Taylor Schilling, the lead of Orange is the New Black, covers the new issue of Elle Canada (as if you couldn’t tell this was Canadian by the Canadian tuxedo). What I always find interesting about Taylor and OITNB is that even though she’s the lead and even though her work on the show is solid-to-good, she’s pretty much the least interesting person on the show. Her character is the least interesting and Taylor herself is the least interesting, at least compared to Laverne Cox, Kate Mulgrew, Uzo Aduba, Lorraine Toussaint, etc. It’s not that Taylor/Piper doesn’t register, it’s that everyone else POPS so hard. Anyway, I went into this interview not really knowing anything about Taylor and I came out of it thinking that she’s sort of harmlessly pretentious. You can read the full piece here. Some highlights:

Celebrities in real life: “I’m still relatively new to the business – I started just five years ago – but I can see how the pressure becomes internalized. And knowing how powerful it can be, I can’t even imagine being outside of this industry looking in. I love meeting the people I admire and seeing they’re all human – they have bags under their eyes and are dealing with their own insecurities and struggles. I think it’s so vital to keep that context in the forefront.”

Who we are online: “It takes a lot of bravery to be authentic and honest and to take that social mask off in order to connect with another human being. So much of what makes us who we are is smoothed away online. And what truly connects us is the wrinkles, not the smoothness.”

Aging, turning 30: “I think that’s one of the most exciting payoffs to getting older. I spent so long being hard on myself, but now there’s so much more kindness, compassion and ease. Well, not total ease – but I can see the trend. I can see the upward spiral.”

Actress versus celebrity: “I feel that there is a part of the acting world that has gotten mixed up in the world of celebrity – as if they’re the same thing. If you’re someone who is interested in a creative profession, then you’re also required to cultivate this celebrity. They are not one and the same. I don’t know if you get more jobs if you have more Instagram followers; that hasn’t been my experience. It has almost become a defiant thing at this point because I do not believe this celebrity Kim Kardashian culture is what I signed up for. I’d rather create something honest than try to create something for a social-media account. Besides, my brain is just way too fragile for both. I am susceptible to what people think; I think we all are. So it’s just easier for me to not engage with it too much.”

[From Elle Canada]

You might have gotten the impression that Taylor was some social-media-shunning capital-A Actress who only cares about her craft and nothing else. You would be wrong – she’s on Twitter and Instagram and she posts on both often enough. I don’t think being active on social media makes her a bad person, nor do I think she’s a bad person for correctly differentiating between “celebrities” and “actresses.” There IS a difference. I just think she’s kidding herself if she believes that she’s not on social media to cultivate her celebrity, her name and her fame as well as promoting her work and “creating something honest.” You know who’s not on Twitter or Instagram? Carey Mulligan. Cate Blanchett. Daniel Day Lewis. It’s totally possible to be a “real” artist and create art and not engage at all on social media, I’m just saying.

Photos courtesy of Elle Canada.