Kristine Froseth wants to be in all your favourite films

Kristine Froseth is enjoying her last Monday in London, where she’s been hanging out the last couple of months. And the young actor, who usually calls New York City home, is reeling from a final weekend well spent.

“I went to my friend’s birthday in Dalston and then I saw Saltburn, which I’m still processing,” the 28-year-old says, Zooming in from her rental flat in Hackney, East London, dressed in a loose-fitting Mac Miller T‑shirt.

Ah, there it is: the obligatory ​“Have you seen Saltburn yet?” line, which has surely left most of our lips at least once over the last couple of months. So what did Froseth think? ​“I thought it was beautifully shot – Carey Mulligan just blows my mind,” she says. ​“Barry Keoghan can really carry a film. I kind of wish there was less killing and more emphasis on why. But ultimately, I was really pleased!”

Now that’s out of the way, onto the films and TV shows Froseth has been carrying over the last decade or so. Most recently, she starred in The Buccaneers, the Apple TV+ series inspired by Edith Wharton’s final, unfinished novel of the same name.

Premiering to critical acclaim in the UK last November, it follows a group of young American debutantes travelling from 19^th century New York to the uptight world of London’s high society. They arrive with naive excitement at the prospect of finding riches and potential suitors. But what do they run into instead? Love triangles, broken promises and general debauchery, especially for Froseth’s character, the rosy-cheeked Nan St. George, whose worldview tilts on its axis shortly after arriving in the city.

“I did a lot of research for the role, but quickly realised [the show’s creators] weren’t married to accuracy,” she says. ​“It’s a modern version – Nan is very curious and playful, so I tried to tap into that physicality by wearing my corsets very loose, things like that.”

The Buccaneers sits a long way from Froseth’s first role in the TV adaptation of John Green’s bestselling novel Looking for Alaska in 2019, which catapulted her headfirst into acting after a childhood spent flitting between Oslo and northern New Jersey. Then came roles in Kitty Green’s The Assistant (2019), Lena Dunham’s steamy Sharp Stick (2022) and indie eco-drama How to Blow Up a Pipeline (2023), to name a few.

“I feel like a lot of the projects I chose align with where I am in my life and what I need to dig into,” Froseth says. ​“In a selfish way, it’s therapeutic. I love watching stories that make me feel less alone. I hope I can do that for someone else.”

So far, so good. The Buccaneers has just been renewed for a second season, and Froseth has landed a role in Paul Schrader’s upcoming feature Oh, Canada, alongside Jacob Elordi. Not a bad start to the year, eh?

Hi, Kristine! You’ve been in London for ages now. Any highlights?

Every Monday at the Colour Factory in Hackney. They have this music improv night that I absolutely love – Orii Jam. Everybody has their instruments and they go up on stage to jam. It’s the most magical thing.

What were you like at school?

I think I was and still am quite a pragmatic person, very logical. I took school very seriously and worked really hard. I never assumed that I’d ever go into modelling or acting or do anything creative – everyone in my family has normal jobs. I was very shy, but moving back and forth probably helped me with that. I would always have to adapt and be the new girl, be a chameleon. So having to embody different versions of myself was definitely a foundation.

You starred in Lena Dunham’s 2022 comedy Sharp Stick. What was that like?

Lena and I had a couple of conversations before starting, where I got to ask all my annoying questions about the script. Then we had 16 days to shoot it – it was all out of order, so I was running around between scenes. It was all intuition, and that was the first time I really had to let go and become a part of what everyone else was giving me. I’d never really trusted myself before, and Lena made me feel like I could.

Are you a fan of Girls?

Oh, yeah. I rewatched it just to check myself, like, how am I doing over here?

And of course, you play Nan St. George in The Buccaneers. What appealed to you about the show?

I was really intrigued by Nan’s trajectory in terms of how she loses her identity. She starts off as someone who’s very certain of what her morals are, who she wants to be, how she’s going to go against the patriarchy of the times. And then she kind of becomes everything she didn’t really want to be. I was really keen on exploring that.

What do you hope people will get out of watching the show?

I’d hope it would start conversations about friendship, love, why we love, how we love. My character in particular, I think, really relies on relationships in order to identify and find value in herself. I think there’s something for everyone in The Buccaneers, because we’re diving into the human experience.

Are there any shows you’re loving right now?

I’m about to start The Curse with Nathan Fielder. He’s a genius, straight-up. I do not know how that man does it. If you loved The Rehearsal, you have to watch How To with John Wilson.

What’s your most embarrassing audition experience?

Why would you do this to me? My body just tensed up. No, no, no! I’m blacking out, sorry. But generally anything action-oriented makes me feel like a total idiot.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?

It’s not that deep. You can always begin again.

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