Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Lawrence has shared her thoughts on why she prefers filming intimate scenes with strangers over friends or long-time colleagues.
Filming with Strangers is Easier
During a recent appearance at 92NY, Lawrence, who starred alongside Robert Pattinson in Die My Love, explained her perspective: “It was actually easier that way because Rob and I did not know each other, which is kind of better, you know? Like in Hunger Games, me and Josh Hutcherson would have to kiss and that’s like … Imagine it. You know, it’s weirder and so yeah, doing it with a stranger is preferable.”
Embarrassment in Acting
Despite her impressive career, Lawrence admits that acting can still be “very embarrassing.” To combat some of her nerves before shooting a scene with Pattinson, she took “interpretive dance lessons.”
The 35-year-old actress shared: “We got to Calgary like three weeks before we started shooting. Rob and I both embarrass very easily, and that was mortifying. I mean, I’m not … a dancer, Rob’s the worst dancer. And it was like, now blow like a tree — like it was just so embarrassing. So I think by the time she was like, ‘Yeah, get naked,’ we were just kind of like, ‘Okay, at least it’s not interpretive dance…’”
On Not Watching Her Own Films
In a conversation with Leonardo DiCaprio for Variety, Lawrence revealed that she does not watch her own movies. “No, I don’t watch my own films,” she stated. “I’ve never made something like Titanic – if I did, I would watch it. Once I was really drunk, I put on American Hustle. I was like, I wonder if I’m good at acting? I put it on, and I don’t remember what the answer is.”
Learning from David O. Russell
Lawrence feels she has learned a lot about acting by working with David O. Russell, the director of Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle, and Joy.
She explained: “He taught me how to act, really. I want to be sensitive to the other actors who’ve worked with him. I know he’s tough. He can be really, really hard on people. For me, I don’t know if it was because I grew up doing sports, and so I felt like he was just a stern coach. ‘Do it loud,’ ‘Do it quieter,’ ‘That was… That was bad,’ ‘Do it better.’ He was very straightforward with me.”
“I was 21 when I did Silver Linings, and it felt alive. I never felt like he was yelling at me. I really don’t like being tiptoed around like I’m an emotional landmine. I hate that.”