Kate Walsh on the 'Hijinx' of 'Emily in Paris' Season 3, 'Coming Home' to 'Grey's Anatomy,' and Holidays With Her Cat

Her cat, Pablo, is just the sweetest.

Kate Walsh, like every pet parent, knows how stressful the changes that come about during the holidays can be. Between parties, alternate decorations, and gifts piled high, it's easy for your animals to find themselves overwhelmed.

As an animal lover, Walsh wants to help alleviate the stress of the season for owners and pets alike.

The actress sat down to chat with Parade about all things holidays at home with your feline friends, as well as two fan-favorite projects: Emily in Paris and Grey's Anatomy.

Shondaland's favorite villain-turned-hero joined me for a Zoom call, her cat, Pablo, perched contently in her lap. He donned a festive red bow for the occasion, well-coordinated with the festive theme.

In stark contrast, my cat stopped by to scream at me the moment I entered the chat. As his head peeked into the frame, she asked, "Who's that?" before showering him in compliments, pointing out his face and mane, in particular, and later calling him "gorgeous."

I explained that my roommate found Truckee—and his sister—as kittens in a dumpster about six years ago.

"That is no place for Truckee," she said, and the gravity of the statement makes it more than clear how passionate she is about the safety and security of our pets.

It's no wonder, then, that she's partnered up with Tidy Cats for the holiday season to share her insights into cat-friendly aesthetics, gatherings, and more. As a regular host for her family and friends and loving mom to Pablo, it was the perfect pairing for this time of year!

What is the best and worst part about filming abroad for you?

Well, there's really no downside to shooting in Paris. Probably the most challenging thing is just getting over the jetlag, because I usually go in and just have a couple of days to acclimate and then go right into it. So I just sort of have to roll with it, like some crazy ride of exhaustion and like a waking dream.

But it's really fun because it's just such a great crew and cast. And the locations, and costumes, everything's so amazing. It's a very supportive environment, and it's so beautiful that I just feel super grateful. Yeah, it's a blast.

Having now worked on the show for three seasons, has your French improved at all in comparison to Madeline’s?

No. (She couldn't help but to laugh.) Yeah, sadly.

What did you find to be most challenging about playing a stereotypical American in another country? How do you find that line between charming and offensive?

Well, I don't know if I found it. But it's really fun to play someone who is unabashedly excited to be in Paris and living out her dreams and thinks she knows, like, a lot. And I think what's really fun about the show for me, the writing is so great. They really wrote into Madeline this year, in the first three episodes, she's just crazier than ever.

And I think, too, Andy Fleming, who's one of the directing producers on the show, directed my episodes and he's an old friend. He directed me in Bad Judge; that's where we met, and sort of fell in love, and so he and I, just in terms of comedy, it's really fun to work with him because we're just very much in sync and I trust him implicitly.

And so we kind of just go there and, you know, he encourages, and she's such a larger-than-life character, so it's been a blast to play.

Can you tease anything about the shift in dynamic that Madeline (assumedly) giving birth in Season 3 will bring?

Yeah. Well, she sticks around a little, and causes trouble. And there's some great conflict, I think, between her and Philippine [Leroy-Beaulieu]. There's like a little triangle between Emily and Madeline and Philippine. Or Sylvie, I should say. So it's fun to see that play out, and I think people will be really surprised and entertained at all the hijinx.

Do you have any fun plans to celebrate the streaming premiere for Season 3?

Well, we're going to be- I don't have plans to actually celebrate. I'm going to the premiere in Paris, and then I'll be at the premiere in New York, too, so I'm super excited about that.

You were gone from Grey’s Anatomy for almost a decade before Addison got sprinkled into the mix again in recent years — what has it been like to step into the same show, yet with drastically different settings/characters/etc. over each return? Does it feel like coming home or is it a big adjustment period with each cast changeover?

No, it feels like coming home, for sure. I just kind of slipped right back in. It's always very emotional and meaningful, because I was there for so long and it's such a family. There's a lot of the same crew that are still there, and writers that are just so excellent, and cast, of course.

And whenever I go back, the Emmy Award-winning makeup artist Norman Levitt, he's retired now, but he comes out of retirement to come do my makeup, so that's really beautiful, too, particularly when we were shooting during COVID, it was really nice to have him there with me.

Are there any actors that came and went in the time you were gone that you wish you’d had the opportunity to work with?

Oh my God, there are so many people over the years that have... I mean, when Faye Dunaway did the show, I was like, 'What?!' That would have been cool. But so many people. Greg Germann, I wish I had... but you know, he's in a different show than me, so he'll be on an episode but I don't have any scenes with him, but I just love him.

There are so many great people.

What about the innovative medical cases that the show often adapts from real life? Any that you wish you could have been a part of, or perhaps that the show hasn’t yet touched that you’d like to see happen?

Well, I think that they're doing that—and they continue to do that—and this season is really powerful writing into women's health storylines, and with my character particularly, so it's been really meaningful to me.

