The Sinner was binge-worthy TV at its finest. The anthology series found the increasingly frayed Detective Harry Ambrose (played by the inimitable Bill Pullman) investigating a twisty and lurid case each season, as a number of sexy suspects (Jessica Biel, Matt Bomer, Carrie Coon) were not what they appeared. The police procedural anthology series was anything but boring, partially because of that sparkling cast. How did they stay fit? Read on for the wellness secrets from the cast of The Sinner.
1. Bill Pullman
Shutterstock
Bill Pullman plays main character Harry Ambrose on the show. He revealed to The Guardian that he is an avid farmer, and wants to support the environment. “Fruit farming was something I did for many years without ever talking about it. I think a part of doing the orchard is just it being a very local way in which people remember their connection to the Earth.”
2. Jessica Hecht
Dominik Bindl/Getty Images
Jessica Hecht played the other main role, Sonya Barzel, and joined in the show’s third season. She talked about the impact having children has had on her to Backstage.com. "Having kids gives you an enormous perspective. It informs your ambitions. At this point in my life, my ambition is to do interesting work with interesting people."
3. Jessica Biel
Jessica Biel played Cora Tannetti in the first season. Her makeup artist, Daniel Martin, shared her skincare secrets with Refinery29. “There's not a ton of moving parts when it comes to Jessica's skin-care prep," Martin says. "It's basically two parts: toning and moisturizing. To start, I love this Mario Badescu lavender toner because it's calming and gives the skin a balanced refresh.”
4. Matt Bomer
Matt Bomer played Jamie Burns on season three. He tells Men’s Journal that he uses food combining to eat healthy. “It’s basically all about the enzymes your body uses to break down food and the transit time from when you eat to when you’re done with it,” he explains. “If you mix a protein and a starch, it’s going to significantly increase the time it takes for your body to break it down, which can be a good thing in some situations.”
5. Christopher Abbott
Shutterstock
Christopher Abbott played Mason Tannetti in season one. He opened up about taking jobs to ELLE. “I definitely don't say yes to everything. I didn't use to have any kind of structure. It was like, whatever is good is good. But I feel like as I get older—I mean there's no planning, I feel like there's no really planning careers—you do your best to facilitate what you want to do. And I think I'm a little bit more conscious now, like, maybe I should try and do something bigger, you know? Now it's starting to become more of a real thing. I guess there's a part of my brain that has started to think, 'Well, how can I…?' But I can only do so much
6. Chris Messina
Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic
Chris Messina played Nick Haas in season three. He opened up about overworking himself to Buzzfeed. "It was a bit stupid on my part to take on that much, and I think everything suffers when you do that much," Messina says. "I think your work suffers, your relationships suffer. Some of the decisions I was making were with only a couple hours of sleep, so I hope to direct another movie again, but I would never do that with anything else. I would like to clear the deck.”
7. Parisa Fitz-Henley
Parisa Fitz-Henley played Leela Burns on season three. She talked about navigating an intense political world to BlueSkeleton.com. “The thing that really comes out for me is that it’s of utmost importance to treat others the same way that you would want to be treated. Screaming ‘You’re an idiot!’ has never worked. No one has ever thanked someone else for insulting them as a way to improve their lives. Forget politically correct and try being kind. That would really change a lot.”
8. Carrie Coon
Shutterstock
Carrie Coon played Vera Walker in season two. She tells The Independent that she doesn’t want to work with people who she doesn’t like. “I feel so fortunate I don’t have to work with people I don’t like! Not everyone has that luxury, I realise. Life is too short to be around a bunch of a**holes. I’m not interested in living my life that way.”
9. Natalie Paul
Natalie Paul played Heather Novack in season two. She talked about how she got into acting to Cliche Magazine. “I’ve always been interested in storytelling- whether it was through acting, writing, dancing. My biggest inspiration has always been the women in my family – listening to them tell stories, hearing them make everyday dramas to be larger than life. I was always in awe of them; I think that was the beginning of it.”
10. Alice Kremelberg
Alice Kremelberg talked about playing Percy Muldoon to The Advocate. "Being queer, I am hyper-aware of the male gaze and how my body/identity is being consumed in media," Kremelberg says. "In the case of The Sinner, I was fortunate enough to collaborate with the creative team when it came to how we depicted both of Percy's physical relationships in the second episode and how the male gaze was influencing them."
11. Kathryn Erbe
Getty Images
Kathryn Erbe, who played Fay Ambrose in season one, talked about what she looks for in a director to RoundAboutTheater.org. “I look for honesty. When I’m working with a director, I live in fear of people being afraid to tell me the truth. I really long for blunt honesty because you need an outside eye as an actor. I am not the kind of actor that wants to do things in a vacuum. I really love to collaborate, and I love being directed. I love trying things differently and seeing what works.”