Throughout Kate Mara’s long and accomplished acting career, she has portrayed a hard-charging reporter (House of Cards), a hiker in crisis (127 Hours), an astronaut (The Martian), and an invisible superhero (Fantastic Four). It was all solid training for her latest role in the new FX/Hulu series Class of ’09. On the show, Mara’s character—an F.B.I. agent scrambling to keep up with a criminal-justice system that has been irrevocably changed by artificial intelligence—hops between time lines and decades. But the actress’s daily life, in Los Angeles, which she shares with husband, Jamie Bell, and the couple’s children, is considerably more straightforward. Herewith, she shares her key components to the good life. —Ashley Baker
Airport: An empty one.
Bedtime: Our three kids are asleep by six, and my husband and I are in bed by nine.
Bike: Built for two.
Birthday: The days my kids were born.
Boyfriend: Jamie Bell.
Breakfast, weekday: Coffee with oat milk and stevia.
Breakfast, weekend: An everything bagel with vegan cream cheese from Courage, the best bagel shop in Silver Lake, California.
Car: Vintage—but it works and doesn’t use gas.
Child: One who’s not perfect at all.
Cocktail: An ice-cold glass of champagne.
Cocktail appetizer: Olives and truffle almonds.
