The next chapter in the Ryan Murphy universe, All's Fair, bring us something quite extraordinary.
Starring an array of A-list talent, including Kim Kardashian (her second collaboration with Murphy after American Horror Story: Delicate), Glenn Close, Naomi Watts, Murphy alum Sarah Paulson and Niely Nash, the TV series depicts the story of a group of boss babe female divorce lawyers fighting for justice for their (female) clients – and at times fighting amongst themselves.
Glamour was on the ground at the extremely glam London premiere, and boy are there some zinger lines in the first episode – particularly from Niecy Nash. A highlight was her pronouncement that in their downtime, the women move “from cocktails to cock rings in 24 hours”. We asked Niecy, and she agreed that line was a personal highlight for her to utter on camera too.
As she is honoured as a 2025 Glamour Woman of the Year in the UK and the US, the Snow White and Evita star sits down with her friend, former costar, and legendary actor Helen Mirren.
The series somehow combines spiky legal drama, sharp fashion choices and [sexual thing] in a way that only Murphy can. And we're also obsessed with the way that the cast chose to bond before filming – at a boozy sleepover-style evening at Kris Jenner's house (who is also an executive producer on the show). The stars sipped martinis and watched Fatal Attraction, with Glenn Close giving her invaluable, unique commentary throughout. We're not jealous at all.
Kim, Sarah, Naomi, and Niecy sat down with Glamour to spill all about the sleepover, a small game of This or That, the sisterhood they built on set, and Sarah's legendary Kim K makeover.
Glamour: Sarah, This or That: Scream Queens or American Horror Story?
Sarah: American Horror Story. Are you out of your mind?
Glamour: I love that. No hesitation.
Sarah: I mean, are you out of your actual mind? What are you talking about?
Naomi: Have I got that question too? I have never seen American Horror Story. I know. Guilty as charged here, but I just never did it. And it feels like a big commitment to take on, and I've got to find the time.
Sarah: Each season is different, so you don't have to watch one to watch the other. I'm just saying.
Naomi: Listen, my kids watch it.
Sarah: Just saying. You don't have to watch 13 years of it.
Naomi: Okay. Am I fired from the Ryan universe?
Glamour: Kim, This or That: Elizabeth Taylor's diamond ring or Marilyn Monroe's Met Gala dress?
Kim: Oh, that's so hard. I would go with Marilyn Monroe's dress. That's probably the hardest question I've ever been asked.
Niecy: In life?
Kim: Yeah.
Glamour: Kim, how much of your own real-life legal training and studies did you bring to your role as a divorce lawyer?
Kim: I was studying and doing [All's Fair] at the same time, so I had my flashcards. And then that was hard for me to separate my lines for the day and then all my definitions and everything that I had to recite, so I would have to do it at different times. But I will say the show actually helped me memorise more things for the bar, and just opened up my brain power of how much I could memorise. So, I think it was perfect timing to be doing both projects at the same time.
Niecy: We had to decide on set, "Right now, do you want us to quiz you on your law exam, or go and make sure you know your lines for the day?"
Kim: Yeah, they would have my flashcards and they would be helping me. It was really cute.
Glamour: How did you all bond as a cast? We heard something about a boozy sleepover, and watching Fatal Attraction with the Glenn Close…
Sarah: We didn't sleep over but we should have… Before we even got into the screening room to watch the movie, we all had one full martini, and I think we hadn't eaten yet. We were really having a time. And then, we had milkshakes and candy and Glenn Close sitting there basically talking us through the movie going, "Oh, I remember that day. This is the day I had a pitcher of margaritas to get through this scene." And we were like, "Wait, what? What?" And of course, we couldn't stop the film, so we just were talking over it.
Niecy: Yes. We started with a dinner party. And from the dinner party, we realised, "Wow, we really like each other." From the dinner party, we started working together. And here's the telltale sign. This is how we ended up at Kris Jenner's in our pyjamas. Normally, when you leave your coworker on a Friday, you're like, "Thank God, don't got to see these people again until Monday." But we were like, “What are you doing this weekend? What weekend can we all get together?”
So, the fact that we want to keep the party going... Now, we've been together on this press tour for days and days, and people were still saying, "Should we go have dinner tonight?" You know what I mean?
Kim: I'm like, "Naomi, what room are you in? Okay, come over. Okay, Niecy, who wants to go to the gym? Let's all go on a walk." We've all been hanging out this whole time. I literally wrote my sisters and I was like, "I didn't realise how fun it would've been to have my birthday happen during this time." And I felt like all my sisters were with me, and it was just such a fun trip. Genuinely, so fun.
Glamour: How did it feel to really build that bond on set, with lots of frenemy vibes and conflict happening between your characters in the series?
Sarah: I mean, none of the stereotypical things that people would imagine [happened]. Nobody was pulling each other's hair. And we also weren't braiding each other's hair. You know what I mean? We were getting our work done. And also enjoying being together and learning about Naomi's company and learning about Kim's stuff and the way women are doing business and the entrepreneurial lives that two of these women are leading in a very big way.
Naomi: I think Ryan was very intentional about how he chose this group of women. Some of them he'd worked with before and he knew. And there's not a dud amongst us, and there's no ego either. It's all about how do we make this as a team work well? And I think he was really clever to know how to pick six women.
Niecy: It's a good time on set because when they say, "Cut," or anything like that, we just pick right back up on a conversation we were just having. "So, what did he say? What did you say? And then, what happened?" It very much felt like that.
Glamour: Sarah, you always seem to play the villain, but you play it so deliciously. Is that what you're drawn to?
Sarah: I think honestly, I'm drawn to what makes the villain the villain and the why of it. And I'm interested in finding things about myself that actually where I can, if I'm honest with myself, where I find an alignment, not in terms of bringing myself forward, but how can I understand this person without judgment.
Glamour: We also need to talk about your Kim K makeover. How did it feel?
Sarah: Well, when I first read it, I said to Ryan, "I don't understand. What am I doing?" And he's like, "You're just trolling her. Just for fun, for sport." And I was like, “Oh, got it.” It was so fun.
I put on that wig and was running back to Kim's trailer being like, "What colour is the lip liner? What lashes, what mascara?" So we were just trying to just copy it all. And I have to say, I look kind of hot. And I was like, oh, I get that. I'm like, Kim's a hot, she's a hottie hot, hot. And I'm like, "I've got something on up to my eyebrows right now." That's not how I roll with my body out. And I was like, "Wow, this is got to rethink everything about how I've been living." You know what I mean? We could call dressing as Kim Kardashian life changing.
Glamour: Naomi, at the premiere, you called the show “aspirational”. Tell us a bit more about that.
Naomi: Well, I think for younger women, seeing these women organise together, collectively trusting each other and helping these other women, I think that is hope. And you don't often see that on the screen. It's usually the men seeking revenge with violence, possibly, and bullying tactics.
And we are not that. We might be seeking revenge on behalf of this other woman because she's been broken down over a long period of time, and she needs to be put back together. So it's good to see women come together and protect one another.
All's Fair is available to stream on Disney+.
