Caitríona Balfe Says Her Role in Upcoming Film 'Belfast' Helped Her Decide to Become a Mom

Caitríona Balfe welcomed her first child with husband Tony McGill in August

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Published on October 29, 2021 10:24 PM

Caitríona Balfe's life is now imitating her art.

The actress, 42, discussed her upcoming coming-of-age dramedy Belfast during an interview with Variety, including how her role influenced her decision to become a mom. In the film, Balfe plays the mother of a young boy amid the unrest in Northern Ireland in the 1960s.

She said it was "not long after" she wrapped shooting the movie that she found out she was going to become a mother in real life, too.

"I decided I was having so much fun playing a mother, I would just go for it," she joked, adding that she thoroughly enjoyed spending time with some of the child actors on set — including Jude Hill, Lewis McAskie, and Lara McDonnell.

She continued, "They're just the most amazing kids, their mums were so cool, I was in a bubble with them and I think it sort of gives you a kick just to be like 'I'll do it. Why not?' "

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Balfe announced in August that she and her husband, music producer Tony McGill, had welcomed their first child together.

"I've been off socials for a while as I was taking some time to enjoy cooking up this little human …. We are so grateful for this little soul ….that he chose us as his parents," she wrote on Instagram alongside a photo of the infant's hand holding her finger. "I'm in awe of him already and can't help stare and wonder at all the possibilities of who he will become, where he will go and what he'll do on the big adventure of his life."

Balfe and McGill tied the knot in 2019 at St. Mary's Church in Bruton, Somerset, in the United Kingdom.

The Irish actress revealed exclusively to PEOPLE during the 2018 Golden Globes — where she was nominated for best performance by an actress for Outlander — that McGill had popped the question after two years of dating.

"It happened over the break. I'm very happy," she told PEOPLE as she showed off her new sparkler at the awards show.