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Jeremy Strong calls infamous 2021 interview his ‘15 minutes of shame’

A 2021 profile depicted Strong as an actor deeply committed to his craft, who takes every role he lands as ‘seriously as his own life’

Inga Parkel
Tuesday 21 February 2023 14:55 GMT
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Jeremy Strong has reflected on the infamous profile of him in the New Yorker, admitting he’d never “felt judged like that in a very long time”.

Titled “On Succession, Jeremy Strong doesn’t get the joke”, journalist Michael Schulman’s 2021 feature characterised the 43-year-old as an intense actor, deeply committed to his craft, who takes every role he lands as “seriously as his own life”.

It included quotes from Strong’s Succession co-stars, including Brian Cox and Kieran Culkin, both of whom commented on the actor’s serious approach to his performance.

Following its publication, the interview sparked heated conversation on Twitter, with numerous celebrities such as Anne Hathaway and Aaron Sorkin coming to Strong’s defence.

Now, just over a year since the drama, Strong spoke with British GQ and said he viewed the interview as his “15 minutes of shame, with a long tail”.

“I hadn’t felt judged like that in a very long time,” Strong said.

At the time, Cox, who plays patriarch Logan Roy on the hit HBO drama, told Schulman: “The result that Jeremy gets is always pretty tremendous.

“I just worry about what he does to himself. I worry about the crises he puts himself through in order to prepare.”

Culkin is also quoted, saying: “After the first season, he said something to me like, ‘I’m worried that people might think that the show is a comedy.’ And I said, ‘I think the show is a comedy.’ He thought I was kidding.”

Jeremy Strong
Jeremy Strong (Getty Images for TIME)

“Everyone’s entitled to have their feelings,” Strong acknowledged when asked about his co-stars opinions.

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“I also think Brian Cox, for example, he’s earned the right to say whatever the f*** he wants. There was no need to address that or do damage control.”

The Emmy-winning actor continued: “I feel a lot of love for my siblings and my father on the show.

“And it’s like a family in the sense that, and I’m sure they would say this, too, you don’t always like the people that you love. I do always respect them.”

Succession’s fourth season is scheduled to premiere on Sunday 26 March on HBO Max in the US and Sky Atlantic and NOW in the UK on 27 March.

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