Jessica Simpson Was “Shocked” to Find Herself in Ryan Murphy’s ‘All’s Fair’ (And She’s Ready for More)

Calling Jessica Simpson a movie star would’ve been pretty accurate 20 years ago.

After making a name for herself as a pop star (her debut single “I Wanna Love You Forever” hit No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100), Simpson segued to reality TV fame (MTV’s Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica became a pop culture flashpoint) and eventually got recruited for the big screen. She seized the opportunities and churned out a series of films, starting with Jay Chandrasekhar’s reboot of The Dukes of Hazzard where she played the iconic Daisy Duke opposite Johnny Knoxville and Seann William Scott. She followed that up with romantic comedies like Employee of the Month opposite Dane Cook and Dax Shepard, Blonde Ambition opposite Luke Wilson and Rachael Leigh Cook, and Private Valentine: Blonde & Dangerous opposite Steve Guttenberg and Vivica A. Fox.

She’ll be the first to tell you that all of the above had one thing in common. “I was playing a dumb blonde,” Simpson recently told The Hollywood Reporter. “I was not playing someone who took a lot of acting, to be honest. Not that I’m a dumb blonde, but it was very fun and easy to fall into that.”

It took awhile but after an extended hiatus, Simpson has fallen back into acting thanks to a head-turning role in Ryan Murphy’s All’s Fair, now airing on Hulu. The buzzy series — aside from a critical lashing — launched as the most-watched series debut in three years for the streamer and finds Simpson playing a woman named Lee-Ann who sues her rock star husband, played by Rick Springfield, after he pressured her into one botched plastic surgery procedure after another. Lee-Ann recruits the services of a team of impeccably dressed legal eagles led by Kim Kardashian and Naomi Watts, and needless to say the fireworks take off from there on the show’s third episode.

With the high-profile acting part, released so closely on the heels of her first batch of new music in 15 years with Nashville Canyon, Simpson is definitely having a moment. And nobody seems more surprised by that than Simpson herself. THR caught up with her at the All’s Fair world premiere in Los Angeles where she explained what it feels like to be back in the public eye, what her sobriety has to do with it and whether she sees more acting in her future.

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What has this moment been like?

I stepped out of the entertainment business for 15 years almost. I’ve done commercials and stuff like that, and I have the Jessica Simpson Collection. That keeps me busy and I never thought at 45 I would still be modeling, especially at 5-foot-3. I never thought I would ever model anything to be honest, but it’s a lifestyle brand. Doing that has been an effortless and fun way to remain in the public eye. But as far as entertainment, doing this now in my 40s, I don’t have all the noise around me. I don’t have all the expectations on me from the public. The only expectations I have are the ones I put on myself. I don’t have anybody to please. I don’t have anybody to make money for or do a job for. I’m just here for myself. I’ve never gotten that opportunity until now.

What are the expectations you’re putting on yourself?

Just to remain as vulnerable as I can be, no matter the mistakes, no matter the talk. I want to be as honest, as vulnerable and as real as possible.

One thing I’ve noticed about this moment is that your music has been well-received. Audiences are still hungry for Jessica Simpson. The media is still hungry to hear from you.

I never understood that.

They really are. I think it’s because you’ve always been authentic to who you are. Is that fair?

I feel like I was one of the first reality shows, other than The Osbornes, so people got to see a part of me growing up that was so real, so authentic. And maybe they saw themselves in me, or saw a piece of me that they could relate to. I think it made them root for me in ways that made me feel really blessed. Writing the memoir was also really powerful for me. Going back to my inner child, revisiting her dreams, her faith, my younger self, and being able to reclaim that was a really beautiful experience. Telling her that it would all be okay was a really cool and powerful thing that I got to do in my 30s.

The way you’ve addressed your sobriety, and shared that part of your story, I think has also really resonated with people, myself included.

Thank you. Growing up, my dad was a Baptist minister and my parents didn’t drink. I always felt so safe. So when I became a parent, I didn’t know how to do it while [drinking] because it shut down parts of myself. I wanted to be as present as possible for my kids for everything that they need, and I always want them to feel safe. That was one of the main reasons why I stopped. I haven’t missed it for a day. I’m one of the lucky ones. I’m definitely one of the lucky ones. I journal through everything, and I have a really good relationship with myself. I hope, in return, I can inspire my kids to have that kind of relationship with themselves. I want them to always be open and honest with me about whatever they’re going through.

I assume you have a very good relationship with Ryan Murphy after filming All’s Fair?

I was very shocked to have a relationship with him at all! It came out of nowhere. I hadn’t even released my new music before we started talking. It was very shocking to get the call. I would love to have a very close relationship with Ryan Murphy one day. Maybe this is the beginning of a very close one.

You appeared in the trailer in a scene where your character is crying. What can you share about filming that scene?

I don’t even cry like that in real life that much. I definitely cry but with my character, the part I could relate to was her vulnerability. I have my crazy moments. I have my naughty moments in life, but I’ve never shown that side of myself in this way. I had to be really vulnerable and I just had to push boundaries. It was really fun to do. I knew Ryan would make it tasteful. I was in the hands of Anthony Hemingway who directed me. He made me feel like I already did great before I even did anything.

You have scenes with all the ladies — Kim Kardashian, Naomi Watts, Niecy Nash-Betts — and Rick Springfield who plays your husband. Who made you the most nervous?

It wasn’t the people who made me nervous, it was more the character I was playing. I just wanted to make everybody proud. I wanted to do the character justice. I haven’t acted like this since 2007, and even in 2007, I was playing a dumb blonde. I was not playing someone that took a lot of acting. Not that I’m a dumb blonde, but it was very fun and easy to fall into that.

Does this now give you an appetite for more acting?

Yes! When we left to get in the car to come to the premiere, I was saying that I really wish I could be in every one of these episodes. I definitely would love to keep at it. I think when people see this show, they will remember that I’m able to do stuff like this.