Amanda Seyfried is describing a softer bond with Dominic Cooper after the former couple reunited at the Hamptons International Film Festival.
They played Sophie and Sky in the 2008 musical Mamma Mia!, where their onscreen romance developed into a relationship away from the cameras.
The actors dated for roughly three years before their relationship ended.
Separate film premieres brought them to the festival, where Seyfried spoke with PEOPLE about the connection they have today.
Seyfried Says Time Has Changed Their Bond
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Seyfried and Cooper shared a hug and posed for a photograph on Oct. 3. She said the encounter was their first in a long while. “When you’re with somebody for a long time when you’re younger, it just kind of evolves into this familial, nice, soft kind of bond,” Seyfried said.
Seyfried is based in New York, while Cooper lives in London. She described their lives as very different now and called him hilarious. Seyfried said she is grateful for Cooper and feels fortunate that their friendship has endured. Growing older, she explained, has made being kind to people from her past feel increasingly important.
Two New Dramas Brought Them to the Hamptons
Seyfried’s The Life and Deaths of Wilson Shedd received its U.S. premiere as a Centerpiece selection at the Hamptons International Film Festival.
Tim Blake Nelson wrote and directed the drama, in which she plays a schoolteacher in an abusive marriage who begins teaching creative writing at a maximum-security prison and falls for an inmate played by Scoot McNairy.
Cooper’s The Lightkeeper had its international premiere in the festival’s Spotlight section. Directed by Vic Sarin, it stars Cooper as Seamus, a grieving lighthouse keeper in 1920s Ireland whose isolation is disrupted by an American widow, a priest and his housekeeper.
Meryl Streep Noticed Their Romance During Filming
Seyfried recalled being “madly in love” with Cooper almost immediately in a 2023 oral history for British Vogue. Cooper said both had recently come out of significant relationships and that their connection was more substantial than a brief romance on a film set.
He described them as “very good for each other at that point in our lives” and credited Seyfried with many of his fond memories of the production.
Director Phyllida Lloyd remembered Meryl Streep nudging her when she spotted the pair kissing in a corner. Lloyd said their attempts to hide the relationship had fooled few people, and she welcomed the chemistry they brought to the film.
Cooper Said Working Together Again Felt Easy
They reunited professionally for Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, released in 2018. Cooper told Vanity Fair during the sequel’s promotion that they had remained in contact before returning to work together.
He acknowledged some initial uncertainty about how it would feel, but described the experience itself as “very easy, lovely.” Seyfried still knew his family well and remained friends with them, he said.
Cooper praised her kindness to colleagues and said working with an old friend allowed them to be honest with each other without feeling they had anything to prove.
Cooper’s Third-Movie Idea Ran Into a Plot Problem
At the festival, Cooper also spoke about the films’ lasting appeal. Parents tell him their children watch the musicals repeatedly, while other viewers have said the movies helped them through difficult times. Universal’s Donna Langley confirmed plans for a third film in February, telling Deadline that another Mamma Mia! would be made.
Cooper told PEOPLE at the festival that he had imagined Sophie and Sky reuniting at someone else’s wedding on a Greek island. He then realized his idea depended on misremembering their story, since the second film already brings them back together.
Seyfried said she had no new update to share, ending her response with “tick tock.” Cooper also wanted the project to get moving: “They better hurry up, because we’re all getting old.”