Katharine McPhee has had an illustrious career thus far, from music to film and TV to Broadway. Yet the multihyphenate says a highlight of her time in entertainment was working with Steven Spielberg.
“A career highlight was when Steven Spielberg watched [me] film one of my important scenes for the pilot of Smash via satellite,” she reveals exclusively in the latest issue of Us Weekly, on newsstands now. “To know he was watching and giving notes felt like a magical Hollywood experience. I’ll never forget it.”
The musical drama TV series — which aired two seasons on NBC from 2012 to 2013 — featured McPhee, 40, as an aspiring actress seeking to play Marilyn Monroe on Broadway. The Emmy-winning series hit close to home for the actress, who starred in Annie Get Your Gun on Broadway in 2005 (and later held a leading role in Waitress).
Spielberg served as a producer on the show, which also starred Debra Messing, Jack Davenport, Anjelica Huston and Leslie Odom Jr.
Keep scrolling for more personal anecdotes from McPhee, including her most starstruck moment:
Smash is streaming now on Peacock.
1. I love a dirty martini with blue cheese olives and, in the summer, an Aperol Spritz.
2. My first car was a Honda Civic in gold. I loved it. It took me to many auditions all over L.A.
3. Emma Stone is the most famous person in my contacts.
4. Tom Selleck was my celebrity crush growing up. His charisma is palpable.
5. My most starstruck moment was meeting Céline Dion. You see people cry when they meet their idol, and sometimes you wonder why or [think] that’s pretty intense for someone to cry that you don’t know. But I sure got teared up. She’s magical.
7. The TV series I’m binge-watching right now is Lupin. It’s so clever and makes me want to be in Paris right now! And the action and storylines are so intense.
8. My favorite item in my wardrobe is anything from my Radiance by Absolute x Katharine McPhee line for HSN, but right now, I wear the Butterfly Necklace every day in the summer.
9. My favorite movie is Notting Hill, starring the gorgeous Julia Roberts.
10. My alternate profession would be a business owner of a fashion label or jewelry line, to be specific, a creative director. But I’ve already started down the jewelry line! It’s super difficult work building a brand, but it’s also very creative and rewarding and always changing, so I’m learning a lot, and it’s a direction I never saw [coming] when I was younger.
11. I’m good at cutting hair and giving blowouts, and I find it therapeutic. I loved cutting my husband’s [David Foster] hair during the pandemic, but it did take me forever, so it’s not something I can continue to do on a regular basis. My girlfriends, sister and mom love to come over for a great blowout styling session.
12. My favorite book is The Five Love Languages. It’s really true how we all experience love differently from one another and it’s important to know your partner’s love language and that they know yours.
13. I’ve collected jewelry — from antique pieces to costume jewelry — since I was a kid.
14. The beauty product I swear by is LightStim’s ProPanel. It’s a real investment, [and] keeps my skin looking plump and fresh.
15. Any song by the Beatles makes me think of my dad. He would take us to school in the morning, play the oldies station and say, “Girls, who’s this?” when a Beatles song came on.
16. My first job was working at Traxx Restaurant & Bar in L.A. I lived in the Valley, so I took the L.A. metro to get downtown to work and I did that all summer. I took calls organizing catering, hosting and running food. I loved the service industry. The woman who owned the restaurant, Tara, was one of my dad’s friends, and she was a bad ass businesswoman.
17. I love the 🫠 emoji. It represents so many things in one.
18. Naturally, my favorite subject in school was theatre. No surprise there!
19. I always wanted to start a jewelry line. It’s difficult work building a brand, but it’s also very creative and rewarding.
20. A career highlight was when Steven Spielberg watched [me] film one of my important scenes for the pilot of Smash via satellite. To know he was watching and giving notes felt like a magical Hollywood experience. I’ll never forget it.
21. I never leave the house without my wedding ring, sunglasses and phone.
22. There’s nothing I love more than chicken tenders and french fries, with ranch and barbecue sauce on the side, after a show late at night.
23. My husband and I travel so much for tour, so my favorite way to spend date night is [at] home, making dinner, getting into bed and falling asleep watching something we love.
24. My parents did an amazing job making Christmastime special. Most were [spent] in sunny California, but we had traditions and it was always a happy, joyous time.
25. My favorite place to vacation is Italy. I love Italian food, the people and the history. You can eat your way through that country and not gain a pound.
