Samantha Blaire Cutler - A Woman On The Rise!
Samantha Blaire Cutler is an up and coming star! Samantha has been performing for years — beginning at the age of seven! Since then, she’s starred in theater and television productions such as “Dear Evan Hansen” and “Power.” Since the overturn of Roe v. Wade, Samantha has been extremely vocal about abortion rights and women’s rights. Samantha is also involved with The Kentucky Health Justice Network — an organization that provides support and financial assistance to those seeking abortions. To learn more about Samantha, her roles, and her involvement with the KHJN, continue reading our exclusive interview below!
Where are you currently based?
I am currently based in New York where I’ve been living for the past decade!
We’ve learned that you have been performing since the age of seven! Wow! What exactly inspired you to get into acting? What was your very first role?
I believe my very first role was as a monkey in the Jungle Book Jr. at my dance studio, but professionally, it was Chip in Beauty and the Beast. For me, performing started through dance and desperately begging my mom to put me in ballet classes, and the journey hasn’t stopped since! Although I’m exploring different mediums along the ride, I’ve always had a pure love for performing, whether it was making up songs in the living room for my family, performing in a 2000+ seat theater, or in front of a camera.
We know that you’ve worked on many exciting productions like “Dear Evan Hansen” and that you’ve starred in many television shows like “Power,”. Do you have a preference for live theater vs film?
At this point in my life, I am really focusing on evolving as an actor through film and TV, but the theater will always be my first love. Each medium has its respective challenges and rewards. I will always be grateful for any opportunity to perform and expand myself as an artist.
We also know that you star in the new creepy Netflix series, “The Watcher” (so exciting!) What was your favorite thing about working on this series?
I’d have to say working with talented actors, such as Joe Mantello, who played my father, John Graff. Watching him on set was a masterclass in and of itself, on top of Mr. Murphy’s directing and the insanely talented crew he has on his projects. I also have to mention shooting in the full-size replica model of the house. It was so detailed and grand, I sometimes forgot we were shooting on a soundstage.
What’s something you admire about your character, Patricia? Can you tell us a bit about her?
Pat is a teenage girl who thinks she knows everything, which means she definitely makes decisions Sam would not, but I do admire her spirit. I look at her with the empathy I would have for a little sister. The household she’s growing up in is tumultuous, to say the least, with her overprotective father and consistently drunk mother, so while the relationship and activities she engages in aren’t in her best interest, I understand why she is searching for attention and admiration in other places.
You are also returning to your role of Becca Weston for STARZ! Series, Ghost: Power Book ll. While Becca and Patricia’s fashion sense might be different they both are strong women. What was it like playing both of these women? Can you relate to one more than the other?
Yes, I was thrilled to return to Becca for our third season. Pat and Becca are definitely two different young women, but both are fulfilling to step into. Some of Pat’s tendencies remind me of my seventeen-year-old self, plus in the context of the 90s, her wardrobe and hair inspiration helped me channel her. With Becca, she’s much more sarcastic and bold; she’s not afraid to speak her mind. But interestingly, both girls are discovering who they are outside of their families.
We love that you work with The Kentucky Health Justice Network through you. KHJN is a beautiful organization with an amazing mission to support reproductive rights. Can you tell us about your involvement within the network?
When the overturn happened, not only was I thinking about all the people whose lives were just put in danger but my young family members who live in a state where their rights were just stripped from them. Besides knowing that I was going to the polls in November, I felt pretty hopeless about what I could do to make an impact. I found KHJN in my research and looked into their Abortion Support Fund. From this they provide, “a staff-supported network of volunteers who help people seeking abortions with financial assistance, transportation, interpretation, and more.” These are the people doing the tough, dangerous, but necessary work and I will continue to support them in any way I can.
One of the biggest events that occurred this year was the overturn of Roe v. Wade. We understand that the overturn was very upsetting for you and so many others. Was your involvement in KHJN fueled by the overturn?
The overturn definitely made me aware of KHJN, but the issue of having access to safe reproductive care has always been important for me to support. Whether it be donating to an organization such as Planned Parenthood (although local/state groups and organizations might be a better way to impact people directly), or educating myself on the topic, I’ve always taken this issue very seriously. In high school, I wrote this paper on the movie If These Walls Could Talk that examined three individual cases of women needing abortions in America in the 50s, 70s, and 90s. I remember feeling so grateful that I didn’t have to live in those times, that they paved the way for my rights and safety. I couldn’t have imagined that it would be something I would have to fight for in my lifetime, but my mother’s generation does. If they could do it, so can we.
Kentucky is one of the red states struggling with possible abortion bans. Can you tell us a bit about where Kentucky is on the issue right now and what you think the future might hold?
Currently, almost all abortion is still illegal in Kentucky after about six weeks, which I may add could be someone at most two weeks late for their cycle. However, in some better news, during this past midterm election, Kentuckians voted against Amendment 2 which would’ve ensured no person in Kentucky the right and access to safe reproductive healthcare. The state’s supreme court is also supposed to hear a case soon that would challenge the two laws currently banning abortion in the state. I would like to have hope for the future, especially seeing all the hard work organizations like KHJN put in to support, advocate, and demand access to this human right, but we are living in some very uncertain times and if I’ve learned anything, it’s to expect the unexpected, the journey ahead will not be easy.
(More information about the abortion ban in Kentucky: )
https://www.npr.org/2022/11/09/1134835022/kentucky-abortion-amendment-midterms-results
It has been a very wild year, how are you staying grounded through everything?
Isn’t that an understatement? Although, I do feel much better about this year than the past two. This year has involved a lot of growth, change, and independence for me and I’m grateful to have incorporated things into my life that help me self-regulate. Personally, therapy has changed my life for the better, and going on a consistent basis helps me reflect. I’m a thinker so I also try to journal every day to get those thoughts out of my brain and onto paper. Deep conversations with friends, dancing, and listening to/singing music are all activities that help me feel connected and grounded.
What is your motto in life?
Either, “Everyone is too focused on themselves to be worrying about you, so why not live the life you want to lead,” or “Happiness isn’t something we gain or lose, but a product of doing the things that bring us joy on a consistent basis.”
To keep up with Samantha, please follow her via her Instagram below:
Instagram: @sam_blaire
Photo credit: Kat Hennessey
