Cover: Inside The Testaments with Mattea Conforti
- Vingt Sept
- 3 hours ago
- 13 min read
At just 19 years old, actress Mattea Conforti is already navigating a rare duality: student life at Harvard alongside a growing body of screen work that has placed her at the centre of one of television’s most anticipated worlds. As Becka in The Testaments, the expansion of Margaret Atwood’s dystopian universe, she steps into a role defined by emotional complexity, restraint and quiet resilience.
Speaking with ease and thoughtfulness, Conforti reflects on this balance, the intensity of portraying young womanhood within a controlled society, and the creative freedom that comes from working alongside an experienced ensemble cast. From childhood passions for dance to late-night YouTube rituals, she reveals a grounded rhythm behind the performance.
In this conversation, she is both reflective and instinctive, offering a glimpse into a generation of actors shaped as much by academia and curiosity as by instinct and imagination.
The entire series was incredible. I was hooked. I was gripped. Mattea, what do you feel your fans may not know about you?
Oh, man. Right now, I’m a college student, so I’m trying to balance the duality between acting and staying focused and on task in school. It has been a bit challenging, but also very fun. I’m enjoying my time at school right now.
Outside of acting, I really love to dance, and I love to sing. I also enjoy knitting, which I don’t talk about much because it can be hard to find a knitting community at my age. But I really enjoy it. Those are a few of my hobbies.
Do you mind me asking what you're studying at the moment?
Right now I’m studying psychology and government at my school. I’ve kind of taken a different approach than just studying acting, and I wanted to open up other realms of interest and curiosity that I may have had.
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While studying these subjects and preparing for the role of Becka, did you find yourself understanding certain aspects of her on a deeper psychological level?
Yeah. I mean, Becka is such a complex and deep character. There is so much more to her than what meets the eye. I think understanding how someone’s mind works and how behavioural mechanisms impact someone’s everyday life really helps. There are so many elements that contribute to a person’s personality and makeup.
I think it is truly helpful. And it is not just helpful for this role, but for acting in general, and even in everyday life, to understand yourself and to understand others as well.
It feels like you're using both sides of your brain, the analytical side through your studies and the creative side through acting, which is quite a unique combination, because you can access something very expressive and emotional in your work while also approaching things in a more structured, analytical way. Do you feel that balance, and do you think your studies have changed how you approach roles compared to before you started college?
I think before school, I always felt there was so much to get out of a role or even an auditioning process. I would sit down with the sides (scenes or script pages) and start analysing the character, but not in the same way I do now. I would look at what the character is doing, but less at the relationships and how those dynamics shape them within the script.
School has really helped me with that analytical side. It has given me a different way of thinking about behaviour, motivation and relationships between characters.
At the same time, because my mind is often in different places with school and everything else, I find that when I am acting, those moments feel even more special. They have always been special, but now there is a real contrast between acting and the rest of my life, which makes me appreciate it even more and enjoy it in a deeper way.
The Handmaid’s Tale has a huge following, both from the TV series and the original books. When you were auditioning for the role of Becka, had you read the books beforehand, and did that influence your approach to the role?
Yeah, my family are huge Handmaid’s Tale fans. I was a bit too young when the show first came out, so I was not really keeping up with it at the time. I watched a few of the later seasons, but I always understood the complexity of the world, the cruelties, and the relationships between the characters, so I knew what I was stepping into. I just was not watching it consistently because of my age when it first aired.
My grandmothers are big Margaret Atwood fans, so they have read her books and her memoir as well.
What was the audition process like for the role of Becka?
I was actually in school at the time; it’s pretty funny. It was around February of last year. I was involved in a theatre organisation at my school called the 'Hasty Pudding', which is such a fun student theatre group. It's entirely student-written and student-run, and it's amazing.
Around the same time, I got an audition for The Testaments, and I sent in a tape. Within the same week, I had a producer Zoom session, then another audition after that. Then, right as I went into my spring break, I found out I had a week to get to Canada and start filming.
I had to take a leave of absence during my freshman year. I left and went to Canada, and I have been so grateful for it ever since.
Becka goes on quite an emotional journey. She is quite closed off and doesn’t reveal much about herself in the beginning, but as her story progresses, there's a very tumultuous amount of change, all the way through to the end, which feels intentional. There are a lot of elements intertwined within her character, which is quite heavy material for someone of your age. How did you prepare for such a complex role?
I mean, as you said, it was intentional. I had to not reveal everything Becka was going through right at the beginning, because she lives in a world where she and her peers physically cannot express certain things. Otherwise, there are consequences.
