Mad For It - Hot Press meets Jessica Paré

Known for her role as brunette beauty Megan Draper in ‘60s-set drama Mad Men, Jessica Paré is now turning her attention to more modern tales. The actress is starring with Brian Gleeson in Ronan and Rob Burke’s new Dublin-set rom-com, Standby. However, the sweet story isn’t the only thing worthy of celebration, as mere hours before I speak to her, the 33-year old Canadian actress announced online she was pregnant. Paré dismisses the idea that the miracle of birth is more worthy of congratulations than her new film.

“Is it that much more important?” she jokes. “I mean, this movie is pretty important… No, I’m kidding, I’m really excited!”
Happily settled with musician John Kastner, a lead role in one of the decade’s most acclaimed shows, and a baby on the way, life seems pretty ideal for Paré. This might be considered an irony, given that Standby addresses the confusion and loss faced by so much of Generation Y.
Paré plays Alice, a struggling illustrator in a deadbeat relationship, who’s reminded of her youthful optimism when she meets her first love, Alan (Gleeson). The two spend a serendipitous night together in Dublin, where they not only rediscover old feelings, but address their insecurities about the future, and the fact they don’t feel as adult as they should.
“It’s a modern love story with modern characters,” enthuses Paré, who says she loved the film’s examination of the pressures facing her generation.
“There’s a sense of ennui that’s particular to that age in modern times. We don’t have it all figured out yet, whereas our parents did. They were mature, and had the evidence to prove it; marriages, kids. For our generation, it’s more complicated. There’s all this choice now; it’s all about freedom and ‘do what you love’ and ‘find the right person’ – which all brings with it a different kind of pressure.”
It’s a distinct tonal shift for Paré, who became a star by playing Megan Draper on Mad Men. She muses that part of the show’s appeal is the contrast between the confining gender roles of the 1960s and modern values.
“There were very structured roles for men and women – which we still have of course,” she remarks. “There are still all kinds of restrictions and oppressions in more insidious ways now. The old days can also seem simpler, because the sense of freedom we have now can also cause such anxiety. ‘Oh, I can be whoever I want? That’d be great – if someone else could just figure it out and tell me exactly who that is!’”
For Paré, an extra layer of depth was vital to her involvement in the romantic comedy. She admits that, considering herself a die-hard romantic, she’s not enamoured with the modern, Hollywood interpretation of the term.
“I feel like I’m quite a romantic person: particularly in America, the idea of romance isn’t the dark, blustery, passionate thing that it was in old novels. Now, romance is something more trite and packaged, brought to you by Hallmark. The former definitely appeals to me more.”
Perhaps it was the cobblestoned charm of Dublin’s streets that captured her heart then, as the actress reveals she adored shooting in the capital.
“It’s said so often, but Dublin is such a character! We have these two characters, one new to the city and one who lives there but still hasn’t really found himself. So as they wander through the city and explore it, it’s both a sense of discovering the city and discovering themselves and each other. I loved shooting there so much. We shot at night a lot, in the city centre and around Temple Bar. It was - ” The actress pauses. “Exciting!” she settles on, rather diplomatically.  “ As I’m sure you’re well aware, walking around Temple Bar at three in the morning is quite an adventure whether you’re filming a movie or not! I loved wandering around and checking out the city. I do miss it.”
The film also sees Paré singing onscreen again; something she is now famous for. In a now iconic Mad Men episode, Paré performed a deliberately provocative version of ‘Zou Bisou Bisou’, much to the embarrassment of paramour Don.
“That was a terrifying day!” the actress declares, remembering filming the scene. “Because I’m not a singer, and most definitely not a dancer. And I hadn’t been on the show that long. I felt like I was still proving myself - and then I literally had to get out and do a song and dance routine for them all! I’m delighted people still think it’s an iconic scene. And singing again here was fun, too. It’s nice, because in Standby Alice isn’t meant to be a professional singer. It’s raw and a bit all over the place. That’s what makes it endearing. I hate when people sing in films and they just happen to be auto-tuned and amazing. I like goofiness, and wrong notes. It’s more human, more real.”
The final episodes of Mad Men air In the spring, and the actress admits it’s hard to accept that it’ll all officially be over soon – especially seeing as the final series was split into two, prolonging the experience.
“The long goodbyes are both a blessing and a curse,” she admits. “I love everyone on the show and I don’t want to say goodbye. We’re all still in touch, and ready to move on I think.”
As for future projects... she’s leaving her options open. “I love TV because the writing is so good and it’s such an interesting time for TV right now. I also want to do more comedy. And an action film would be so fun to do.”
For the next few months at least, she’s happy to take a well-deserved break. “I’m not against working while pregnant,” she remarks, “I don’t want to go through gymnastics trying to hide my belly behind furniture and big handbags! So I’ll see. I might just take a break and watch the end of Mad Men with everyone else – I’m dying to see it!”

Standby is in cinemas now.