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Irish actress Saoirse Ronan shared her reaction with Virgin Radio UK host Ryan Tubridy after her unexpectedly viral moment on “The Graham Norton Show” which aired last Friday, October 26.
Saoirse, 30, is m making headlines for coolly shutting down jokes about self-defense during her appearance on the chat show last week, where she was joined by guests Denzel Washington, Eddie Redmayne, and her former “Foe” co-star Paul Mescal.
On the show, Eddie revealed how he was taught during training for his upcoming miniseries “The Day of the Jackal” how a phone could be used to fend off an attacker.
Paul, from Co Kildare, poked fun at the idea, claiming that the last thing he would think about when getting attacked would be getting his phone out.
Saoirse attempted to respond but was drowned out by laughs from the audience, as well as from host Norton and her fellow guests.
After some more joking and laughter about the matter, Saoirse spoke up: “That’s what girls have to think about all the time.”
Nearly stunned into silence, the men acknowledged Saoirse’s point with slightly uncomfortable nods.
“Am I right ladies?” Saoirse asked the audience, drawing her own round of claps.
The clip has gone viral, with many praising Saoirse for speaking up about such a sensitive topic.
saoirse ronan gagging men we love to see it pic.twitter.com/Oyu5cdlPBq
— scarlett 🍒 (@rvdlovess) October 26, 2024
“The reaction has been wild,” Saoirse told Ryan on Thursday morning.
“It’s definitely not something that I had expected. And I didn’t necessarily set out to sort of make a splash.
“But I do think there’s something really telling about the society that we’re in right now and about how open women want to be with the men in their lives.”
Saoirse, who said so many men and women she knows from around the world has gotten in touch with her after the viral moment, urged people to watch the clip in context, adding “It really wasn’t about – the boys weren’t sort of like debunking anything that I was saying.”
She continued: “At the same time, it felt very similar to when I’m at dinner with a bunch of my friends and I will always make the point that, you know, well, this is actually an experience that we go through every single day, 100 percent.
“And Paul [Mescal], being one of my very dear friends, I’ve had conversations like that with him before and he completely gets that and completely understands that.
“But I think the fact that there was a moment like that that happened on a show like Graham Norton which is something that the entire nation tunes in to watch, and even overseas it’s something that people tune into, it seems to have had an accessibility which seems to have really gained traction, which I think is amazing.
“It’s opening a conversation and again, hopefully, it’s allowing more and more women to just be like, ‘yeah, let’s talk about our experience.’”
Elsewhere in her interview, Saoirse discussed the struggles of being in the public eye as an actress, as well as her upcoming film “Blitz.”