Coming home helps to keep me grounded and down to earth - 'Little Women' star Saoirse

Classic: Saoirse Ronan lobbied to play Jo in the film adaptation of ‘Little Women’. Photo: PA

Claire Murphy Twitter Email

December 21 2019 02:30 AM

Saoirse Ronan has said her Irish work ethic has helped progress her career - but warns the film industry here needs to stand head and shoulders above the rest because it is "in the minority".

In an exclusive interview in 'Weekend' magazine, Ronan (25) said coming home to Ireland regularly keeps her grounded.

The actress is on the last leg of a promotional tour for 'Little Women' but is returning home for Christmas to relax.

She said she actively pursued the role of Jo in the classic remake as it was under director Greta Gerwig, who she worked with for the 2017 hit 'Lady Bird'.

"I always really liked those books," she says. "I read them when I was in my teens.

"The reason why I felt so adamant that I had to do it was because of Greta; I knew she'd do something different with it. Her touch is fresh, and different, I feel, from what everyone else is doing: it's like very classic but very modern.

"Yeah. I just tapped Greta on the shoulder and said, 'Listen, I know that you're going to do 'Little Women', and I need to be your Jo!'"

Ronan, who recently put her Greystones home on the market, said being a home-bird has helped keep her down to earth.

"I don't think anyone's let lose the run of themselves at home, and if I ever hear anybody Irish who, as a producer said once, gives themselves a great welcome, I'm like, 'Ah lads!' It's sort of like the thing with women in film where you're like, 'We can't mess up because we're the minority, so whenever we produce anything or we're exported somewhere else, we need to do it better'.

"We have some of the best actors in the world, like Cillian Murphy and Daniel Day-Lewis and Charlie Murphy, Sarah Greene, all these brilliant people, and we're very supportive of each other because we come from a small place and we know how big a thing it is to, like, go out there.

"The other thing is, Ireland is a country of workers, in the sense that there isn't this big class system, you know. We all work, and that's what my mam and dad did, so they kind of raised me to have that same work ethic when I came to whatever job I had."