Mad Men star Kiernan Shipka: I cried when I got Sabrina Spellman role

The actress has landed the title role in new Netflix series Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina
'Obsessed': Kiernan Shipka says her new role is dark but funny
Arianna Lago for ES Magazine
The Weekender

Sign up to our free weekly newsletter for exclusive competitions, offers and theatre ticket deals

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

Mad Men child star Kiernan Shipka broke down and cried after landing the role of teenage witch Sabrina Spellman.

The 18-year-old actress, who grew up on television as Don Draper’s daughter in Mad Men, takes the title role in Netflix’s Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina.

The show is a reprise for the character first played by Melissa Joan Hart in cult Nineties show Sabrina The Teenage Witch. The reboot promises to be a darker affair, however.

Shipka said she was “obsessed” after reading the script and desperate to get the part. She told ES Magazine: “I was a bit of a mess for a few days.

Cover star: Kiernan Shipka is the ES mag cover star this week
Arianna Lago for ES Magazine

“And then I’m at the podiatrist and I get the call telling me I’m going to be Sabrina and I just started completely crying.”

She won the role of Sally Draper as an eight-year-old, top, having been “hell bent” on becoming an actress from the age of six.

Daddy day care: Shipka with her on-screen dad Jon Hamm on Mad Men
Carin Baer/AMC/Lionsgate

During seven years on Mad Men, she credits her on-screen father Jon Hamm with teaching her how to tackle a lead role with humility and generosity.

“He set such a good tone on set. He was always so nice, so grounded, so fun …but also completely serious and respectful when the scene called for it,” she said.

The new show starts on the eve of Sabrina’s 16th birthday party when she is expected to sign her name in blood and give herself to the Devil. Netflix has already filmed two seasons, written by Riverdale’s Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa.

Best female-led shows to watch on Netflix - in pictures

1/10

Netflix’s Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina starts on October 26

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in