Lucy Boynton. Photographs by Nicole Nodland. Styled by J. Errico. Hair by Leigh Keates. Makeup by Alex Babsky. CHANEL coat, earrings, necklaces, (800) 550-0005.

Whether you’re a fan of Lucy Boynton from her appearances in projects like Bohemian Rhapsody and Ryan Murphy’s The Politician or have photos of her avant-garde red carpet beauty looks saved on Pinterest boards, the actress has a certain way of standing out — no matter which stars surround her. She’s steadily worked since her first role at the age of 12 in the 2006 film Miss Potter, and yet, she’s managed to stay out of the headlines and have attention focused solely on one thing: her work.

So who is the real Lucy Boynton? While she says she thinks of show business as her “job” rather than her “entire identity,” the schedule of an actor means a typical day doesn’t really exist. “Because of this job, it gets you into a strange momentum,” Boynton, 29, tells GRAZIA USA. Currently, for instance, she’s in a “really odd jetlag space” and waking up at 3:00 a.m. “I’ll sit up and read in bed or watch something,” the star says. “Being up at an hour where very few other people are awake has been so cathartic and peaceful and it feels like I’m getting a jump start on my day, but privately, and so that has been a really lovely habit to get into.”

Lucy Boynton. Photographs by Nicole Nodland. Styled by J. Errico. Hair by Leigh Keates. Makeup by Alex Babsky. CHANEL cape, dress, CHANEL Fine Jewelry earrings, bracelets, and rings, PREMIÈRE ÉDITION ORIGINALE watch, (800) 550-0005.

Time off for Boynton includes taking trips home to her native London and catching up on all the things she’s missed while on set. She also values hanging out with friends and family and creating “some semblance of a routine and integrating myself back into my life.” She may even pop by an art class. “I really, really love pottery painting, especially those evenings where you can bring a bottle of wine,” she shares. “I have an embarrassment of a collection of painted bowls and mugs, but it’s so cathartic and fun.”

Lucy Boynton. Photographs by Nicole Nodland. Styled by J. Errico. Hair by Leigh Keates. Makeup by Alex Babsky. CHANEL jacket, earrings, necklaces, bracelet, (800) 550-0005.

Boynton keeps her personal life intensely private, which means fans won’t find her sharing on Instagram photos of her love life (she’s been tied to actor Rami Malek), or, say, nights at the pottery studio. For the actress, the healthiest way to approach social media is doing what comes naturally. “I really value it, but I realize that I value it when I’m using it for work,” she says. “It doesn’t make sense to me to use it to kind of showcase my private life. I just don’t really have an instinct to show friends or family on it.”

Lucy Boynton. Photographs by Nicole Nodland. Styled by J. Errico. Hair by Leigh Keates. Makeup by Alex Babsky. CHANEL vest, top, pants, earrings, necklaces, bracelets, pumps, (800) 550-0005.

Lately, she’s been busy creating posts to promote her new film, Chevalier, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September and will hit theaters on April 21. The drama tells the story of Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, the son of a slave and a French plantation owner, who ascends in French society because of his musical talent as a conductor, composer and violin virtuoso. Bologne (played by Kelvin Harrison Jr.) befriends — then falls out with — Marie Antoinette, portrayed by Boynton.

Photographs by Nicole Nodland. Styled by J. Errico. Hair by Leigh Keates. Makeup by Alex Babsky. CHANEL vest, top, pants, earrings, necklaces, bracelets, pumps, (800) 550-0005.
Photographs by Nicole Nodland. Styled by J. Errico. Hair by Leigh Keates. Makeup by Alex Babsky. CHANEL vest, top, pants, earrings, necklaces, bracelets, pumps, (800) 550-0005.

Taking on the role of the controversial political figure initially caused the actress pause. “My first question was whether or not we needed to hear a voice like that of Marie Antoinette at the moment,” Boynton explains. “And then I read the script and I felt quite embarrassed by my kind of presumption. I think it was based on this preconceived idea that I had of her, which isn’t necessarily accurate. It’s just been shaped by the cultural representation of her, in the way that she’s been kind of villainized.”

Thanks to screenwriter Stefani Robinson’s “fresh take” on the era and how it “pulls it right into the zeitgeist and brings such cultural relevance to it,” Boynton got on board.

“When I first heard the name, Joseph Bologne, I assumed that I wasn’t familiar with him at all. It didn’t ring familiar,” the actress recalls. “And then I realized that he is who a lot of historians or historical texts have referred to as ‘Black Mozart.’ I had a really interesting conversation with Stephen Williams, the director, about the erasure of people by attributing them to usually successful white men. And too often, that rhetoric is ‘the Black version of ’ or ‘the female version of.’ It’s a really strategic way to erase someone and kind of redirect credit elsewhere. Therefore, right from the get-go, this whole thing has been such an education.”

Lucy Boynton. Photographs by Nicole Nodland. Styled by J. Errico. Hair by Leigh Keates. Makeup by Alex Babsky. CHANEL jacket, pants, earrings, necklace, sandals, (800) 550-0005.

