Sarah Paulson costars as the whip-smart Abby Gerhard in “Carol,” the new drama from director Todd Haynes starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara as lovers dealing with repression and their personal truths in 1950s New York. Abby Gerhard is not nearly as whimsical as Carol, so their friendship — one of fire and ice, respectively — is one of the raddest parts of the movie.
“I think it's kind of fun when two people are swirling around in some love haze and they're sort of weighed down by it, to be like, 'Here's the deal, dude. You need to pull yourself together,'” Paulson told us.
Though Abby is not one of the more vulnerable characters in Paulson's career, the “American Horror Story” actress knows full well what it's like to see herself in her own characters. We spoke with Paulson about the “AHS” character she understood most, working with Cate Blanchett, and why “Notes on a Scandal” is so damn good.