Florence says her ‘East of Eden’ role opened new doors for her as artist

Hollywood actress Florence Pugh has spoken highly of her character in ‘East of Eden’, and credited the part for allowing her to diversify her horizon as an actress.

The 30-year-old actress essays the role of Cathy Ames in a limited series adaptation of John Steinbeck’s novel ‘East of Eden’. She has said that she relishes the role, as it’s allowed her “to be bigger and better”.

Florence told Netflix’s Tudum “When I read the script (in) 2020, I was already thinking about roles that I would want to play in the future and roles that would require for me to grow up, to better my craft, to allow me to expand”.

The new series is written and executive produced by Zoe Kazan, and Florence loved the experience of working with her on the project.

She further mentioned, “During that time, this fell in my lap, via an email with an invite from Zoe saying, ‘Can you make this with me? Not only can you act for me, but can you be on this creative journey with me?’

That was such an invitation, just to allow myself to be bigger and better and (to be) invited into a conversation to create something from the ground up, (it was a) huge confidence boost”.

“It was all of these elements, it was playing a fantastic character and also showing up for myself as a performer and a creative behind the scenes. That’s why I wanted to do it. Then you just start unpicking the layers of Cathy and who she becomes, and why does she become that way? Why does she make these decisions? It was all very, very exciting and daunting, obviously”, she added.

After making her acting debut in the drama film The Falling (2014), Pugh gained praise for starring in the independent drama Lady Macbeth (2016) and the miniseries The Little Drummer Girl (2018). Her international breakthrough came in 2019 with her portrayals of professional wrestler Paige in the sports film Fighting with My Family, Dani Ardor in the horror film Midsommar, and Amy March in the period drama Little Women. For the last of these, she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Pugh has played Yelena Belova / Black Widow in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, starring in the films Black Widow (2021), Thunderbolts* (2025), and Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026), as well as the Disney+ miniseries Hawkeye (2021). In her highest-grossing releases, she voiced Goldilocks in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022), and portrayed Jean Tatlock in Oppenheimer (2023) and Princess Irulan in Dune: Part Two (2024); she also continued to gain praise for her performances in dramas such as We Live in Time (2024).

While still studying in sixth form, Pugh made her professional acting debut in the 2014 drama, The Falling, playing a precocious teenager opposite Maisie Williams. Tara Brady of The Irish Times deemed Pugh “remarkable”, while IndieWire’s Oliver Lyttelton called her “striking”.

Agencies