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ONLOVELIFEANDAGEING
‘I’MLOVINGGETTING
OLDERITHINKI’M
GOINGTOLIKEBEING’
AWARD-WINNINGACTRESS PATRICIAARQUETTE OPENSUPABOUT
MOTHERHOODEQUALPAYANDFALLINGINLOVEINHERFORTIESS
he’s won an Oscar, two Golden
Globes and an Emmy, but at
51, Patricia Arquette’s ambition
shows no sign of wavering. The
Hollywood star recently became the
first actress since 2016 to be nominated
in two Emmy categories for her roles
in the Ben Stiller-directed Escape At
Dannemora and Hulu series The Act,
both based on true stories. ‘At 51 to
be getting these parts, it’s pretty crazy,’
she said recently. ‘It’s a good time to be
in Hollywood.’
And coming from such good stock,
it’s little wonder Patricia ended up
following a career in the arts. Her dad,
Lewis is a celebrated actor and writer,
while her brothers David and Richmond
and sister Rosanna are stars in their own
right. Her sister Alexis was also an actress
and transgender pioneer before her death
in 2016.
Here, Patricia – mum to son Enzo, 30,
and daughter Harlow, 16 – chats about life
in her fifties and the lessons her children
have taught her...You turned 50 last year. What were some
of the highlights of your forties?
I fell in love with my boyfriend [painter
Eric White], so that was a really beautifulsurprise. I felt like I’d finally found the guy
I dreamed about when I was a little girl.
When I was little, I would think, one day I
am going to fall in love and I’m going to
find my perfect mate. Well, I finally did that
in my forties. I’m loving getting older.Is there anything you don’t enjoy?
I don’t necessarily love the body aches and
all that business, but I love the feeling of
mellowing. Mentally, that feels really good.
That’s why I’m enjoying it. I think I’m going
to really like being 60. And then I’ll like
being 70 even more. I think it’s going to be
a good ride.Where is your happy place?
For much of my life, I was a hyper
responsible person. I had a lot of
responsibility from a very young age. I was
a mum at 20, but I also had a parental role
in my family, I took care of a lot of people
that were sick and dying. My happy place in
life involves being with my boyfriend or my
kids and seeing them happy.How did becoming a mum at the age of
20 change you?
In a way, I don’t really remember much
of life before I was a mum. When I was
little, my dad said I always wanted to be a
mum when I grew up. The feeling was in
my body from the minute I was born. [My
sister] Alexis is not that much younger than
me. When she was a baby, I would hold
her in my arms. People would say: ‘Can I
see the new baby? Can I hold the baby?’
And I would say: ‘No! My baby, my baby.’
I’d sit there and rock Alexis to sleep. In
that sense, I’ve always been a mum.What’s the best thing about being
a mum to grown-up children?
I can have really deep conversations
with my kids. As a mother, I obviously
love them so much – but I also just think
they are cool and interesting people. In
some way, they’ve also raised me.What have your kids taught you?
They’ve taught me things about
myself and about the world. I love
to talk to them. I spend a lot of time
talking about feminism or female
sexuality – or whatever might turn up.
To hear my daughter’s perspective is
fascinating. Sometimes, I sit back and
think, well, I never even thought of that.Do you see them as friends, as well as
your children?
Before now, I wasn’t one of those mothers
who’d say: ‘I’m your friend.’ I didn’t think
like that. It was more: ‘No, I am actually your
mother and I have to set some rules. I like
to hang out with you, but I don’t want to be
your “friend mum” where anything goes.’
But now they’re older, it’s like: ‘Okay, I want
to be your friend. I think you’re really cool.’You’ve been very vocal about the
treatment of women in Hollywood,
especially when it comes to equal pay...
The other day, a woman came up to me and
said: ‘I want to thank you for the [Oscars]
speech you made, which led to the passing
of the California Fair Wage Act.’ She said that
she went to her boss and asked for a raise. I
hear that a lot, and it means a lot to me.How would you describe your new
Netflix movie, Otherhood?
It’s a comedy about three mothers. I guess
you could call it a ‘mum-edy’. It’s from one
of the writers of Sex And The City, and it’s
been a lot of fun to work on.How similar is it to Sex And The City?
There are lots of crossovers. Not only is the
movie set in New York, but there are themes
of sisterhood and friendship – just like Sex
And The City. It’s also very funny. I laughed
out loud when I read the script.
‘OTHERHOOD’ IS STREAMING ON NETFLIX FROM AUGUST 2.
INTERVIEW BY ALAN TANNER PHOTOGRAPHS BY KIRK MCKOY/
LOS ANGELES TIMES/CONTOUR RA, GETTY IMAGES, NETFLIXOK!Q
Above: Starring in Otherhood
with Angela Bassett and Felicity
Huffman. Below: With her
‘perfect mate’, Eric White], yW
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