And the writers are just so good and talented, and I think really fair, and passionate, and committed to being humane and treating patients with humanity. That's something that Shonda Rhimes, I think, really had such incredible skill with and brought initially when she created the show; just showing people in all their different facets and their character assets and flaws and really enabling the audience to have empathy for people that they may not have. That's just so powerful. I think they continue to do that this season.

So much of entertainment is just that; what does it mean to you to be able to use your storylines on Grey’s to bring attention to real-life issues that so many people want to just brush under the rug and pretend aren’t a problem?

Yeah, it's really powerful. And it's very meaningful for me, I feel like that's what art has the capacity to do—great art. And whether it's television, or film, or writing novels, it really connects people and makes people aware, and hopefully helps people question and see things from different points of view, and develop empathy and understanding where maybe they didn't before, all housed in great storytelling.

To segue into our next set of questions, do you think Addison is still a cat person, or do you think she was a one-and-done?

I think she's a cat person, what am I talking about? Especially after the cat now, and her husband and child, and I imagine Jake is.

For the holidays, I love this idea of cat-friendly decorating because we just go all out each year fully expecting every decoration to be destroyed by Christmas. What are your methods for separating your cat from the decor and keeping everything intact throughout the holiday season?

I was really excited to partner with Tidy Cats Lightweight Litter this season. Anybody who has animals knows—and it's always hectic for the holidays for everyone—if you you have guests coming in, sometimes you move the kitty litter, so we just say if you're going to move it out of a, you know, a guest bathroom or out of the guest room to put guests in, just make sure that you put it in a quiet, calm place, and that your cat knows where it is.

One of the things I love about this particular litter: it is super lightweight. I don't know if you've had that experience of hauling kitty litter around where you're like, 'All right, use your legs.' It's not easy. This is super lightweight. It's very light, and it also is 99.9% dust free, which I love, because I have allergies. It has a nice linen scent, so it's not to perfumey; it's very subtle and keeps it fresh smelling.

And then just other basic things, having a little hand vacuum, dusting, I have like those tape rolls in every room for people to remove cat hair.

Also with the tree, I've got an artificial tree up behind me. I was never an artificial tree gal, but I am now, and there are so many different cool ones. I don't know if your cat tends to climb up the tree—this guy, Pablo, he's 18 now so he has no interest—but most teenage cats or kittens are going to climb up that tree. There are plenty of videos on the Internet where we see all the hijinx, so I would just encourage people to put breakable or precious decorations towards the top of the tree, because they love going after shiny, sparkly things.

If you do have a live tree, cover that water basin, because cats love fresh water and if they go to drink out of that tree, it can be toxic—as well as poinsettias, even holly berry, mistletoe, which is a new one I didn't know was toxic for cats. So if you're going to use it, put it up real high.

Similarly, if we let our cats stay out to enjoy a party, chances are we’ll find every dish sampled by them. How do you allow Pablo to roam free while keeping party foods and favors safe —and him from eating something he shouldn’t?

I don't like to keep him out of the room or shut him out, so we just have to keep an eye on him. I mean, this guy likes potato chips, who knew? But he does. I'm a big potato chip person, he loves a chip. I mean, obviously, he's never met a lambchop that he didn't like. He usually is at the dinner table, so he's a little spoiled. But it is important to keep things like dips, you just have to keep an eye on them and keep it out of reach.

One of the other things, also, is keeping toys sort of tidied up. I put them in a decorative basket or something so that people aren't tripping over them.

Of course, there's always a proliferation of pet toys. They like to be stimulated, so giving them, you know, beyond a catnip mouse, giving them a cat scratcher or a puzzle feeder or something to keep them interested.

And also just the idea, because Pablo's over toys now, he's like, 'I just like to sleep. I enjoy napping,' to encourage people to donate over the holidays to their local shelters. That's a great way of repurposing your pet's toys, or you can donate things like, you know, lightweight cat litter, food, time. You don't have to just write a check, but you can do it in a family member's name or friend's name and it's just a nice way of giving back to our furry friends in need.

Our cats are also more chicken than feline — how do you have groups of people over and keep their stress levels low?

Well, if he is going to hide or if he wants to retreat, I just let him retreat. But he sort of has the run of the house, so he'll come out and have a feed and then go back. Or sometimes he's quite social and wants to come and chill, and he loves a party just like everyone else.

So I sort of let him decide how much he wants to socialize. He's somehow still on camera, he's like, 'I'll sit here.' (Truckee, on the other hand, was gone by the end of the first question.)

Finally, what’s your must-watch holiday film each year? If it’s not a cheesy rom-com, what’s your favorite cheesy Christmastime Hallmark-esque film?

Oh, my gosh. I mean, I still am a fan of the old-school Grinch. How The Grinch Stole Christmas, the animated one, like the old, original one.

I love It's a Wonderful Life, just love watching that. So I watch that every year.

Notting Hill is a big one. Is it Notting Hill that people watch every year? I feel like everyone watches that, or they always screen it. Maybe that's just me.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.