Rachel McAdams

The rising star, who dropped out of sight for three years, talks about love, infidelity, her new movie -- and what exactly she's been up to.

By Monica Collins

Just when Rachel McAdams was being touted as the next Julia Roberts, the Canadian-born actress dropped out of sight in 2006 and bought a house in Toronto. She had generated lots of buzz in blockbusters such as "Wedding Crashers" with Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn, "Mean Girls" with Lindsay Lohan and "The Notebook" with Ryan Gosling. She and Gosling became a red-carpet couple before their romance ended last year. (He reportedly now keeps company with Michelle Williams, Heath Ledger's ex.)

McAdams' sabbatical from Hollywood means that she has not appeared on the big screen since 2005. Although vague about why she took a break, McAdams suggests that she was not getting offers for projects that appealed to her. "I did wonder if I would ever work again, but I tried not to think about it," she admits. "I did what I needed to do and hoped it all would work out."

McAdams says she was motivated to return to movies by the script for "Married Life," a new retro-noir film about marriage and its discontents. McAdams plays Kay, an enigmatic beauty caught between a married man with murder on his mind (Chris Cooper) and his bachelor best friend (Pierce Brosnan). And she's now back in L.A. shooting "State of Play," a political thriller with Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck and Helen Mirren.

USA WEEKEND recently caught up with her on the phone (and by e-mail). Here are excerpts:

How did "Married Life" entice you from your time off?
So many scripts are halfway there, but this was fully formed. The interesting thing about Kay is that there's something ghostly about her, floating on the edges of these people's lives. Yet she was the catalyst. I really liked that.

Do you imagine marriage as a minefield of secrets, as suggested in "Married Life?"
You never really know the person you're sleeping beside. You have a right to your secrets, but that's very difficult when you're supposed to be someone's partner.

At 31, you've never been married. Would you like to be married and have children?
I would love to have kids someday; I actually can't imagine not having them. My parents have been married for 36 years. They [Lance, a mover, and Sandy, a nurse] have a pretty honest, straightforward relationship that I hope to have myself.

In "Married Life," you're a bleached blonde. What's your natural color?
Venetian, which is a nice way of saying dirty blond. I like to be able to roll out of the bed and stay out of the salon.

Speaking of staying out of the salon, what did you do during your sabbatical?
I bought a house in Toronto. I spent time there with my family members and friends. I traveled to Europe. I started doing yoga. Actually, I really got into yoga -- Kundalini -- and love it. I also started a website with friends [greenissexy.org].

How involved are you with the website?
I noticed that you're identified simply as "Rachel" on it.

Two very good friends and I run, design and research the content for the site, so it's practically a full-time job. And we have other full-time jobs, too. Megan is also an actress, and Didi's a musician, but we are all passionate environmentalists.

How do you live green?
I don't own a car. In Toronto, my bike is my car.

You decided against appearing on a Vanity Fair cover with Keira Knightley and Scarlett Johansson when you found out that nudity was involved. Do you have any regrets?
No. I think at that time, it was the right decision for me.

What about nudity in films?
Nudity for fictional characters is as normal and mundane as eating breakfast. What bothers me is our culture's obsession with nudity. It shouldn't be a big deal, but it is. I think this overemphasis with nudity makes actors nervous. There's the worry about seeing one's body dissected, misrepresented, played and replayed on YouTube.