IN CONVERSATION WITH ANNA FARIS

interview by JANA LETONJA

ANNA FARIS has built a career defined by sharp comedic instinct, fearless self-awareness, and an ability to move seamlessly between satire, studio comedy, and more nuanced character work. From her breakout in the SCARY MOVIE franchise to standout roles in films like LOST IN TRANSLATION, BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN, THE HOUSE BUNNY, and SMILEY FACE, she has consistently balanced humor with emotional intelligence. Now, she returns to one of her most iconic roles with a new installment of SCARY MOVIE, reuniting with the original cast, while also stepping into a dynamic new phase with the upcoming projects like SPA WEEKEND and A24’s crime thriller PRIMETIME. Alongside her work on screen, ANNA has expanded her voice as a creator, producer, and author, continuing to shape a career that is both enduring and constantly evolving.

dress PACO RABANNE FROM FWRD
shoes JIMMY CHOO
earrings GIVENCHY

Returning to SCARY MOVIE feels like a full-circle moment. What made now the right time to come back?

In 1999, I was graduating from the University of Washington. I’d done a lot of theater in Seattle, but never comedy, only serious productions. I still acted, but I had given up any real dream of making a living as an actor. I wanted to be a writer. I wanted to live in London.

Then I fell in love with this LA actor right before graduation. I had my plane ticket to London, but this hot dude changed my plans, and I thought, maybe I’ll wait tables in LA for a year and see if I’m happy. I didn’t know anybody there, and I was cynical about the industry. I already knew what rejection felt like and didn’t want to build a life around it.

Some managers agreed to represent me, which felt surreal. They asked me to tape three auditions, and my mom filmed them on her camcorder while I was packing to move. A few days later, I was flown to LA to audition for this outlandish comedy. That Friday, I got the role. I knew something monumental had happened, but I felt completely unprepared, euphoric, alone, and terrified.

That movie changed everything. It also taught me quickly that LA had very little imagination when it came to casting. I kept hearing, “Oh, you do spoof comedy,” and I kept saying, “No, I do dramatic work.” I got caught in a niche that never felt like a perfect fit.

So when MARLON WAYANS called me in early 2025 and said they had the franchise back and wanted me to be part of it, I got really emotional. Our house had just burned down in the Palisades, and it felt like such a gift, personally and professionally. I hadn’t seen MARLON, KEENEN, or SHAWN in 24 years, and I finally got to thank them.

What also changed is that I’d started to appreciate my place in comedy. I realized that when people recognized me, they usually smiled because they remembered something ridiculous I’d done on screen, and that brought them joy. That’s a real gift.

Getting to come back now, with more confidence, more gratitude, and more ownership of Cindy Campbell, has been a dream. It feels so good to be on set and think, “Oh, this is home”. I’m good at this. I love this. And the fact that people are excited to see it, that’s such a reward.

fur and shoes ALEXANDER WANG
earrings 8OR

What do you think SCARY MOVIE represents today, in a very different comedy landscape?

Back in 2000, we were known for pushing the line of what was too offensive. The first two especially challenged audiences in this really irreverent way. But the WAYANS brothers always brought something culturally sharp to it too.

For me, this new movie is less about making some bigger sociological statement and more about joy. I’m hoping it brings relief. Things feel tense everywhere, and I love the idea of people going to the movies with the same group they saw it with back in 2000 and laughing together again. That kind of generational nostalgia feels really meaningful to me.

I also think SCARY MOVIE works because some of its humor is very physical and very accessible. A lot of it translates without needing much explanation.

And Cindy Campbell is such a gift of a character. She’s well-intentioned, deeply delusional, and completely malleable. You trust her because her heart is good, even when she’s ridiculous. I love that about her.

blazer and shorts ALEX PERRY FROM FWRD
tights WOLFORD
shoes JUSTFAB!
earrings 8OR

Looking back, how did SCARY MOVIE shape your career and public identity?

On one hand, it was this incredible break, I felt like I’d won the lottery. On the other hand, I was concerned that it would be hard in LA to be seen as anything else.

When I was younger, I had a lot to prove. I wanted to be taken seriously, and because comedy had never been my goal, I felt confused by being known for it. I even remember a review that said I must be as dumb as my character, and that really hit my ego. I wanted people to think I was smart.

But now, it feels amazing to say that comedy has given me so much. It taught me how to laugh at myself. It made me more expansive as a person. It brought me joy.

Playing Shelly in THE HOUSE BUNNY changed me too. I think it made me softer, maybe kinder. I had always struggled with female friendships, and that role opened something up in me.

And now, coming back to Cindy Campbell all these years later feels incredibly gratifying. I went from being that girl sprayed onto the ceiling to wearing a sleek black suit and weaponizing that same absurdity in a totally new way. I love that arc. I was so sentimental on set. I felt grateful every single day.

coat JACQUEMUS FROM FWRD
earrings and ring ALEXIS BITTAR
shoes LESILLA
earrings GIVENCHY

Your upcoming film SPA WEEKEND brings together a powerhouse ensemble cast. What excited you most about that project?

The three other leading ladies, LESLIE MANN, ISLA FISHER, MICHELLE BUTEAU, I felt so honored and excited to be doing a hysterical, grounded comedy about four friends dealing with the same stresses I’m dealing with in my late forties. Kids, husbands, jobs, the stress of everyday life. You want to go away with your girlfriends, and then it becomes a hell of a weekend.

