Heather Graham explains why she did “Boogie Nights” after avoiding sexual content: 'Screw it'

"Try to be a woman in Hollywood in your early 20s, mid-20s, and then to try to get no roles with any sexual content — it's impossible."

Boogie Nights didn't quite fit Heather Graham's M.O. at the time that she auditioned.

The Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me star reflected on her decision to read for Paul Thomas Anderson's porn-industry drama in an interview with Michael Rosenbaum on his Inside of You podcast. "I grew up in a religious family, and they were like, 'Don't do anything with any sexual content,'" Graham recalled. "But try to be a woman in Hollywood in your early 20s, mid-20s, and then to try to get no roles with any sexual content — it's impossible."

Graham defied her family's wishes after adhering to them for a long time. "I had turned down a few things where there was sexual content, and then I saw other people, having really good careers," she said. "I just said, 'Screw it. I wanna do this. The script is amazing,'" she said of Boogie Nights.

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The choice to play porn star ingénue Rollergirl ultimately gave Graham a significant professional boost. "They had originally offered that role to somebody really famous who turned it down, and so then I got it, and that was just a huge great turning point in my career," she said. (Grantland's oral history of the movie revealed that Drew Barrymore and Tatum O'Neal were both considered to play the part, and Gwyneth Paltrow confirmed that she'd declined the opportunity to play Rollergirl in an interview with Howard Stern.)

Rosenbaum also asked Graham if she had to remove any clothing during the audition process. "No. I'm not saying that that's never happened [to anyone], but, no, I just would read I read a few scenes," she said. "I mean, they did make you — they were like, 'There's nudity in this role. You have to agree to do it and sign this contract that you're agreeing to do it.' But, no, they don't make you show your boobs."

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The actress recalled that shooting her nude scenes was not a particularly pleasant experience. "It was terrifying," she said. "As a woman, I have to say, even if you go, 'Okay. Well, maybe I know sometimes men find me attractive,' you look at all the flaws. You go, 'Oh my god. They're gonna see these flaws.'  I remember just sitting in my trailer, like, being like, 'Oh my God. I'm so scared.'"

However, Graham found strength as she got into her character's mindset. "You just try to get out of your own head and just be, like, 'What is the character thinking? I'm just gonna be this character,'" she recalled. "I don't wanna be like, 'Heather Graham feels nervous about this moment.' I want it to be like, 'I'm Brandy in this scene, and this is what I do. Oh, this isn't a big deal and these people are my friends and my family. This is part of our life.' I was just trying to think about it as the character would think about it."

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Graham reiterated that she loved working on the film. "My role was so fun, I had such a great time," she said. The actress also confirmed that she didn't know how to skate before securing the role. "I had to take roller skating lessons, and I learned at this parking lot in Beverly Hills," she said. "And every time I drive past that parking lot, I'm like, 'That's where I learned how to roller skate for Boogie Nights!'"

Watch the full conversation between Graham and Rosenbaum above.

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