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One thing that makes FX’s lauded Cold War drama “The Americans” so compelling is the chemistry between Keri Russell, who starred in four seasons of “Felicity” in her early 20s, and Welsh actor Matthew Rhys. As Elizabeth and Philip Jennings, Russian spies living as Americans in 1980s suburbia, they make their kids’ lunches and then slip away to don disguises, seduce sources and break necks for the Motherland.

But Russell and Rhys’ electricity on the show, created by former CIA officer Joe Weisberg and just having finished its fifth season before a 10-episode sprint to a series finale, is nothing compared to the sparks they throw off in real life.

Settling into the series’ writers room in gritty Gowanus in New York’s Brooklyn, surrounded by whiteboards with scribbled plot points and grainy show stills, the couple, who have an infant son (Russell also has two children from a previous relationship), are clearly simpatico — finishing each other’s thoughts and cracking each other up.

Matthew Rhys as Philip Jennings and Keri Russell as Elizabeth Jennings on “The Americans.”
Continue reading The Americans and its stars forge on — who knew Russian spies could be so relevant?

Together onscreen and off! Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys are gearing up for the sixth and final season of playing spies Philip and Elizabeth Jennings in The Americans.

While catching up with Us Weekly at the 10th annual Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic in Jersey City, New Jersey, on Saturday, June 3, Russell, 41, said that she knows how the FX series concludes and that she’s “very satisfied” with the ending. “They’ve done such a good job so far — the writers — so I’m willing to give it up and let them do what they want,” she said.

Although the real-life couple, who welcomed son Sam in May 2016, will miss working together every day, Rhys, 42, is looking on the bright side. “The glory is we will be with each other every day,” he told Us.

It’s not all business when they’re filming together, though. The actress revealed that the duo goof around on set while transforming into the different personas as their characters go undercover. “What’s cool about doing all these crazy disguises is that it takes time with the different clothes and the weird hair, and we make fun of each other,” Russell said.

Rhys added, “It’s what we’ve kind of come to enjoy most about the show is the diversity it throws up and those daily challenges of playing three people in the morning or eight people in a day.”

Rhys also said it’s been fun to go back in time for the 1980s-set show — and that the young actors are amazed by the old-school technology. “I remember when Keidrich [Sellati, who plays his son, Henry] came into the living room for the first time, he went up to the VCR and went, ‘What is that?’ He’d never seen a VHS eject a tape,” Rhys joked. “He thought it was witchcraft.”

Source: http://www.usmagazine.com/

Keri Russell earned her first Emmy nomination last year for playing a deadly K.G.B. Russian spy living in 1980s America on FX’s critically acclaimed series The Americans. Russell is expected to nab another nod this year for her emotional and multi-layered performance in the fifth season of the series, which wrapped on May 30. With the show’s Cold War era themes loosely mirroring the current, tense political climate, one may wonder, have Donald Trump’s alleged ties with Russia had any impact on the show?

“Donald Trump subliminally does sort of go in a little bit and affect how people may experience the show,” Russell told Vanity Fair during Saturday’s 10th annual Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic at Liberty State Park, New Jersey. “He’s made the show become more topical. The great thing about the show—we have the protection that it’s a period piece set in the 80s, but in real life, it’s scary. There’s no protection from him.”

Even Russell’s precocious daughter, Willa, is getting wise to the constant stream of news reports about Trump often seeming to flout rules and norms.

“Our five-year-old said this morning while I had NPR on about some report on whatever Donald Trump was doing at this hour, and she said, ‘That’s not fair! Why does Donald Trump get to do everything that he wants to do?’ And I said, ‘Exactly!’ And she said, ‘Well, I want to go to Disney World. I don’t get to go.’ But I was like, ‘Exactly. Not everyone gets what they want.’ But she said, ‘Donald Trump does!’ And I go, ‘You’re right. It’s a bummer. He’s not playing by any rules. No rules.’ ”

When asked how she and her real-life partner, Americans co-star Matthew Rhys, are raising their three young children in the Trump era, Russell admits it’s a daunting task.

“It’s difficult. There’s a lot of human rights being taken away and a threat to the environment,” said Russell. “It’s shocking, and I just hope it will be over soon.”

Source: http://www.vanityfair.com/

Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys are more than just partners in international espionage on FX’s The Americans — they’re real-life partners in love.

Arriving at For Your Consideration: The Americans, an event run by the Emmy’s to showcase potential nominees, Russell and Rhys greeted press, members of the Television Academy and some lucky fans.

Speaking with PEOPLE about making their real-life relationship work, Russell admitted that they “absolutely” need alone time since they spend the majority of their days together.

Rhys also expressed his gratitude for Russell’s positive attitude. “She has the patience of a saint, so that helps,” he said. “That is basically it.”

Of course, that isn’t the only thing to credit for their model relationship.

“And alcohol,” Rhys added with a laugh. “The great leveler, the great equalizer. Everything is so much better after a good, solid half bottle of red wine!”

This method appears to be working quite well for the happy couple, who have been together since the first season of their hit Cold War spy drama, The Americans, back in 2013.

Just over a year ago, in May 2016, the couple welcomed their first child, a boy named Sam. Their young son is a first for Rhys, who is new to fatherhood, and the third child of Russell, who has two children, River and Willa, from a former marriage to carpenter Shane Deary.

The fifth, penultimate season of The Americans ended this last Tuesday on FX.

Source: http://people.com