It isn’t very often that we get to do a four-quadrant female buddy comedy. So the opportunity to work with those women was a blast. It was just as fun as it felt on the page. It was an incredible project. And that was when I was in Australia shooting it, when MARLON called. It just felt like, wow, what a year 2025 was for me. Very transformative. I feel very lucky.

You’re also stepping into darker territory with PRIMETIME. What drew you to that role?

I always tell my agents I’ll audition for anything if it means getting to work with great, interesting people. I initially auditioned for the larger role, which went to a brilliant actress, but LANCE OPPENHEIM offered me a smaller role.

It’s a tiny part, but it was such a gift. Watching ROBERT PATTINSON work was an education in itself, and getting to be part of such a performance-based film was thrilling.

I’ve had a few opportunities like that in my career, tiny roles in beautiful films like BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN and LOST IN TRANSLATION. I love those moments too. No role feels too small when the work is that good.

dress, earrings and shoes GIVENCHY

As a producer, what kinds of stories are you most interested in bringing to life?

I think I’ve finally stopped swimming upstream and accepted my place in comedy. That’s actually clarified a lot for me.

My husband and I have a small production company now, and for me producing really came out of necessity. I realized that if I wanted to keep working in an industry that didn’t always know what to do with me, I had to be proactive.

THE HOUSE BUNNY was a huge turning point because that was a character I pitched, and we pitched that movie 24 times before it landed at ADAM SANDLER’S company Happy Madison. That taught me a lot.

I’m still very interested in character-based work, and I’m interested in revisiting some characters I’ve played before, if the right opportunity comes along. Right now, producing still feels a little like survival in order to create opportunities for myself, but I hope that evolves into something bigger and more visionary over time.

Your podcast ANNA FARIS IS UNQUALIFIED became hugely influential. What inspired you to start it?

I started podcasting in 2015, before it was what it is now. I was on MOM, and I’d always loved advice columns and emotional problem-solving. More than anything, I missed intimate conversations with strangers. I’m an intimate person. I don’t have a huge circle, and I like going deep. So I started the podcast because I wanted that kind of connection. I really thought maybe four or five people would listen.

What surprised me was how much of a space it filled. I didn’t even want to monetize it at first. It was never about fame or profit, it was about connection.

I don’t really miss it, but I’m very grateful for it. It was a wonderful chapter, and I could imagine returning to that kind of intimacy someday, just maybe in a different form.

body, shoes and earrings GIVENCHY
tights WOLFORD
sunglasses VERSACE

Having worked in Hollywood for decades, how have you seen the industry evolve, especially for women in comedy?

While is sometimes, for me, feels like two steps forward, one step back, I’m optimistic as there have been real shifts. BRIDESMAIDS was one of them. And over the past 20 or 25 years, there have been a lot of women whose work opened doors and expanded the space for the rest of us.

For me personally, some of the most meaningful changes came through smaller victories. A film like SMILEY FACE felt liberating because my character wasn’t trying to please a guy or be desirable in any conventional way. That felt radical to me.

I feel similarly about THE HOUSE BUNNY. Even though the character was hypersexualized on the surface, I always felt the real story was about her growth, her new family, and her own emotional life. I even argued against giving her a love interest at all at one point.

That kind of nuance matters. Comedy has to be doing more than one thing at once. I do think we’ve seen far more room for that, and more leading comedic roles for women, in the last two decades, which is wonderful.

Outside of acting and producing, what creative outlets are most fulfilling to you right now?

Honestly, your forties are full of logistics. Life feels immediate. With kids, and with our house burning down, there hasn’t been much room for abstract creative hobbies lately. It’s been more like: solve the next problem.

That said, SCARY MOVIE has made me reflect a lot on who I was, on the life I might have had if I’d moved to London, and on how strange it is to live a life that’s visible and examined when you never really planned for that.

A lot of what still drives me is the same thing that drove the podcast. I want intimacy, connection, authenticity. I’m always looking for that.

And yes, I do also enjoy joy. I love weird reality TV. I come from a family of sociologists, so I think I’ve always been fascinated by people and systems and how we all behave. That curiosity is probably still one of the biggest parts of me.

As LOVE is the theme of our issue, what role has it played in shaping your choices, both on and off screen?

Well, I moved to LA for love. I went to college for love too. Different guy, different disaster. And playing love onscreen, especially with a character like Cindy Campbell, you do feel it in the moment. Cindy adores Brenda.

More broadly, love feels different as you get older. When I was younger, I fell in love in this completely overwhelming, head-over-heels way, often with people who were total doofuses. I wasn’t really taking anything in, I was just intoxicated by the feeling. Now I’m married to an incredible man and it feels so beautifully mature. He’s supportive, quiet, steady.

That’s one of the gifts of aging. Love becomes calmer, deeper, more grounded. At this stage of my life, that’s what love feels like to me.

TEAM CREDITS:

talent ANNA FARIS
photography and set design TYLER PATRICK KENNY
styling LUCA FALCIONI at OPUS BEAUTY
creative direction TYLER PATRICK KENNY and LUCA FALCIONI
executive production JAY SIVAYAVIRONJNA
hair RICHARD COLLINS at TMG LA
makeup JILL CADY
model LORENZO ZAPATA
production design KHALIL BOWENS
sfx ALEX IN WONDERLAND
backdrops SCHMIDLI BACKDROPS Inc.
photography assistance MONICA SIVAYAVIROJNA and KYLE HOU
styling assistance GAIA KHATCHADOURIAN
studio HYPE STUDIOS
video MEECH
editor TIMI LETONJA
interview JANA LETONJA and TIMI LETONJA
cover design ARTHUR ROELOFFZEN