I had a lot of really good conversations with one of our directors, Mike Barker, who also directed on The Handmaid’s Tale and worked closely with the cast and creative team there. He really prepared me and set me up for this role, alongside Bruce Miller. They both helped me understand the harder elements of Becka’s character and really grounded me in the world I was stepping into.
I also had great conversations with our writing team, and working alongside such incredible and experienced cast members really helped, too.
It was definitely an emotional rollercoaster, but one I will never take for granted because I had never done anything like it before. Becka feels like a whole universe of experiences encased in such a young person.
While watching the series, it felt like a lot of the responsibility for telling some of the deeper and more emotionally complex storylines sits with Becka. In a cast of diverse young women, you might expect those narratives to be more evenly distributed, but instead, many of the darker and more intense arcs seem to rest on her shoulders.
Did that feel like a lot of responsibility for you to carry, and how did you approach executing a role of that emotional weight?
Becka’s themes and hardships were definitely very difficult to sit with, analyse, and really think about in terms of how I could deliver the strongest performance for her. Because, once again, not everything can be shown externally with the battles these characters are going through.What was really interesting is that each character has their own intense struggle and set of hardships they are dealing with. Becka’s character, unfortunately, is the one where a lot of that becomes more external. I think if the other characters had been more outward with what they were experiencing, it would still have led to similarly serious consequences. But with Becka, she has to deal with situations that result in very explicit and harsh punishment, which I think is what really pushes her into such a difficult emotional space.
I would like to think I did my best to communicate that as truthfully as possible.
At the same time, I had such a great time exploring a part of my acting that I had not really accessed before. It was really fun to challenge myself, to come onto set each day and ask, ‘What can I try differently today? What can I approach in a new way?’ I really enjoyed sitting with the material and dissecting it in that way.
You’re still quite young, but your performance feels incredibly lived-in, almost as though you’ve experienced a thousand lives. Did you speak to any charities or people who have been through experiences similar to Becka in order to bring authenticity to the role, or do you feel it came more from your own instinct as an actor, or a combination of both?
Well, my perfect answer would be that it is just my acting ability, but I was working with such an accomplished and incredibly motivating cast.
I was challenged every single day, and I was inspired every single day.
We were very close both on and off camera, and I think showing up each day with not just the cast, but the crew and the wider creative team, made a huge difference. Everyone involved in the project was just as motivated and just as passionate about delivering the message at the heart of the story, not just creating a television series, but really bringing its themes and meaning to the audience.
That shared energy and external encouragement really helped shape my performance.
There are deeply unsettling emotional elements for viewers when comparing The Testaments with The Handmaid’s Tale, as the focus shifts onto young girls. The series shows them starting in a school environment, then moving through different stages (pinks, plums, greens) as they come of age, and almost overnight, they are transitioned into adulthood and assigned adult responsibilities, including marriage to significantly older men.
It creates a disturbing dynamic on screen. How did you feel about playing such a controversial role, particularly as the show touches on themes that echo historical practices such as child marriage, where young girls were often placed into adult relationships?
I think what makes the show so personal for a lot of its audience is that it really relates to the trials and tribulations of adolescence, of being a young woman, growing into your own body, and beginning to question and understand your environment. That is what makes it feel so intimate and personal, and it really taps into people’s lived experiences.
Even though the show may represent those themes more drastically or dramatically, I think many women watching can relate to a lot of the questions and challenges the characters go through.
It was definitely difficult and challenging to step into those themes. You can feel it in the scenes. Everyone is incredibly professional, but at the end of the day, it is still heavy material to work with, although it is important material to capture and deliver.
The Testaments seems to go even further in confronting issues that women are still fighting against globally. At the same time, it also creates moments where viewers feel empathy for some of the male characters within this dystopian world, which is quite complex in itself.
What do you think viewers will take away from watching these kinds of stories, especially when they reflect real-world issues we are still actively confronting today?
I think what is most powerful about the show is that it encourages audiences to keep questioning and to never be afraid to stand up for what they believe is right.
It also offers a really distinct and meaningful coming-of-age story for these young women. It shows how important it is to remain resilient in the face of oppression, and to protect your autonomy, your power and your voice. That is ultimately what creates change.
I understand that there is an element of empathy towards certain characters that you might not expect to feel, but I think that is what makes the story so compelling. It holds your attention because it reflects the complexity of the world.
At its core, it reminds us that these girls need support, and that it's okay to be strong, to be powerful and to be different. I think that is one of the most important messages the show delivers.
On a lighter note, what was it like working with your co-stars, and are there any particularly fun or memorable moments from your time filming together?
