Anne Hathaway knew James Grey’s script for his semi-autobiographical movie Armageddon Time, wherein she performs a model of the director’s personal mom, was particular. However it was 5 particular phrases that actually offered her on desirous to tackle the position.

“Once I heard ‘James Grey, age-appropriate half,’ I used to be like, ‘Say sure, we’ll determine the small print later,’ ” Hathaway tells The truestarz. “After which I learn it and I discovered it a chunk of searing honesty. It’s a movie about ethical remorse and the parallels that he attracts between 1980 and 2022. All of it simply actually spoke to me: the intelligence, the humor, the heat, the unhappiness, the violence, all of it. I simply thought, ‘That is actually, actually uncommon.’ And I met with him, and after just a few conferences, and a bit little bit of time, he determined that I used to be going to play the half.”

The movie, which additionally stars Jeremy Sturdy, Jaylin Webb, Banks Repeta and Anthony Hopkins, is ready in Queens within the early Eighties, whereas the nation goes via ominous political modifications. It follows Jewish American pupil Paul Graff (Repeta) as he learns about white privilege and racism whereas additionally discovering himself at odds along with his mother and father, performed by Hathaway and Sturdy.

Hathaway talks to THR about why her scenes with Hopkins made her nervous, whether or not she was hesitant to play a Jewish girl and what it was like starring reverse Sturdy.

Why do you assume your efficiency, which has been critically acclaimed, resonates with so many individuals?

One thing that hyperlinks us all is the truth that all of us had been kids. In the event you’ve made it to maturity, then meaning you had been a baby. After which there are one million problems to that linking us, too, however after I take into consideration the movie, I believe again to after I noticed it for the primary time at Cannes. And I keep in mind being within the viewers within the scene once they’re at Corona Park [in Flushing Meadows, Queens], they usually’re launching the rocket and Anthony Hopkins and Banks Repeta are having a dialog about a number of the youngsters [saying] unhealthy phrases at college. I felt the complete viewers’s stomachs tighten — there’s a collective shift within the vitality, like we had been by some means all in a line collectively. Then they’ve a direct dialog, which is one thing that we’re nonetheless attempting to determine learn how to have in the actual world. I may really feel the viewers remembering a second once they wished they’d been braver — I actually was. That, for me, is a lot about what the movie is about: this concept that it’s important to be your bravest self, it’s important to stand as much as bullies, it’s important to be a mensch. And it may not add as much as something, however you’ve bought to do it anyway.

That individual scene, would you say it was particularly difficult so that you can watch or learn when it comes to what’s occurring?

I discover that probably the most difficult scene for me on this film was my first scene with Anthony Hopkins as a result of I simply utterly ceased to perform. Like, I couldn’t discuss as a human, I couldn’t communicate as an actress, I couldn’t say my strains, I couldn’t keep in mind my strains. I couldn’t do the accent, which I’d labored very, very onerous on. I actually, actually, actually couldn’t perform. Really, that day was nice as a result of I’d been feeling so wired about doing a great job with it, however I simply let it out. But in addition, I’m at a stage in my life the place I’m beginning to expertise grief an increasing number of. Individuals I like very, very a lot have shifted, and I’ve needed to change my relationship with them to being one within the right here and now to at least one within the there and all over the place. And that’s onerous. In order that half felt possibly like probably the most connected-to-me scene within the movie.

Everybody grieves otherwise, and it might probably hit you once you least count on it.

I now know just a few individuals who have misplaced their moms at completely different phases of their lives. And I’ve to say, I don’t assume you ever cease grieving the lack of your mother and father. It turns into one thing you reside with, however I believe that you’re modified by it. I took that very severely after I was chatting with James — that I used to be chatting with him about somebody for whom he’s mourning.

Let’s discuss a bit about that as a result of we all know the movie is semi-autobiographical. What had been your conversations like with James about you portraying his mom?

The girl that my character is predicated on died just a few years after the occasions on this movie, so I used to be at all times very aware of the truth that I used to be chatting with James about one thing that’s tender. I wasn’t simply talking a few character and the way I want to play her. It couldn’t even have that form of drive. It was a personality that I used to be receiving, and I discovered direct questions weren’t useful. I discovered [myself] asking oblique questions, one thing that might form of simply stoke the fires of his reminiscence — asking a easy query like, “What would your mother have taking part in on the TV when she cooked?” He would reply, however then it might result in all of those different recollections as a result of reminiscence will not be actually linear. It’s atmospheric, and all-encompassing. I discovered that if I simply tried to get “data” out of him, I didn’t really assume I used to be doing my job in the way in which that I used to be speculated to do it this time. I felt like I needed to obtain the half, permit the script to information me after which permit James’ reminiscence to form of shade every part. After which, as soon as I had an actual understanding of that, simply step into her. I keep in mind the primary day I had an intuition as her on set. It was a extremely cool feeling as a result of folks discuss in regards to the authority of the director or the authority of, on this case the son, the authority that he has that you’re taking part in his mom; James was by no means actually considering authority. He was extra of a co-conspirator. And that’s what it felt like we had been doing.

What sort of preparation went into the position? You talked about your accent work earlier.

