Emmys 2013: Connie Britton on being a role model and taking risks

After five years playing the strong, supportive guidance counselor and wife Tami Taylor on the football drama “Friday Night Lights,” it’s no surprise Connie Britton developed an image as something of a role model.

“When ‘Friday Night Lights’ was over, I definitely was almost stunted in a way by having this sense of responsibility — that I needed to somehow maintain this role model or this image that I was putting out into the world, and that I had a responsibility to that,” Britton said during a recent Envelope Emmy Round Table on the topic of TV dramas.

WATCH: The Envelope Emmy Roundtable | Drama

As flattering as all that was, Britton, who now stars on the musical drama “Nashville,” said she believes in taking risks as an actor and challenging herself.

“I went and did ‘American Horror Story,’ which kind of just demystified all that and made it a lot less precious and gave me a good sense of humor about what I’m doing in the world,” Britton said.

“And [it] really made me realize that as actors, it’s not so much the message of the character that we’re playing as much as — at least I think — what part of ourselves we’re investing in the work. And I think that audiences feel that, and I think storytelling and telling human stories is such an important thing in the world.”

Britton’s latest leap of faith finds her singing on “Nashville,” an endeavor she modestly described as “terrifying, probably kind of a stupid thing to take on, but ultimately really rewarding.” For more from Britton, watch the video.

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