Carey Mulligan was worried she would get "stuck" in Paris a week before the strict coronavirus lockdown measures were put in place.
The ‘Promising Young Woman’ star was in the French capital shooting with InStyle magazine for the publication’s last pre-quarantine photoshoot for the June issue, and she and her friend were concerned that they may not have been able to leave, but fortunately they left just before everyone was forced into self-isolation.
The pair still had a "fun" time in Paris and watched the crime movie ‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid’ in French.
Carey told the magazine – of which she is the cover star – that: "Ah. Well, at that point the train stations were still jammed, no one was wearing masks, and they weren’t advising people not to travel.
"But once I got to Paris, it felt odd. I brought one of my best friends, and we were like, ‘What if we get stuck here? What if someone has it in the hotel?’
"A week later, none of us would have gone.
"But I have to say, Paris was still fun.
"We stayed up late and watched ‘Butch Cassidy and the ‘Sundance Kid’ in French."
Now, the 34-year-old actress is safely back home with her 33-year-old husband Marcus Mumford and their children – Evelyn, four, and two-year-old Wilfred – at their farmhouse in south west England, and she’s been getting through lockdown by catching up with her friends on Houseparty and enjoying family time.
She said: "I’ve been using Houseparty with my two best friends every Sunday at 8.30am.
"We’ve all got kids, so we put the TV on for them and sit in bed with a big cup of coffee and catch up, which has been quite nice."
Meanwhile, the ‘Great Gatsby’ star admitted she’s still "unsure" about having her photograph taken – but having kids has made that part of her job easier.
She said: "I still feel super unsure in a shoot environment. Although that has kind of changed in the last few years."
Asked how she built up her confidence, she responded: "It was probably having kids. I’m not a model. I tell photographers at the beginning of a shoot, ‘Hey, I’m really bad at this, so the best way to get through this is for you to tell me exactly what to do.’
"In all of our family photos I look like a complete fail.
"So I say, ‘If this is going to work at all, it’s because of your skills as a photographer.’"
The June issue of InStyle is available on newsstands, Amazon, and for digital download on May 15.
Carey Mulligan feared getting stuck in Paris week before lockdown
