Matthew Rhys reveals his surprisingly simple rule for picking roles

Matthew Rhys is opening up about how he picks his acting roles. 

In a recent interview, Rhys and his longtime partner, actress Keri Russell, discussed their Emmy nominations. 

When asked how he chooses roles, Rhys jokingly said that money plays a big part in his decision-making.

"Cash," he told Variety of his motivation behind picking an acting role. He doubled down on his "cash basis" policy by then elaborating that he needs to go with the highest bidder to support his family and afford mortgage. 

“Like what pays most wins. Very simple. Three children and a mortgage, I’ll get after it. I have no shame. I’ll whore myself to the best of them,” he joked further.

However, he also shared a more serious reason for joining his latest project, Widow's Bay, saying the script stood out to him.

“In fairness, Widow’s Bay is a script I’d never seen the like of,” Rhys added in a more serious tone. “I was desperate to do that.”

Rhys plays a small-town mayor in the Apple TV+ comedy-horror series, which recently earned 19 Emmy nominations. The show follows his character as he tries to boost tourism on an island many believe is cursed.

Rhys said he was especially excited to join the project once he learned that acclaimed director Hiro Murai would be directing several episodes.

Russell shared that Rhys is usually pretty critical of new projects, but that Widow's Bay was one of the few times she could tell he genuinely loved what he was working on.