Shailene Woodley Says “Three Women ”Inspired Her to Be 'Very Open' with Her Emotions (Exclusive)

"It was fun to play with that amount of freedom in expression," the actress says of her character

Shailene Woodley learned a lot about herself from her latest project.

Talking to PEOPLE at the New York premiere of her new series Three Women on Monday, Sept. 9, the actress, 32, said that she has "learned a lot" about herself from her character Gia.

"Gia has this ability to be very open with her emotions in a way that I used to be more reserved with," Woodley tells PEOPLE. "It was fun to play with that amount of freedom in expression."

Three Women is based on the 2019 non-fiction book of the same name by Lisa Taddeo, which explores the personal lives of three women – Maggie, Sloane and Lina – with different backgrounds. In the show, Woodley portrays a fictionalized version of the real-life writer as she connects with the women while working on a book about female sexuality.

The actress felt inspired by the Taddeo, who worked on the series as the creator and executive producer, calling her a "unicorn who is somehow able to be honest and truthful enough with herself about what she is experiencing internally to then be open with the world to make us feel a little less isolated in our experiences."

In a separate interview, the author shares with PEOPLE that Woodley had a lot of freedom while creating her character in the series. "From the start, I wanted Shailene to create her because I'm not the queen of England or someone you need to get emotions correct. I wanted her to have some freedom to bring her performance to that character using my DNA and the DNA of the women who had spoken to these other women,” she says.

Taddeo continued to call the actress "beyond talented," adding that "she made me feel seen without mimicking or mirroring me, but just by being herself and bringing her own experience."

Overall, Woodley hopes that the show helps people "feel a little less alone." She says, "We feel like we have to hide who we are in order to be accepted. And the truth is… we really are so much more fascinating and interesting and delicious than the front that we try to put on the world. I hope people find some comfort in their truth."

The Secret Life of the American Teenager alum stars in Three Women alongside Betty Gilpin, DeWanda Wise and Gabrielle Creevy.

In a recent interview with Bustle to promote her new show, Woodley was asked what made her "stop caring so much about performing for others," to which she said, "A broken heart that healed and broke again. I fell in love over and over with unavailability."

The actress did not name who broke her heart, though PEOPLE reported that she and her ex-fiancé Aaron Rodgersbroke up in February 2022 after one year of dating – which would have been during the last leg of the show's production. The two briefly reconciled before splitting again in April 2022.

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Last year, Woodley described the time she spent filming the new series as one of the "darkest" periods in her life while speaking with Net-a-Porter's digital title PORTER.

"It was hard to film because I was going through the darkest, hardest time in my life; it was winter in New York, and my personal life was s---ty, so it felt like a big pain bubble for eight months," she said. "I was so grateful that at least I could go to work and cry and process my emotions through my character."

Three Women premieres Friday, Sept. 13 on Starz.

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