I like the road [after the family watches Private Benjamin], “Judy Benjamin is a liberated girl.” So, I’m like, “OK, that is somebody who [is a] youngster of the ’60s, an idealistic head of the PTA. She desires to be part of a bigger societal development towards positivity. She believes in neighborhood; she believes in all of those actually, actually, actually nice issues. Clearly she’s somebody who’s within the development of ladies.” And it was not misplaced on me that I had plenty of accountability taking part in a Jewish girl, and that I’m not a Jewish girl. I did what I believe all of us do, [which was to research]. In gentle of the truth that we make up half of the world, girls’s historical past remains to be considered this area of interest factor, which is form of unusual. I discovered every part I may about Jewish girls, like historic Jewish girls. I knew she was a house economics instructor, so I form of studied that. However there wasn’t plenty of materials on her. James thought that he had movies of her, however they didn’t exist. He advised me he was going to present me all of those photographs of the time interval, however he didn’t. I finally requested him why, and he stated, “As a result of the picture doesn’t really let you know the way in which I keep in mind her or how I keep in mind her. The reminiscence of her is completely different, and I don’t need you taking part in the picture. I need one thing else.” So, it was like we needed to create this ether between us, an ether of understanding. I don’t know if that sounds pretentious, however that’s what it felt like. And that’s what filmmaking and performing typically do really feel like. It was like creating specters round us till they felt actual sufficient to carry right into a scene.

Did you ever really feel trepidation taking up this position, taking part in the mom of the director but in addition taking part in a Jewish girl once you your self aren’t Jewish?

Yeah, I used to be nervous about how it might be acquired. I took it very severely. And I hoped I might be graced from an viewers the flexibility to play this half although I used to be not born a Jewish girl. When it comes to trepidations, James was actually empowering. All through the method, I felt actually supported by him.

The factor I used to be most nervous about was the impact COVID was going to have on the craft. It’s getting higher now, however we made this within the fall of 2021, and the COVID measures, whereas completely crucial, and I’m not saying something in opposition to them, took up at the least 30 p.c of everyone’s consciousness. By the point you bought via all of the COVID stuff, you actually simply wanted to get on the set and shoot otherwise you’re going to expire of time. That left little or no time to the craft and the constructing of it. There was no option to rehearse, actually, in any form of satisfying approach. And human interactions needed to be stored to a minimal. While you’re taking part in a personality that requires [so much preparation], you’re constructing an entire factor — she’s very completely different than I’m. And there are such a lot of little particulars. I did expertise concern that I used to be not going to make that a part of it work, that it wasn’t going to return in in time and that I used to be simply going to be an actor out on a limb attempting one thing and never succeeding. So, yeah, I used to be nervous about that. However I used to be by no means nervous about taking part in James’ mom. He didn’t let me be.

Your co-star, Jeremy Sturdy, is thought to be a technique actor who goes very deep into his personal course of. What was it like taking pictures reverse him, and the way did you two construct rapport?

I believe course of is simply one other approach of claiming the way you get there after which the way you keep there. I like a solution I heard Jeremy give just lately, which is [that] course of actually is nearly focus and one of the simplest ways that you just focus. I might not do nicely if I had a course of that would solely be a technique as a result of that’s assuming every part goes proper and that there’s sufficient room to your course of.

I used to be engaged on a brief TV present referred to as Fashionable Love. There was this actually massive, seven-page scene wherein my character, who suffers from bipolar dysfunction, is confiding to somebody for the primary time. It was a scene filled with actually, actually, actually difficult twists and turns. And for some motive, once they did the placement scout, no person seen that we had been taking pictures on the base of a subway station, which meant that we had a practice rolling via the shot each two minutes — which meant that as a way to do the scene, we needed to cease and freeze what we had been doing and maintain the emotion and look ahead to the practice to go after which decide up within the scene as if nothing had ever occurred — till the following practice got here by two minutes later. And we had to do this till the scene was finished. If I had had a dogmatic method to my course of, there’s no approach it may have occurred.

I’ve a versatile method to my course of, which is, no matter will get you there. I didn’t admire being put in that place, however I’m additionally an skilled sufficient actor to know that nonetheless I felt in regards to the scenario, the work was going to wind up onscreen, so really I shouldn’t have any opinions about what was taking place. One of the simplest ways ahead was simply to give up and get it finished. And I’m very happy with that scene. I believe it’s excellent work, oddly.

Once we speak about course of, once we speak about depth, once we speak about technique, once we speak about all these items, it’s all good to me. Nothing ever strikes me as bizarre. If any person likes to crack jokes proper up till the second of motion after which rapidly they’re sobbing hysterically? Nice! Fabulous! If it doesn’t work for me, I’ll hold my distance. I’ve had the expertise a few occasions [where] somebody desires to remain in character the complete time. Nice — no chitchat, we are going to simply join between motion and minimize and that can be our relationship, and possibly we’ll discover one another afterwards. It’s all good. I simply love actors, and we’re such weirdos in one of the simplest ways attainable, and I’m simply so thrilled to be within the attempt.

Interview edited for size and readability.

This story first appeared in a December stand-alone subject of The truestarz journal. To obtain the journal, click on right here to subscribe.