Leighton Meester's experiences away from the cameras are taking center stage.
Leighton opened up about her parenting style in an interview with Cosmopolitan UK released on March 3. The The Weekend Away actress shared that getting into the role of Beth, a new mom who has taken her first trip after having a baby, was something she could sympathize with.
"I really was excited about playing a new mother who's having a weekend away for the first time," she told the publication, "which is the most exciting and really the most terrifying prospect when you have a new baby."
Leighton shared that she has been in her character's shoes to some degree.
"I felt like that was the kind of character that I could very easily relate to, slip into, and have compassion for," Leighton noted. "When I got the script breakdown it was like a 35-year-old with a 10-month-old and I was like, 'That is exactly me.'"
The actress reflected that for her own children, being away from them is not easy.
"The element of being away from your child is very different from when you're with your child. At least for me. When anything happens, if your kid gets hurt or something happens, that's your number one concern," she explained. "[Beth is] not with her kid, so that would drive me mad. I would be devastated to be in a situation like that and be thousands of miles away from my kid."
Leighton shares two children with husband Adam Brody — Arlo, 6, and a son, 2, whose name has yet to be revealed.
In an interview with Refinery29 in 2017, the Gossip Girl alum explained her decision to keep her family life out of the spotlight while also balancing being in the spotlight herself.
"I don't talk about Arlo very much," Leighton said. "I am very proud of that area of my life. But I'm also really proud of the show and the work I do. I think the perception is ‘You're an ingenue or you're an icon or you're a mum.' There's no in-between."