Fresh Air: Jessie Buckley Loves the ‘Shadowy Bits’ of Her Characters

Host: Terry Gross (NPR)
Guest: Jessie Buckley (Actor; star of Hamnet)
Date: March 2, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode features Jessie Buckley, acclaimed Irish actor and singer, in a wide-ranging, intimate discussion with Terry Gross. With an Oscar nomination and a Golden Globe win for her role as Agnes Hathaway in Hamnet, Buckley explores themes of grief, motherhood (both on screen and in her own life), inhabiting difficult characters, personal growth, and the influence of dreams and music in her process. The conversation covers Buckley's formative experiences—from her roots in Killarney and convent school musicals to her breakout on a reality singing competition—while delving into the complexities of female characters and her evolving relationship with performance and selfhood.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Approaching Agnes Hathaway in Hamnet

• Portraying a largely unknown figure: Buckley reflects on taking on the role of Shakespeare’s wife, for whom little historical record exists.
  • "What had been written about Shakespeare's wife was... she was kind of given the title of being a woman that had kept him back from his genius." (03:36)
• Empowering the marginalized: She praises Maggie O’Farrell's novel for repositioning the women and children in Shakespeare's life as vibrant, full characters.
• The 'wild child' and connection to nature: Agnes is depicted as mystical and deeply connected to the natural world—a trait Buckley relates to her own Irish upbringing:
  • "When you grow up in a landscape like [Killarney], your mind and your soul is wild. You know, things just grow because they want to grow." (06:33)

2. Spirituality, Mysticism, and Energy

• Buckley embraces the notion of spirits and energy, describing a ‘curiosity of an unknown and a seeking’ as central to how she lives and approaches roles.
  • "I believe that, like, you have a conversation with somebody's energy and spirit. Absolutely... there is a spirit in the very memory of them that lives on." (07:26)

3. Performing Grief and Motherhood

• The emotional depth of Hamnet's death scene: The iconic 'howl of grief' was spontaneous, not scripted—a testament to Buckley’s immersive, present approach and deep cast bonds.
  • "By the time I'd met that scene, I had developed such a deep bond with Jacoby Jupe, who plays Hamnet... we really were a family." (08:37)
  • "The death of a child is unfathomable... Out of utter respect, I tried to touch an imaginary truth of it." (08:37)
• Personal experience of motherhood: Buckley became pregnant shortly after filming. She found the real experience humbling and recognizes the existential vulnerability parenting brings.
  • "The thing I've realized becoming a mother is it humbles you down to your knees... it always brings you on a way more kind of wild journey." (10:50)
• Not fearing the darkness—embracing 'shadowy bits':
  • "My work, I'm not scared to touch the shadowy bits. I like them. They... help me... And a mother's tenderness, it's ferocious..." (12:16)

4. Dreams as Creative Compass

• Dream analysis: Buckley uses dreams as tools to access character insight, a process she introduced to director Chloé Zhao and the Hamnet cast.
  • "I'm not very good at linear thoughts or projections... with characters and work, it's the same... I find dreams really curious things." (13:56)
• Practical application: She recounts a dream about rescuing a girl under a rock in the ocean, devoured by a stingray, as a metaphorical touchstone for Hamnet’s death scene.
  • "When we got in to shoot that scene, I definitely put that stingray somewhere in that room on that day." (15:25)

5. Transitioning Between Contrasting Roles: Hamnet & The Bride

• Playing extremes: Buckley filmed The Bride (Maggie Gyllenhaal’s feminist take on the Bride of Frankenstein) before Hamnet, experiencing a dramatic shift from wild, monstrous energy to raw maternal grief.
  • "Like Shakespeare reincarnates his son through the vessel of a story, which is what happens at that end... the vessel of a story can help you... touch the things you can't hold by yourself." (19:20)