Oh, it was truly awesome. The girls are amazing. My co-stars Rowan Blanchard, Lucy Halliday and Chase Infiniti are all so talented and so passionate about what they do and the roles they were given. It was a real treat to come to set every single day and work with them. We truly became like sisters.
Some of my favourite moments were actually the simplest ones. Every day at lunch, we would go to this little market nearby, get good food and just take a moment to step away from the intensity of the material and reconnect with ourselves.
Chase and I are both big theatre kids, so we would spend time on set singing songs from Wicked at the top of our lungs. I am sure people were a bit annoyed because we did have a job to do, but we had so much fun.
I had the best time with them, and I love them all so much.
Whenever we had questions, it was really easy to go to them and ask, and to stay as curious as possible about the world we were entering and how to carefully portray our characters.
They were honestly such a joy to work with. I don’t want to say too much because it’s difficult, even now, I’m trying not to spoil anything.
Outside of this show, what kind of role are you most excited or eager to take on next as an actor?
Interesting. For some strange reason, I’ve done a lot of horror. I don’t really know why, because personally, I’m not the scariest person, but I’ve found myself in quite a few horror and more serious roles.
I would love to do a comedy one day and really prove to myself that I can be funny and nail that.
But honestly, anything I receive is an opportunity of a lifetime, and I would be so grateful for any of it.
It feels like there is unfinished business with Becka. If there were to be another season, where would you like to see your character go next?
Becka leaves in such a pivotal and intense place in season one, so I would love to see how that is explored in a second season. I would be really interested in seeing an even stronger and more curious version of her moving forward.
Do you feel Becka knows what she wants in terms of her sexuality? She comes across as such a strong, fierce character, but there is also a sense of ambiguity around that.
There is this really interesting dichotomy with Becka. She knows she is different and that she feels different from her peers, but she has also been conditioned and trained to believe that anything outside of what she is told is wrong or even punishable.
So she is constantly navigating this internal conflict. She knows she does not necessarily align with everything her peers are drawn to, and she wants to explore her own interests and her own passions, but she is also told she is not allowed to.
It becomes this constant tug of war in her mind and in her actions. I would say she does know what she wants, but the question is whether she is ever able to act on it.
How do you think young people will perceive the show? You’re often described as an activist generation, truth-seekers and truth-speakers who are actively shaping the world around them.
I really hope my generation recognises the strength and resilience of these young women in the show, and understands how important it is to stand up for what you believe in, and to not be comfortable with staying stagnant within your society or community. It is okay to deviate from the norm. It is okay to feel differently and to be different.
I also hope they see how powerful friendship can be, and how it can really lead to something meaningful and transformative.
Outside of acting and your studies, you’ve mentioned things like theatre and knitting, which is quite impressive in itself. Is there anything else you would like to explore or try that you haven’t had the chance to yet?
I mean, I have explored it before, so this might be a bit of a lie, but I would love to get back into dancing more. I used to be a competitive dancer, and I just love to dance. It is my way of letting everything go and how I express myself.
I really miss it, and I would love to get back into it.
What does a typical day in New York look like for you when you’re on a day off, or when you’re on campus?
My day off? I’m unfortunately a very early riser. I really struggle to sleep in, not because I’m particularly ‘go, go, go’, but I just don’t seem to have that ability, which is a bit frustrating.
I usually wake up around seven in the morning, then I’ll do a workout, make breakfast and coffee, and watch a lot of YouTube. That’s definitely my guilty pleasure. I can spend hours watching vlogs; it’s honestly so addictive.
After that, I just hang out with my family. I really love spending time with them. We cook a lot together and make meals at home, so it’s very chilled and relaxed. I like that balance of wellness, downtime, and just being at home.
Do you have any projects in the pipeline, or anything exciting coming up outside of this?
I have to stay focused on school at the moment. I need to finish my sophomore year, which will be exciting but also challenging.
Beyond that, I’m just auditioning and seeing how things unfold with the show and other opportunities. So it’s really about balancing school and waiting to see what comes next.
Do you find balancing school and acting challenging, or do you feel you’ve managed to get it under control?
It is definitely challenging. The schedules are very different, and they operate in completely different ways, so it can sometimes be hard to line everything up.
But I feel really fortunate that I’m able to do both. They are both things I love and really enjoy, so it’s a challenge that feels worth it. I’m very grateful to have the ability to balance them.
The Testaments is out now on Hulu
Photographer Katie Borrazzo
Fashion Bex Vanderway
Hair Geo Brian at Exclusive Artists MGMT using Oribe
MUA Dani Parkes at The Wall Group
Words & Editor Jheanelle Feanny
Special thanks to Kemi Aladesuyi & Alene Herman at BodhiLove Wellness
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