How Calista Flockhart Channeled Her Grandmother to Play Lee Radziwill in Feud: Capote vs. The Swans (Exclusive)

Stars from Feud: Capote vs. Swans look effortless as they channel ’60s and ’70s Manhattan high society in designer fashion, glamorous jewelry and perfectly coiffed hair in Ryan Murphy’s new series.

“I didn’t have to do anything,” Calista Flockhart, who portrays Lee Radziwill, tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue of How to Look Like a Socialite Looks Easy. “I just got my costume, wig and makeup and it was all done.”

Working on a piece from the period brought Flockhart, 59, back to her early days in New York.

“I thought a lot about how I came to New York in 1988, 1989, and people were still dressing up to go to the theater,” she says. “And I remember very quickly, that changed. I remember thinking, oh, now I can wear whatever I want to go to a show. There was sadness in that – but also relief. It was the end of an era that these women experienced at the end of the show.”

The true story of Feud: Capote vs. Swans

Flockhart didn’t turn to Radziwill’s daughter-in-law, former Real Housewives of New York Carole, for advice on getting into character, but she drew inspiration from a loved one.

“I remember a lot of the time I felt like I was my grandmother,” says the actress. “I had a grandmother who had perfect hair, perfect makeup every day. She wore gloves, she wore hats, she wore a suit, and it was very touching. There was no help for her. She did it herself and it didn’t take long. So, while filming the series, I thought a lot about my grandmother, whom I loved very much.”

Lee Radziwill.

Daily Mirror/Mirrorpix/Mirrorpix via Getty

Truman Capote’s swans, as he considered them, had eyes on them wherever they went, whether they were attending the most exclusive parties in town, eating at the fanciest restaurants, or vacationing on Long Island, NY With the advent of the Internet and social media, today’s public figures could feel a similar pressure as the swans once did to constantly appear perfect.

For Flockhart, “it depends on how much pressure you put on yourself,” she says. “Either you’re going to get into it or you’re just going to check out or somewhere in the middle, and it depends on how much you care. I think it’s a personal choice.”

For more about Feud: Capote vs. swans, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE on newsstands Friday or subscribe here.

The Ally McBeal star actually thinks the myriad of content available in 2024 helps alleviate some of those pressures because people have so much to focus their attention on.

“When I was doing television in the ’90s and early 2000s, there were only five or six TV shows on the air,” Flockhart recalls. “So back then there was a lot more scrutiny and a lot more attention because there just wasn’t a lot of content. It’s amazing how much content there is.”

Harrison Ford and Calista Flockhart.

Tristar Media/WireImage

Works on Quarrel gave Flockhart even more content to fill her brain with when she learned of the conflict between Truman Capote and his swans — rounded out on the show by Demi Moore, Molly Ringwald, Chloë Sevigny and Naomi Watts — after he aired their dirty talk in his story linen “La Côte Basque, 1965.”

“I knew absolutely nothing,” she admits about the inspiration for the series. “I knew a lot about Truman Capote. Maybe at one point in my life I had a little recollection of it, but nothing really.”

Calista Flockhart jokes about discovering husband Harrison Ford’s softer side: ‘He’s scared of me’

Flockhart also had the support of her husband Harrison Ford as she took on the job.

“He supports me in so many ways,” she told PEOPLE on Jan. 23 Quarrel premiere in New York “It’s a common thing.

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Feud: Capote vs. Swans airs Wednesdays at 10pm ET on FX.

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Source: HIS Education