Claire Danes is proud of the enduring appeal of 'My So-Called Life'.

Claire Danes is thrilled by the continued appeal of My So-Called Life

Claire Danes is thrilled by the continued appeal of My So-Called Life

The 45-year-old actress played the central character Angela Chase - a 15-year-old high school student who lives in the fictional Pittsburgh suburb of Three Rivers with her family - in the 1994 teen drama series and is "grateful" that its appeal has stretched across the generations.

Speaking to PEOPLE magazine: "I'm so grateful for its resilience, and that it can be shared from one generation to another."

The 'Romeo and Juliet' actress is now able to look at the series in a different light as her eldest son, 11-year-old Cyrus - who she has with husband Hugh Dancy – approaches adolescence.

She said: "It's a really rich and harrowing phase of life that we all go through. My eldest son is 11 and a half, and I'm just bracing myself. We're on the edge of it, and I'm a little anxious."

Claire was 14 when she landed the lead role in the series - with Angela also acting as the narrator for each episode - and was struck by how much Winnie Holzman's initial script resonated with her at the time as it addressed teen angst and the tribulations of school, dating and coping with your parents.

She said: "I don't think I had ever read a more accurate account of the experience that I was having in that moment.

"I was just so thrilled to have my internal life articulated for me."

Despite its popularity, 'My So-Called Life' – which also launched the career of 'House of Gucci' actor Jared Leto - was axed after just a single season and Danes felt the show was too pioneering for many viewers to "register".

She said: "I think 'My So-Called Life' was a first, and I think that's why it had such a limited lifespan. It was so new I think people didn't immediately know how to register it."

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