Superstar Diane Kruger talked about the highs and lows of her career and admitted at one screen-test she “felt like meat” as the studio head looked her up and down for the role she would later land in “Troy.”
“I’ve definitely come across the [Harvey] Weinsteins of this world from the get go,” the 45-year-old actress shared during a conversation at the Variety SXSW Studio, reported the magazine in a piece published Monday.
“I remember testing for ‘Troy' and having to go to the studio head in costume. And I felt like meat, being looked up and down and was asked, ‘Why do you think you should be playing this?’” https://t.co/wR9tYtFs3A
— Variety (@Variety) March 14, 2022
“I remember testing for ‘Troy,'” she added of the role she landed in the 2004 movie starring Brad Pitt which helped launch her career. “And having to go to the studio head in costume. And I felt like meat, being looked up and down and was asked, ‘Why do you think you should be playing this?'”
The actress did not name the executive at Warner Bros. she said made her do this but insiders in the business told the outlet that having to show up in costume for a screen test in an executive’s office is not typical. That typically a screen test involves filming the scene and then it will be later viewed by producers and studio leadership.
“I’ve been put in situations that were so inappropriate and so uncomfortable,” Kruger shared. “I think when I fist started out, it just felt like, this is what it’s like. This is what Hollywood is like. Also I come from modeling and believe me, they have their moments.”
The “National Treasure” star first worked in the fashion world as a model before breaking into the movie industry and being part of such hits as “Inglourious Basterds,” “In The Fade,” and “Unknown” among dozens of other appearances on the big and small screen.
Diane was at the film festival to attend a screening of her Roku TV series “Swimming With Sharks” and participate in a panel discussion about it.
A description about her new series on IMDb read as follows:
A young female assistant who is at the center of a studio filled with manipulators, schemers and intrigue. Little do they know she is poised to outwit them all.
One scene that the outlet noted that’s pretty intense involves a showdown between Kruger’s character and her boss played by actor Donald Sutherland, who takes on the role of an reptilian, ailing mogul, who demands she perform a sexual act on his nurse being played by a young women.
“Shooting that scene was just a reminder of how disgusting and acceptable bad behavior was at a certain time in our society, not just Hollywood,” the actress explained. “What really drew me to this part is that it is the Hollywood of 2022. So women have careers, they put their families or their desires on the back burner.”
“What does that mean once you are in a position of power?” she added. “How do you complete your life? The vulnerability of this character, combined with this excessive abusive of power, was really intriguing to me.”
The show hits the streaming site in its entirety on April 15 on the Roku channel.
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