Amanda Seyfried says her farm animals don’t recognise her in make-up
The Mamma Mia! star has opened up about balancing Hollywood success with running an animal sanctuary in upstate New York, while discussing motherhood, treasured family jewellery and her latest acting projects.
Amanda Seyfried has revealed her life on a New York farm is so different from her Hollywood career she jokes her rescued animals barely recognise her when she returns home wearing make-up.
The 40-year-old actress, best known for Mamma Mia!, Mean Girls and Les Misérables, has spent more than a decade developing her historic property in upstate New York into a non-profit animal sanctuary.
In an interview with Women’s Wear Daily (WWD), published on Wednesday (21.10.26), Amanda discussed the contrast between caring for animals at home and attending red-carpet events, alongside her work as an ambassador for Tiffany
and Co.
Recalling a television interview filmed at the property, Amanda said: “I did my CBS Sunday Morning thing here at the farm and I had make-up on and then I was outside and I was joking about how none of the animals recognise me because I was in make-up.”
She added: “But it’s funny to have that dichotomy of my glamorous life, which I do have a glamorous life.”
Amanda, who grew up in Allentown, Pennsylvania, said the two sides of her life had become equally important to her.
She told WWD: “And then there’s the rest of my life, which is home, and it’s interesting and I love that because it makes me feel like I can do it all in a way that it would’ve been hard to picture when I was younger.”
She continued: “I can have both and be present in both equally, which is always a good reminder. It definitely brings me to my knees.”
The actress has previously spoken about the responsibilities involved in caring for the animals at her sanctuary, where her daily routine includes feeding and looking after them.
During a 2025 interview with CBS Mornings, Amanda explained why she valued the structure of farm life.
She said: “I love it because nothing else matters. Because they need to get fed. It’s a responsibility that keeps me focused on what’s important.”
Amanda also discussed her decision to live away from Los Angeles and the entertainment industry.
She added: “Hollywood is very tricky and it’s got a lot of personalities, and there are a lot of people that are working in a way that doesn’t necessarily make it feel like a safe place. This is exactly what I’ve always wanted.”
Alongside her work at the sanctuary, Amanda has continued her acting career and her partnership with luxury jewellery company Tiffany and Co.
The brand’s You and Me holiday campaign features Amanda, who said she had become increasingly interested in jewellery that could be passed down through her family.
She told WWD: “It is kind of like a legacy thing. And that’s how I think about jewelry too. Every time I buy something, I imagine it on my daughter or my son.”
Amanda shares daughter Nina, nine, and son Thomas, six, with her former husband, actor Thomas Sadoski, 50.
The couple separated in September after nine years of marriage and have continued to co-parent their children.
Discussing a pair of earrings given to her by Tiffany, Amanda said: “These are heirlooms.”
She added: “My daughter’s going to wear them.”
The actress also spoke about encouraging Nina to have her ears pierced.
She went on: “I keep begging her to get her ears pierced.”
Amanda’s jewellery collection attracted attention during New York Fashion Week in February, when she attended the Tory Burch autumn/winter 2026 show wearing a belly-button ring.
Speaking to People at the event, she revealed she had kept the piercing since her teenage years.
She said: “I never got rid of it. I’ve had it since I was 17. I took it out when I was pregnant both times, but put it straight back in.”
Amanda added: “Nobody really ever sees it, but it’s always there.”
Her latest comments follow renewed attention surrounding her acting career, including her unexpected appearance in the documentary You Can See Everything, directed by Nathan Fielder, 43, and Lance Oppenheim, 30.
The documentary, which premiered in cinemas this month, examines the final weeks former Theranos chief executive Elizabeth Holmes, 42, spent at home before beginning her prison sentence for fraud.
Amanda, who won an Emmy for portraying Elizabeth in the Hulu miniseries The Dropout, appears in the documentary recreating conversations involving the former businesswoman.
In her latest WWD interview, Amanda also discussed how motherhood and her separation from Thomas had influenced her approach to work.
She explained she now prioritises acting projects based in New York and New Jersey so she can remain close to Nina and Thomas, particularly at weekends.
