“I’m so sorry, we got stuck in the craziest traffic,” Ella Rubin apologizes for running ever-so slightly behind on schedule, the brick walls of her new york apartment visible behind her on our Zoom call. “My driver was fighting with everyone, and I’m so sorry,” she continues. Honestly, no apologies were necessary—I was thankful to have 45 minutes of her time. After all, the 25-year-old is in the midst of a career-defining moment. 

Yes, Rubin is the name on everyone’s lips right now. The New Yorker burst onto the scene this summer after the debut of Prime Video’s Sterling Point, in which she plays Type-A, uber-responsible 17-year-old Annie Jacobson, who, out of the blue, inherits a picturesque island in Muskoka, Canada, from a grandfather she never met. Speaking with Rubin, it’s clear she’s just as sweet and down-to-earth as her character. 

To say it’s been a hit would be a massive understatement. To wit, Amazon reported that it was the most-watched show since its release. Weeks after its debut, Rubin is still riding the high. “It truly blew my mind,” she says of the show’s popularity. “I had thought that we had made something wonderful and special, and I hoped that somebody would connect with it. to have the outpouring of love and people connect with the characters—I can’t describe the level of gratification and joy.”

New teen shows are a dime a dozen these days, but what sets Sterling Point apart from the rest of the modern adolescent series is its 90s and early-aughts elements, from the lack of social media to juicy love triangles, hallmarks of its predecessors like Dawson’s Creek and One Tree Hill. As it turns out, though, Rubin took cues from another nostalgic teen series: Freaks and Geeks. “Something inspirational to me with that show in particular is that it’s very clear that the characters don’t know they’re in a comedy,” she reflects. “They’ll be doing something absolutely insane, but taking it so seriously and it just does something for the audience that I think is really brilliant.”

That same balance between light and dark, comedy and drama, is something Rubin sees in Sterling Point. But at the center of the show, she says, is sisterhood. Upon arriving at the island she unexpectedly inherits, Annie discovers she has a secret younger sister, Ramona, played by Amélie Hoeferle. “I think it’s amazing to take the risk of putting two flawed girls on the poster [for the show],” she shares, adding that she admired the series’ willingness to trust that audiences would either understand the characters or still find something in them to connect with.

Rubin connected with Annie on more than one level. Yes, they both come from New York, but beyond that, they share a tendency to be hard on themselves. “I do like to go with the flow, although I will say I’ve become more so as I’ve gotten older,” says Rubin. The actress recalls a teenage version of herself who was decidedly less flexible. “Annie is deep in my heart; we’re so similar yet truly so different.”

Rubin’s character Annie has also gained traction online for her polished, effortlessly cool style. But as Annie settles into Muskoka, her wardrobe becomes much more laid-back, mirroring Rubin’s fashion sensibility in real life. “I’m pretty bad at preserving my clothes as I’m wearing them,” she shares. “My mom always says I wear my clothes rough, so I can’t really wear a lot of the things that Annie wears because I would unfortunately find a way to destroy them,” Rubin laughs.

She attributes the show’s costume designer, Marissa Schwartz, for being incredibly collaborative. “Marissa was intent on making Annie’s journey very clear through her clothing,” says Rubin. Consider episode one, where Annie’s wardrobe feels fitting for an adult—a button-up shirt; a trench coat; Chanel flats despite the character being only 17. “Then as the series goes on, she gets more comfortable, and she starts wearing Ramona’s clothing. Towards the end, it was definitely a little bit more my style.”

While Sterling Point is certainly Rubin’s breakout role, she’s hardly new to acting. In 2024, Rubin gained recognition for her portrayal as Anne Hathaway’s daughter, Izzy, in The Idea of You—and yes, she’s seen the recent social media chatter likening her to the esteemed actress. “I’m so flattered by the comparisons,” says Rubin, who adds that working alongside Hathaway was a dream come true. “I would say you should meet your heroes.” Hathaway’s leadership on set left an impression on Rubin, who later put those lessons into practice while filming Sterling Point. 

Rubin might also be recalled for Bianca Breer in the Gossip Girl reboot, or as Natalie Gibson in Hulu’s biographical miniseries The Girl from Plainville. Reflecting on her childhood, Rubin describes herself as a creative, artistic kid. “I knew that I would want to go into the arts in some form, but I thought it would be visual art, like painting,” she recalls. However, things shifted when Rubin, who grew up on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, enrolled in an after-school theater program with her best friend Mia around the age of 10.

“I immediately felt like I found my place in the world,” Rubin says of the experience. “Despite being sort of a strangely high-pressure environment, even though it was a children’s theater class, I just felt like it was the kind of pressure that I could thrive under,” she says. From there, Rubin landed her first major acting gig at 11 years old in the 2014 romantic comedy The Rewrite, playing Etta Carpenter, the daughter of Hugh Grant’s Keith Michaels.

Rubin credits her parents with preserving her childhood as she made her foray into the entertainment world. “Looking back, I see that I was truly a teenager despite, at the time, feeling like some kind of pseudo-adult,” explains Rubin, who loved spending her free time after school auditioning.

Now 25, Rubin is stepping into new roles and genres, including her portrayal of Louise Donnadieu in The God of the Woods, Netflix’s forthcoming adaptation of Liz Moore’s bestselling novel of the same name. Starring opposite Maya Hawke and Kerry Condon, the series is set in the 70s, where Rubin will be tasked with embodying the experience of a woman in that decade. “I really just want to be on sets where I can dive in and sink my teeth into a role and work really hard,” she says.

The actor recently experienced a pinch-me moment, working alongside Succession star Jeremy Strong in Netflix’s upcoming series adaptation of The Boys From Brazil. “I’ve always been quite hard on myself, and it’s been detrimental to my life and my work in certain ways, and something about working with him kind of strangely cured a part of that for me,” Rubin reflects. “Acting across from someone who I think is one of the greats and such a respectful, cool person who’s at the absolute top of their game was pretty wild.”

Looking ahead, Rubin hopes to flex her acting muscles even further, with her sights set on a performance or competition-based movie or show. “I love when actors play dancers or athletes; something where there’s an element of pressure,” she says. “Something funny like Best in Show, Opening Night or Waiting for Guffman, but then also, you know, I, Tonya or, f—k it, even Stick It.” 

As of late, Rubin has been turning to 90s movies as a form of escapism, along with early 2000s comedies like Talladega Nights. “I try not to scroll and decide for too long what to watch; I just put something on,” she says of her streaming habits. “I just love watching movies; I could do it all day, and it’s kind of been a real sense of comfort,” Rubin adds. 

She’s also been a bit of a bookworm recently, pointing to Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar as her latest read.

It makes sense Rubin values time to wind down, considering she has plenty on her plate right now, such as a second season of Sterling Point, which, much to the delight of fans, is officially on the way. “I wish I could tell you all my secrets!” she giggles when I ask what she can reveal about the next season. In all seriousness, she doesn’t know a lot about what season two will entail. The details may be under wraps, but Rubin knows one thing: She can’t wait to reunite with Park and her castmates-turned-friends.

Photographed by Kat Irlin

Styled by Christopher Campbell

Written by Kelsey Stewart

Hair: Dj Quintero at The Wall Group

Makeup: Soo Park at The Wall Group

Photo Assistants: Beka Maglakelidze and Franck Raharinosy

Stylist Assistant: Mia Hurley

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