Andie MacDowell was 'astounded' when Margaret Qualley suggested her for Maid

Andie MacDowell was "astounded" when her daughter Margaret Qualley suggested she play her onscreen mother in TV series Maid.

In the new Netflix drama, Qualley portrays Alex, a young mother in an abusive relationship who is struggling to make ends meet, and her real-life mother plays Alex's mum Paula.

In an interview with Collider, the Groundhog Day actress admitted she was amazed when her daughter proposed her for the character because The Leftovers star had tried to separate herself from her mother's success at the start of her career.

"I was actually astounded that she wanted me to play this because it's been really important for her to make her own road and to have her own journey," MacDowell shared. "But I feel like she feels secure that she's already acknowledged herself, independently from me, and she was comfortable with the idea of working with me. I was relieved, especially for this role."

The Sex, Lies, and Videotape star added that she would never have been offered the character if it wasn't for her daughter's casting idea because it's so different to what she's done before.

"It was a gift because I don't think anybody would have thought about me to play this because I've never done it before, and until you do something, people don't know you're capable of doing it," she stated. "And then, from there, I just fell in love with the character. I just loved everything about my character."

When she watched footage back, MacDowell was "blown away" by her daughter's acting and thinks they worked well together.

Maid is now streaming on Netflix.