Claire Danes for Vogue US August 2013

Claire Danes graces the cover of American Vogue’s August 2013 issue wearing a Burberry Prorsum Fall 2013 trench coat with a gabardine body overlaid with a rubber rain shield, gun flaps and sleeves.

The editorial, which was shot by Annie Leibovitz, features Claire with her ‘Homeland’ co-star Damian Lewis in what looks like actual scenes from the show.

With the main difference being Carrie has traded in her boring black pantsuits for a grey Victoria Beckham dress, a sexy backless Calvin Klein frock, a chic Hermes coat, a sleek Narciso Rodriguez gown and a racy red Donna Karan sheath.

In her interview, Claire shares details of her comeback after having trouble landing roles following her award-winning role in ‘Temple Grandin’, for which she won Best Actress awards at the Emmys, Golden Globes and the Screen Actors Guild Awards, as well as talking about becoming a mom and meeting Barack Obama.

You can the whole interview over at Vogue.com. Here are some extracts.

On the worldwide popularity of Homeland: “We have a phenomenal number of illegal downloads in Lebanon.”

On not finding work for two years following ‘Temple Grandin’: “It was confusing. I got a lot of plaudits, and it didn’t translate into more work. I was really, really struggling during that time. After a while you have to start to doubt yourself. It was grim. I was very hurt. Two years of not working was brutal. And a point came where I thought, I really like interior design. Someone suggested, ‘Maybe your real success is in your personal life.’”

On attending the Golden Globes as a new mom: “I went on the red carpet, went upstairs, fed Cyrus. Went into the ceremony, got the award, went back to feed Cyrus, went out again. . . . Then it was ‘Now you meet the president.’ I had these new boobs; I’m wearing a big Jessica Rabbit dress, and I’d been living in sweat pants for so long. . . . It was strange. It was dreamy, surrounded by my parents and my husband. It was one of the best nights of my life because of this perfect mash-up.”

On today’s female movie stars: “I’m so impressed by Jennifer Lawrence and Carey Mulligan. They have this exquisite taste. They are very gifted in their ability to make great choices. I didn’t have that rudder. There’s the movie star that plays herself and the movie star like Meryl [Streep] that has this wonderful, glamorous persona intact and is undone every time she takes on a new character. I think I’m astounded and titillated by that.”