Hollywood actress Amanda Seyfried is drawing a firm line when it comes to her career, revealing that she recently turned down a television project because it required too many sex scenes.
The 40-year-old Oscar nominee, best known for Mean Girls, Mamma Mia! and The Housemaid, admitted that her feelings about filming intimate scenes have changed dramatically over the years.
And after spending more than two decades in Hollywood, she’s no longer willing to make herself uncomfortable just to land a role.
During a candid conversation with Alec Baldwin at the Hamptons International Film Festival on October 4, Seyfried explained that pretending to be romantically involved with another actor has become increasingly awkward.
“Our jobs are weird. And as I get older, it gets weirder,” she told Baldwin.
The actress acknowledged that performing romantic scenes with people she has no personal relationship with is simply part of the business, but she no longer approaches those moments with the enthusiasm she once had.
Earlier in her career, Seyfried said, kissing an attractive co-star while getting paid seemed like an exciting perk of being an actress.
Now, the situation feels very different.
Seyfried revealed that she recently passed on an unnamed television series because the role involved frequent sexual encounters.
“I don’t wanna do it. I’m uncomfortable with it. I’m not into it right now,” she explained.
She also said she has little interest in being physically exposed in front of unfamiliar co-stars, regardless of who they are.
The actress did not identify the television project she rejected or disclose how much money she may have been offered.
While her comments sounded decisive, Seyfried stopped short of declaring that she would never film another intimate scene.
She acknowledged that her feelings could change in the future, depending on the project and her personal circumstances.
For now, however, she is comfortable walking away from opportunities that don’t align with her boundaries.
Her decision also reflects how motherhood has changed her priorities.
Seyfried shares two children, daughter Nina, 9, and son Thomas, 6, with actor Thomas Sadoski.
The couple, who married in 2017, confirmed in September 2026 that they had been separated for some time, although they have continued focusing on raising their children.
During the festival discussion, Seyfried explained that her children are now old enough to notice her work, which has made her more thoughtful about the roles she accepts.
“I have kids now who are paying attention to what I do,” she said.
The actress also admitted that she was more willing to accommodate uncomfortable situations when she was younger, sometimes agreeing to things because she didn’t want to disappoint colleagues or jeopardize an opportunity.
Now, after years of success, she feels more confident saying no.
That confidence comes at a particularly successful point in her career.
Seyfried first captured widespread attention as Karen Smith in the 2004 comedy Mean Girls before becoming an international star in the 2008 musical Mamma Mia!.
She later took on more demanding roles, including her portrayal of adult film actress Linda Lovelace in the 2013 biographical drama Lovelace.
Her performance as Marion Davies in David Fincher’s Mank earned her an Academy Award nomination in 2021.
She also won an Emmy Award for portraying disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes in the Hulu miniseries The Dropout.
More recently, Seyfried starred alongside Sydney Sweeney in the 2025 psychological thriller The Housemaid, which became a major international box-office success, earning more than $400 million worldwide.
Despite her lengthy career and numerous acclaimed performances, Seyfried told Baldwin that the movie’s success finally made her feel like a genuine Hollywood movie star.
Interestingly, her role in The Housemaid did not require her to perform sex scenes.
The actress has also continued pursuing challenging dramatic projects, including The Testament of Ann Lee and The Life and Deaths of Wilson Shedd, which was featured at this year’s Hamptons International Film Festival.
Her comments arrive as Hollywood continues examining how intimate scenes are handled on film and television sets.
In recent years, the industry has increasingly used intimacy coordinators to help performers establish boundaries and choreograph sensitive scenes safely and professionally.
But Seyfried’s remarks highlight another important distinction: Even with safeguards in place, an actor may simply decide that certain scenes are no longer something they want to perform.
And Seyfried is making clear that she doesn’t need a complicated explanation for that decision.
After years of accepting demanding roles and navigating Hollywood’s expectations, the actress is choosing projects on her own terms.
For now, that means turning down opportunities involving frequent sex scenes, even if they might otherwise be appealing.
And with an Oscar nomination, an Emmy Award and multiple box-office hits already behind her, Seyfried appears comfortable letting someone else take those roles.
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