
Ronan shared that after her Oscar nomination for Brooklyn, she worried about maintaining her performance quality, explaining that what she would worry about after being nominated again was how to keep that up—not in relation to awards, but keeping up performances.
Balancing instinct and real-life connections
Born in the Bronx, Saoirse Ronan moved to Dublin at age three. In the interview, she talked about moving away from home—first to London at 19 and later to New York. She added that moving to London was about independence, explaining that moving away is very different from just working away from home. She also shared that wanted to leave Ireland and have anonymity while she was young, so she could be "stupid" and "relaxed." It was something she needed and wanted to do, and that she adjusted to adult life through the move—paying her own bills and washing her own dishes.
In the interview, Saoirse Ronan also discussed her "strong connection" to New York and her decision to move to the city. About her move to New York, Ronan told Foster that she has "roots" in the city and that she felt "invigorated" as soon as she landed there.
“New York was always the end goal for me. It was always inevitable that I’d move here because I’d had such a strong connection with it from a very young age,” Ronan shared.
She added that while in London, cooking dishes her parents used to make at home helped her settle in to her new place.
In the interview, Ronan also talked about how her mother's support was crucial.
“My mom has always been so wonderful and she’s always said to me exactly what you said: to always trust your instincts,” she said.
She also stated that her mother’s advice shaped her acting after Atonement, when she had been struggling with a new character, and did not have "that much to say." Ronan shared that her mother told her that she doesn't have to tell a story through words—she can always tell a story with just her face and her eyes.
Stay tuned for more news and updates.