6. Roots in Music and Performance

• Musical household in Ireland: Buckley grew up surrounded by music—her mother a harpist and singer, her father passionate about it.
  • "I saw the power of storytelling through my mom singing at a very young age... that's definitely something that made me think, I want to do that." (22:54)
• Early stage roles: Played Tony in West Side Story at convent school, describing the supportive, all-girls environment as fun and formative.
• Breakthrough on TV singing competition (I'd Do Anything): Buckley discusses the excitement and pressure of competing at 17, her rawness, and resilience in response to harsh criticism—especially regarding her femininity and physicality.
  • "To criticize a body of a young woman at that time and to make her feel conscious of that was lazy and... boring." (28:55)
• Critical mentorship: Cameron Macintosh funded her Shakespeare course at RADA post-competition—a turning point where she discovered acting could be as emotionally expressive as music.
  • "That gesture changed my life... when I went and did that course, it was the first time I recognized myself as an actress." (31:10)

7. Artistic Growth & Embodying ‘Shadowy Bits’

• Growth as a singer and actor: Buckley reflects on her vocal maturity, especially in her acclaimed role in Cabaret, and how she approaches hope, vulnerability, and uncertainty in her art.
  • "I hear somebody trying to find hope, trying to... be held. Every sentence starts with maybe... what if it doesn’t [happen]? Don’t we all thread in that precipice in life?" (36:57)
• Role choices and self-discovery: Jessie seeks out roles that challenge her, especially those that let her explore complex, "crunchy" female figures—what she calls the "shadowy bits."
  • "A lot of why I choose the roles that I do is to kind of meet those shadowy bits... I want all the shapes, all the stories, all the feelings." (39:03)

8. Motherhood & Career: Balance and Authenticity

• Working while pregnant: Buckley discusses filming The Bride’s reshoots while eight months pregnant and how motherhood brought clarity and boundaries to her work.
  • "I really loved working when I was pregnant... becoming a mom and being pregnant did something, I think for me, my experience of it, it's so real that it really like focuses you." (42:37)
• No fear of fading away: Buckley isn’t afraid to take time off, valuing both being a present mother and an engaged artist.
  • "I don't think I have to choose, you know, I really don't... I think I will be a better mother to continue to be passionate about something in my life." (45:45)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On female complexity:
  • "Let's give the full landscape of what it is to be a woman." (40:49)
• On hope and uncertainty:
  • "Every sentence starts with maybe... what if she doesn't fully believe it, that hope's gonna actually arrive?" (36:57)
• On identity and performance:
  • “When you grow up in a landscape like that, your mind and your soul is wild.” (06:33)
• On embracing darkness:
  • "I'm not scared to touch the shadowy bits. I like them." (12:16)
• On artistic boundaries post-motherhood:
  • "I have this amount of energy, I will give you everything I got... And actually that really focuses you on set." (43:37)
• On autonomy and authenticity:
  • "There's no part of you that needs to be less in your life. You might have to work it out, but it's like, it's worth it." (47:14)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 03:25 — Buckley on researching Shakespeare’s wife
• 06:08 — Nature, wildness, and ‘mystical’ aspects of Agnes
• 08:12 — Preparing (or not) for Hamnet’s grief scene
• 10:32 — Real-life journey into motherhood
• 12:16 — On not being spooked by darkness as a performer
• 13:56 — Using dream analysis in character work
• 15:25 — The symbolic stingray dream
• 19:00 — Contrasting The Bride and Hamnet
• 22:28 — Musical upbringing and its imprint
• 25:36 — Early public singing on I'd Do Anything
• 28:55 — Responding to criticism about femininity and form
• 31:10 — Turning point: Shakespeare and RADA
• 34:47 — Performing “Maybe This Time” in Cabaret
• 38:47 — Acting as personal exploration
• 42:24 — Juggling motherhood and acting in The Bride
• 45:32 — On not fearing disappearance during parental breaks
• 47:14 — Fusing motherhood and artistry

Tone and Style

Buckley’s tone is candid, thoughtful, reflective, and at times fierce—always emotionally open. She relishes “crunchy,” difficult roles, values tenderness and wildness, and embraces both uncertainty and authenticity as cornerstones of her identity, artistry, and motherhood.