Dennis Gaviola

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Yong

Yong Chavez

ABS-CBN News North America

<p>Sarah Paulson was eating fruit when I walked in.</p><p>It was late morning at a West Hollywood hotel, and the vibe in the suite felt casual and friendly, with the kind of practiced calm that sits on top of press day chaos. The critically acclaimed actress was mid-bite, sitting beside a fashionably bespectacled Teyana Taylor.  They were radiant, talents who looked born-ready for a two-camera setup.</p><p>Before I could even slate for camera, both women complimented my red cape blazer. I laughed, trying to return the compliment but fumbling. I’m not very good at accepting compliments. “Hold on,” I said, when the production staff instructed me to start the interview. “I’m waiting for Sarah to swallow.”</p><p>Paulson blinked, then deadpanned, “I haven’t done that in years.” Loud laughter broke open the room. “My publicist wants to die. Okay. Here we go.”</p><p>Our unexpected giggling, caught on-cam, is the kind that comes fast and real and wipes away any pretense that this will be a stiff junket exchange. It set the tone for what followed. Even though these things are brief, typically five minutes or less, it was honest, funny, and surprisingly unguarded.</p><p>We were there to talk about &quot;All’s Fair,&quot; Ryan Murphy’s legal drama for Hulu/Disney+, a glossy, fast-talking show about divorce lawyers played by a formidable lineup of women: Paulson, Taylor, Naomi Watts, Niecy Nash-Betts, Glenn Close, and Kim Kardashian.</p><p>That was the energy in the room, too: empowerment and sisterhood.</p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:855px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1762506160587Sarah Paulson 176895_0005R2.jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner">Sarah Paulson. <em>Hulu/Disney+</em></span></span></span></div><p>When I asked the first question — when they first felt empowered — Paulson didn’t hesitate.</p><p>“The first time I felt empowered professionally was with Ryan Murphy,” she said. “He was the first person to continually throw me the ball over and over again. He made me an executive producer for the first time. It was through him and his view of me that I came to have a different view of myself. He gave me a kind of confidence because he believed I could do so. Then I sort of took care of the rest in allowing myself to sit in that power.”</p><p>There’s no false modesty in her delivery, but no grandstanding either. She was just describing the moment she realized her instincts had currency.</p><p>Taylor shared her own source of early power. “My mom has all sisters, so I’ve been around all women who’ve been so strong. And not strong in that way where we force women to be strong. Strength can be vulnerability too.”</p><p>Paulson piped in, “Strength doesn’t just mean you’re a badass.”</p><p>“Exactly,” Taylor said. “Being around powerful women who hold it down, on stage, behind the lens, that’s what empowered me. And even being around this menace beside me,” Teyana jokingly points at Sarah. “She’s a menace to society, but such a great sister and mentor.”</p><p>Paulson cracked up. “It’s true. I am a menace.”</p><p>The great thing about watching two women like this, from different generations and different beginnings, is seeing the mutual recognition.</p><p>That morning, at the press conference downstairs, the &quot;All’s Fair&quot; ensemble had filled the space with the kind of chaotic, layered energy that only happens when six women who’ve lived entire lifetimes in public sit shoulder-to-shoulder. Glenn Close talked about artistic renewal and refusing invisibility. Niecy Nash-Betts, all warmth and authority, declared, “I mind my business and make a lot of love.” Kim Kardashian fielded questions about balancing law school with her foray into acting.</p><p>Paulson shared how she was raised by a single mother. “So I saw that kind of strength and determination first-hand.” She talked about how her circle has changed with time, and how she’s learned to let go of people who aren’t rooting for her.</p><p>“There have been people who weren’t,” she said, “and I’m at a point now where I can cut the loss, because it’s dead weight. But I also have friendships where we can talk about competitiveness. We can resolve it, work through it. It’s actually an act of deep friendship and respect to lay bare what those feelings are and still support each other. I don’t have this thing where I can’t be friends with actors. All of my friends are actors.”</p><p>That’s Paulson the straight-talker. It’s one thing to talk about empowerment and quite another to name the tension that often shadows it.</p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:855px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1762506122728Teyana Taylor 175512_0203RC3.jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner">Tayena Taylor. <em>Hulu/Disney+</em></span></span></span></div><p>After the conference, she told me about her best friend, actress Amanda Peet, when I mentioned their 1999-2001 TV show, &quot;Jack &amp; Jill.&quot; “She was there last night at the premiere. We’ve been best friends for 30 years. We can talk about the things that are hard — when our careers are up or down — and still be supportive.”</p><p>If &quot;All’s Fair&quot; is about women navigating high-stakes divorces, the cast itself is exploring the smaller, more private negotiations of womanhood: who gets to win, who gets seen, and what happens when we stop pretending that competition doesn’t hurt.</p><p>I asked Taylor what sisterhood looks like to her now. “I try to stick to the people that uplift me,” she said. “I’m never in a space where I feel like I need to compete. I want to learn. And I love you, and I’m obsessed with you — that’s how I feel about Sarah and the women I work with.”</p><p>It’s tempting to read that as simplicity, as ease. But anyone who’s ever worked in proximity to other ambitious women knows that maintaining that kind of clarity is work. It’s the ongoing practice of deciding to celebrate, not compare, and of knowing your worth without needing someone else’s to shrink.</p><p>Paulson said it best when she talked about facing competitiveness in friendship. “It’s actually an act of deep friendship and respect,” she said, “to lay bare what those feelings are and still support each other.”</p><div><br/></div><div><em>&quot;All’s Fair&quot; is now on Disney+ and Hulu.</em></div><div><br/></div><div><em>Here in Hollywood comes out every Friday. Have a question about Hollywood celebrities? Contact Yong on Instagram: @yongchavez</em></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO:</strong><br/><script data-wid="auto" type="text/javascript" src="https://content.viralize.tv/display/?zid=AAFz8gWM8iRADsJr&amp;cid=ABrJ3RD54Rzv-AuQ"></script></div>

<p>What started as an offhand joke from Sarah Paulson turned into a rare, unguarded conversation with her and Teyana Taylor about power, vulnerability, and sisterhood. Together, the <i>All’s Fair</i> co-stars revealed what it really means to support other women — and to keep showing up for yourself.</p>

What started as an offhand joke from Sarah Paulson turned into a rare, unguarded conversation with her and Teyana Taylor about power, vulnerability, and sisterhood. Together, the All’s Fair co-stars revealed what it really means to support other women — and to keep showing up for yourself.

Here in Hollywood: All’s Fair’s Sarah Paulson on letting go of people not rooting for us to succeed

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Here in Hollywood: All’s Fair’s Sarah Paulson on letting go of people not rooting for us to succeed

Yong Chavez,

ABS-CBN News North America

Published Nov 07, 2025 05:32 PM PHT

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All's Fair

Here in Hollywood

Yong Chavez

Sarah Paulson

Teyana Taylor

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