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.

Date: July 15, 2017.
Diet: Vegan.
Dinner, weekday: My husband’s home-cooked kale and beans on garlic sourdough.
Dinner, weekend: Guacamole and chips and vegan tacos.
Dress: Valentino.
Escape: Mexico.

Excuse:
“I have a newborn.”

Family: My own.
Friend: Mara Roszak. She is also the perfect hairstylist and makes the perfect hair oil, Rōz.
Insult: “Fuck off.”
Match: New York Giants versus New England Patriots.
Movie: E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial.

Name: Ellen Ripley.
Neighbor
: Mister Rogers.
Pet: Boston terrier.
Podcast: Armchair Expert.
SHOES: White Converse.
Soccer team: Arsenal.
Television Series: Succession.
Toast
: Sourdough with vegan butter and a pinch of salt. Or Marmite.
Vacation
: Mexico with my husband, or Hawaii with our kids.
Wake-up time: Seven a.m.

Kate’s Essentials

Clockwise from top left: a Valentino dress; a favorite food; her cocktail of choice; Chuck 70 vintage Converse sneakers; a New York Giants cap.