Molly Ringwald Says Daughter Mathilda Was Conceived in Studio 54 Dressing Room During Run of Cabaret: ‘Iconic’

Molly Ringwald is getting candid about the beginning of her motherhood journey.

In an interview with The Times, the actress, 56, revealed the story behind conceiving her older daughter Mathilda, now 20, whom she shares with husband Panio Gianopoulos. The Breakfast Club alum is also mom to fraternal twins Adele and Roman, 14.

“I believe that Mathilda was conceived in the dressing room at Studio 54 right at the end of my run playing Sally Bowles in Cabaret in 2003,” Ringwald shared. “It’s so Mathilda to be conceived in such an iconic place.”

“I always knew I wanted to have children but it took me a while — I was 36 when she was born. At that age the biological clock is a real thing and it had kind of become deafening,” she continued. “All I could think about was: must have kids.”

Later in the interview, the star opened up about what has been the most difficult thing about motherhood for her.

“The hardest thing about motherhood was realizing that my time was not my own,” Ringwald shared. “As an actress, I’ve traveled a lot and learnt to live with instability, but that’s not great for kids. That’s something I am always looking to improve on and luckily I have a husband who is a planner and is very stable.”

While attending the American Ballet Theatre Fall 2023 Gala in October, the actress spoke with PEOPLE exclusively about daughter Mathilda’s entry into acting. Mathilda is set to have a supporting role in Michael Showalter’s film, The Idea of You.

Asked how she is passing the torch, the proud mom said that it’s “something that we thought a lot about. She learned how to do it before but it’s a hard job and I think she knows what she’s in for.”

As for what her mom taught her, Mathilda responded, “Everything! Be prepared to wait and be nice, which you should always be anyways.”

“Remember people’s names,” Ringwald added.