Shailene Woodley says Laura Dern pushed her to accept ‘Big Little Lies’ role: ‘It was life-changing’

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Actress Shailene Woodley has opened up about how co-star Laura Dern convinced her to take on the role of Jane Chapman in HBO’s 'Big Little Lies' in an interview with Variety on Thursday, May 21.

Released in 2017, the drama became a major television success because of its emotionally intense storytelling, star-studded cast, and gripping mystery. Based on a novel, the series followed a group of women whose lives unraveled amid secrets, trauma, and a murder investigation.

Laura Dern convinced Shailene Woodley to join ‘Big Little Lies’

Before officially joining the show, Woodley admitted she initially turned down the role because she was struggling emotionally and questioning her direction in life. In the interview, she reflected on the moment she reconsidered the project after a conversation with Dern.

“It was an interesting time in my life. I was 20, 10 years ago, so I was 24, and I had also just worked with Laura Dern on 'Fault in Our Stars,' who became a very, very close friend of mine,” Woodley said.

“I was kind of in this place where I was like, can I bring my full self to this character, or am I so depleted and don't really know who I am right now? So I was in this interesting personal crossroads, and I was on my way to India to kind of do this job out there that was unrelated to acting,” she continued.

Woodley recalled that Dern personally reached out to her. “Laura Dern called me and was like, I know that you're feeling indecisive about this moment because you're trying to figure out what life direction you wanna take. I really think that this is something that you should put a lot of attention and put effort into it."

"Because I think if you look back and you don't do this, you're going to ask yourself why you made that choice,” she further shared. The actress explained that Dern’s advice completely changed how she viewed the project and led her to reread the script with a fresh perspective.

“And coming from someone like her, who I believe is so wise, I took her words to heart, and I reread the script with such an openness, whereas the first time I had read it, I had read it kind of from a place of extreme exhaustion,” she stated.

“The second time I read it with her words in my mind, I was like, there's no world that I can't be a part of this, and I just, I felt so grateful and honored to be a part of it,” Woodley concluded.

Shailene Woodley praises ‘Big Little Lies’ cast bond

Woodley also reflected on the close bond the cast developed while filming the Emmy-winning series, saying the friendships remain strong even years later.

“It was life-changing in the way that the sisterhood that all of us created in that show is genuine and is very real, and to this day, we are all there for one another, and that's just a rare thing to find in life in general, and in this industry, I think it's a little bit more rare sometimes. Yeah, thank you, Laura Dern, for so many things,” she said.

Over the years, cast members including Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, and Zoe Kravitz have spoken about their real-life friendship beyond the series.

They have shared that they continue to stay connected through group chats, support one another’s projects, and remain personally present for each other years after the show premiered.

Following the success of the series, Woodley is now preparing for another major television project with Hulu’s upcoming limited series 'Count My Lies.' The psychological thriller will star Lindsay Lohan, Woodley, and Kit Harington, while Antonio Campos will direct the series.

Based on 'Count My Lies' by Sophie Stava, the series follows a woman whose harmless lies slowly pull her into a dangerous web of secrets and deception. The novel was released on March 4, 2025, and quickly gained attention for its suspenseful storytelling.