Boynton notes she’s grateful for Robinson’s research and for the work of the historian and fact checker on the film. “I think it’s really highlighted the gaps in our historical knowledge, and it’s a good reminder that these history textbooks and our curriculum has had a very specific author and it’s important to really challenge yourself and read outside of that in order to get the full picture,” she says. “I’m just really proud to be a part of shining a light on that story.”

Photographs by Nicole Nodland. Styled by J. Errico. Hair by Leigh Keates. Makeup by Alex Babsky. CHANEL jacket, earrings, necklace, rings, (800) 550-0005.
Photographs by Nicole Nodland. Styled by J. Errico. Hair by Leigh Keates. Makeup by Alex Babsky. CHANEL jacket, earrings, necklace, rings, (800) 550-0005.

When it came to her role, Boynton says she was “informed” by past portrayals of Marie Antoinette in pop culture, but she knew it would be impossible to show the “entirety of a human being” in a 90-minute movie — especially one that wasn’t centered on her character. That gave her, she says, “permission to just channel what is important in this story.” In this case, that was the queen’s friendship with Bologne.

Boynton typically doesn’t have a prescribed method for choosing roles, nor does she have a bucket list of specific projects she wants to be a part of. Rather, it’s “usually quite instinctive,” she says. “It’s a combination of seeing who’s already attached, especially the director, because I think if you share the same ultimate goal as the director, in terms of your character and the message of the story and the goals in the takeaway of the film, then it makes for a really exciting process and a really creatively liberating and collaborative one.”

Next on her to-do list, Boynton will be working on an indie movie she feels “really passionate about,” and she’ll be tackling a project with a director she’s wanted to work with for years. “The thing that excites me most is the idea of being caught off guard or just emotionally affected by the script and the character and getting that adrenaline rush of ‘I must do this, and I can’t wait to start.’”

Photographs by Nicole Nodland. Styled by J. Errico. Hair by Leigh Keates. Makeup by Alex Babsky. CHANEL pullover, pants, earrings, necklace, bracelets, sandals, (800) 550-0005.
Photographs by Nicole Nodland. Styled by J. Errico. Hair by Leigh Keates. Makeup by Alex Babsky. CHANEL pullover, pants, earrings, necklace, bracelets, sandals, (800) 550-0005.

That passion for acting ignited in Boynton at 10 years old, when a “game changer” drama teacher started at her school. “We had science teachers doubling as drama teachers and it was something that wasn’t taken seriously at all,” Boynton recalls. The new teacher explained technique, gave validity to the craft and “introduced acting to us as an opportunity to discover someone else’s experience and live outside of our own life and our own self for a period of time,” Boynton says. “I had no concept of how to get there and how to do it. I didn’t know any actors, but I knew that it was something I really loved and felt passionate about.”

Boynton considers herself lucky to have found her passion early on. “Once you start to gear yourself in a certain direction, you become very determined, and everything works towards feeding that ambition,” she says. “To be able to start doing that at 11, 12 years old, I just feel really grateful. I was working with the kindest, most nurturing directors and producers and other actors and I can’t believe how fortunate my introduction to this industry was.”

Photographs by Nicole Nodland. Styled by J. Errico. Hair by Leigh Keates. Makeup by Alex Babsky. CHANEL dress, CHANEL Fine Jewelry earrings, rings,
(800) 550-0005.

One lesson she learned at the beginning was to continually redefine what success means to her. “I was given the advice that it’s going to change constantly as you grow up, but just keep checking in with yourself and keep deciding and defining for yourself what happiness and success is,” she shares. “Just the acknowledgement that [it] will change as you grow up gives you so much leeway to keep reengaging with what your own goals are. And it keeps you much more sane, I think, to do that rather than trying to fulfill some prescription of what success or happiness should look like.”

Photographs by Nicole Nodland. Styled by J. Errico. Hair by Leigh Keates. Makeup by Alex Babsky. CHANEL jacket, pants, earrings, bracelet, sandals, (800) 550-0005.
Lucy Boynton. Photographs by Nicole Nodland. Styled by J. Errico. Hair by Leigh Keates. Makeup by Alex Babsky. CHANEL coat, earrings, necklaces, (800) 550-0005.

What does “success” look like for Boynton at this moment? “It’s finding balance. It’s giving my personal life and home life as much attention and feeding and watering as much as I have spent doing it for my work,” she explains. “Being present for friends and life events has made me really happy recently, so I’m definitely putting more effort into that.”

Boynton adds the last few years have been the best of her career thanks to the projects she’s worked on, and she wants to keep the momentum going. “I’ve been so happy, and I’ve been sitting back and trying to understand what that equation was that made the last couple of years so joyful,” she shares. “But ultimately, I think [the goal is] balance, as cringe and cliché as it is, and staying true to yourself.”

Read GRAZIA USA’s Spring issue featuring cover star Lucy Boynton: