Greta Lee Talks Late Fame, Bad Tattoos, & the Surreal Timing of Her Success

Greta Lee never expected that, at this point in her life, she’d be navigating the white-hot spotlight of Hollywood. Now in her early 40s, she began her career onstage as part of the Broadway cast of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee before stealing scenes on television in Girls and Russian Doll. She had already been working steadily for more than a decade when her star turn in Celine Song’s 2023 romantic drama Past Lives earned her a Golden Globe nomination and marked a decisive career shift. Since then, Lee has moved seamlessly between prestige and blockbuster fare (from Disney’s Tron: Ares to Kathryn Bigelow’s nuclear thriller A House of Dynamite), landed an Emmy nomination for The Morning Show, and become a full-fledged red carpet force with a global brand ambassadorship for Dior to boot. Now she’s gearing up for Late Fame, opposite Willem Dafoe—a project that, as she puts it, hits a little close to home.

What can you tell us about Late Fame?

Late Fame came into my life because Sandra Hüller dropped out. I love Sandra, but I want to say, “Sandra, you made the wrong decision. Girl, I don’t know what you were thinking!” This is one of those parts that felt like magic, like confetti sprinkling down from the sky, especially after a few years of doing all kinds of things—things that I love. But this one means so much to me. I play Gloria Gardner, a middle-aged actress. She is the ultimate diva, capital D. She wants to live a life of art, and she is very much like an Isabella Rossellini or Marlene Dietrich. There’s Sally Bowles in there too.

Sounds a bit like Liza Minnelli.

I love Liza. Cabaret was absolutely formative for me—that performance is seminal. I was thinking about what it means to be an artist in this ever-changing world, when everything is so fleeting. My character is hungry; she hasn’t quite had her big break yet. Maybe people will see some sort of personal connection. I find myself in this funny position where, after a bunch of decades, I had my break at an unusual time for women: a time when there’s a very real precedent for women [in Hollywood] to retire, to not have any opportunities anymore. And for me, it feels like science fiction that it's the opposite. It’s wonderful, it’s dreamy, but it's also confusing. I'm a fully formed person who is now having to stay loose, fresh, and wide-eyed in a way that I didn't expect at all. I thought that this is when I would be home more and garden and cook, be with my kiddos. I did not expect this sort of flip-flop.

Past Lives resonated with so many people. Do you still get approached about it?

I meet people everywhere—at the supermarket, the airport, the gas station—people who are exploding to tell me their stories about someone they love. I feel really lucky that I can have a genuine connection with strangers in this way. I've always believed, and this is a real Pollyanna part of me, that the best movies are the ones that make you feel not so alone. Past Lives is one of those movies. One of the most profound encounters I had was meeting a young person who said that they'd never been in love. And seeing the movie made them excited to fall in love. I said, "Good luck. It gets real screwy after that.”

Maybe you should do a sequel?

While we were filming, there were many jokes about the sequel and the trilogy—giving it the full Linklater treatment. We'll see.

You also emerged in the media as a fashion icon.

For one story, they used a photo of this moment where, for some reason, I was walking down the street with a sweater half on and half off. It was like I hadn't decided if I was cold or hot. I think someone thought, How chic—it’s like a shawl. But really, I was just confused.

Do you have any tattoos?

I have several bad tattoos. I have the female sign on my finger, but it has rubbed off. It now just looks like a circle. I’m very impulsive. I got that after Hillary Clinton lost the election. For me, the best tattoos are bad tattoos. They can be a map of all the different parts of your life. I have the word “psychopath” in Korean in a heart on my lower back. My kids tease me. Their best/worst party trick is saying, "My mom has a tattoo that says ‘psychopath.’" I'm like, "Shh!”

I bet they think it’s cool.

They don't think it's cool. They're like, "You are one." Actually, if you know a good laser specialist, send them my way!

Do you have any fashion regrets?

When I was first starting out and I'd moved to New York, I was a Sex and the City baby. I was trying to live my Carrie Bradshaw fantasy. I just had no money to spend on shoes and bags. But I remember really wanting the Chloé locket purse. I found one on eBay, and it was fake. It was so heartbreaking. I worked so hard. It was my first paycheck in New York, and I spent it on that bag. As soon as I got it, I realized, well, this is a phony.

Are you more like a cat or a dog?

I’m a cat. I actually can’t stand cats, but I’m more like a cat. I realized the other day that so much of being an actor is being what is called a “bratty sub.” Do you know what that is, Lynn?

I have not heard of that.

BDSM. There are these quizzes you can take to find out where you are on the spectrum—like, are you a rope bunny? Are you a bratty sub? I took a quiz, and I'm 97% vanilla, which was so disappointing. Yeah, dogs are obedient and loyal, and I am that, but I think, secretly, I'm kind of a bitch. [Laughs]

Hair by Jenny Cho for Oribe at A-Frame Agency; makeup by Nina Park at Kalpana.

Style Director: Allia Alliata di Montereale. Codirector: Frank Lebon. Director of photography: André Chemetoff. Hair by Jawara for L’Oréal Professional at Art Partner; makeup by Lauren Parsons for Sisley Paris at Art Partner; manicure by Jolene Brodeur for Dazzle Dry at the Wall Group. Set design by David White at Streeters.