Da’Vine Joy Randolph admits that the name Alexander Payne didn’t really ring a bell for her when her agent asked her to meet with the two-time Oscar winner. He wanted to discuss the role of vulnerable cafeteria worker Mary Lamb in “The Holdovers,” the next film Payne would be directing. “I knew enough to know, ‘Oh, this is a lovely man, he’s very intelligent and talented,” Randolph recalls. “Toward the end of the conversation, I was really digging him and so I asked, ‘Hey, do you have any (of your) films I should watch?’ And he was very humble. He was like, ‘No, it’s Ok.’ And I said, ‘No, it’s important to me as an artist to know who I’m working with and their style and their sensibility.’
“And so he was like, ‘Well, there’s this movie called ‘Sideways,’ And I was like,...
“And so he was like, ‘Well, there’s this movie called ‘Sideways,’ And I was like,...
- 11/27/2023
- by Ray Richmond
- Gold Derby
The awards race in the best actress and best supporting actress categories is brimming with real life protagonists getting the big screen treatment. From Nicole Kidman’s Lucille Ball (“Being the Ricardos”) to Lady Gaga (“House of Gucci”) and Kristen Stewart (“Spencer”), these women were tasked with preserving and presenting the legacy of flesh and blood icons, telling their stories truthfully and without judgment.
“I think everyone wants to be seen as a fully realized human being, not as just a caricature,” notes Kidman, who took home the Golden Globe for her lead turn in the Aaron Sorkin biopic.
Being entrusted with someone’s life story is a big responsibility, and these actresses took great care in their prep work. For her role as Tammy Faye Bakker in Michael Showalter’s “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” Jessica Chastain immersed herself in research. To play mother and coach of Serena and Venus Williams in “King Richard,...
“I think everyone wants to be seen as a fully realized human being, not as just a caricature,” notes Kidman, who took home the Golden Globe for her lead turn in the Aaron Sorkin biopic.
Being entrusted with someone’s life story is a big responsibility, and these actresses took great care in their prep work. For her role as Tammy Faye Bakker in Michael Showalter’s “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” Jessica Chastain immersed herself in research. To play mother and coach of Serena and Venus Williams in “King Richard,...
- 1/21/2022
- by Michele Amabile Angermiller
- Variety Film + TV
Academy Award-winning actor Javier Bardem experienced a reawakening while becoming intimately acquainted with Desi Arnaz, the I Love Lucy star who Bardem brings to life in Amazon’s Being the Ricardos. And it all happened while the past and present collided during multiple musical numbers including “Babalu” and “Cuban Pete,” and while listening to private audio recordings shared by Lucy and Desi’s daughter, Lucie Arnaz.
Before working on the Aaron Sorkin film alongside Nicole Kidman in the role of Lucille Ball, Bardem did not consider himself a singer. But the experience helped him not only grow closer to the famous Cuban actor, musician, and TV producer but also — and most important — himself.
“I was working The Little Mermaid when I got the role [of Desi], so I was already in the process of [working on my singing],” Bardem told Deadline while promoting the film’s Tuesday debut on Prime Video. “The first person to ever...
Before working on the Aaron Sorkin film alongside Nicole Kidman in the role of Lucille Ball, Bardem did not consider himself a singer. But the experience helped him not only grow closer to the famous Cuban actor, musician, and TV producer but also — and most important — himself.
“I was working The Little Mermaid when I got the role [of Desi], so I was already in the process of [working on my singing],” Bardem told Deadline while promoting the film’s Tuesday debut on Prime Video. “The first person to ever...
- 12/22/2021
- by Rosy Cordero
- Deadline Film + TV
Doing justice to a real-life person, as an actor, comes with its own set of pressures. Embodying a cultural icon, however, can be downright overwhelming. When Aretha Franklin personally gave Jennifer Hudson her blessing to portray her in the biopic Respect, the Oscar winner was elated by the vote of confidence. Then reality set in. “Those are huge, huge, huge shoes to fill,” Hudson says. “But if she said I can do this, I’m going to do my best.” Ultimately, the challenges of stepping into Franklin’s rich, complex legacy had a deeply beneficial effect on Hudson: “It inspired me to want to own my voice that much more.”
Deadline: To portray a real-life icon over the course of a lifetime must feel like a huge task. What are the challenges in that?
Jennifer Hudson: Well, first of all, when you consider what she represents to us all—and,...
Deadline: To portray a real-life icon over the course of a lifetime must feel like a huge task. What are the challenges in that?
Jennifer Hudson: Well, first of all, when you consider what she represents to us all—and,...
- 12/3/2021
- by Carita Rizzo
- Deadline Film + TV
Filmmaker Nicole Holofcener and actors Ben Mendelsohn and Thomas Mann dropped by the Variety Studio presented by At&T at Tiff to talk about their new movie, “The Land of Steady Habits.”
The adaptation of the Ted Thompson novel stars Mendelsohn as Anders, a man who abruptly quits his job and leaves his wife. During the conversation, it was revealed that Mendelsohn had previously auditioned for Holofcener for another movie, 2006’s “Friends with Money.”
“It remained one of the sort of really good memories from a really crappy and dry time, work-wise here,” he noted, telling her, “Even though you didn’t give me the part, it was really good.”
Joked Holofcener, “It was for the Catherine Keener part. So it was close.”
Agreed Mendelsohn, “I think it was probably the right call. These things tend to go the right way.”
When asked if he’s lost many roles to Keener,...
The adaptation of the Ted Thompson novel stars Mendelsohn as Anders, a man who abruptly quits his job and leaves his wife. During the conversation, it was revealed that Mendelsohn had previously auditioned for Holofcener for another movie, 2006’s “Friends with Money.”
“It remained one of the sort of really good memories from a really crappy and dry time, work-wise here,” he noted, telling her, “Even though you didn’t give me the part, it was really good.”
Joked Holofcener, “It was for the Catherine Keener part. So it was close.”
Agreed Mendelsohn, “I think it was probably the right call. These things tend to go the right way.”
When asked if he’s lost many roles to Keener,...
- 9/9/2018
- by Jenelle Riley
- Variety Film + TV
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