Scarlett Johansson says the ‘despair’ after a movie flop hurts no matter how successful you get
Scarlett Johansson is the highest-paid woman in Hollywood and has her pick of the best movie roles in showbiz. But she says being a megastar still never takes the sting out of a movie flop.
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As the highest-paid actress in Hollywood Scarlett Johansson has countless opportunities to take risks and make bold choices in her career.
And, having earned in excess of $56 million last year, much of it thanks to her role as Black Widow, she does, frequently.
Her latest gambles are a star turn in Taika Waititi’s polarising World War II satire, Jojo Rabbit, which features Adolf Hitler as a “comedic” character, and a heartfelt role in Netflix dramaMarriage Story, which sees her tackling a painful subject with which she can fully identify – divorce – in this deeply personal narrative from Noah Baumbach.
Johansson is appreciative of reaching this high-point in her career, especially given her experience at the other end of the spectrum.
“There’s no architecture to my career,” she says.
“I’ve had some things that hit with audiences that were surprising and a revelation, and I’ve had disappointments that were really a big drag, that just didn’t make it at all. When things you pour a lot of effort into fall flat, it can lead to a lot of despair.”
There is no shortage of despair in Marriage Story, in which she plays Nicole, the wife of a philandering theatre director, Charlie, played by Adam Driver, with whom she is raising their young son. The family unravels when the relationship has run its course.
“These characters are not fictionalised, and neither is their relationship,” she says.
“It feels very real and visceral because of the dimensions of their relationship, and the many facets of it. It’s complicated, like all relationships. While they understand that they don’t belong together any more, I don’t think they see their marriage as a failure. I mean, they produced something incredible together, right? A beautiful son.”
Johansson is all too familiar on the subject of consciously uncoupling, having bounced back after the demise of two marriages.
Johansson’s first marriage was to Ryan Reynolds, which ran from 2008 to 2011. But it was her split from her second husband, French journalist Romain Dauriac, that proved more informative.
The pair were married from 2014-2017 but were midway through separating during the Marriage Story shoot.
Their private conversations surely must have mirrored those of her onscreen character, especially about arrangements concerning their daughter, Rose, now 5-years-old.
“Yes, I think more than being a divorcee, one thing that was very helpful to me in understanding Nicole’s experience was the co-parenting part of their divorce, and the idea of their custodial exchange,” she says.
“I understood that aspect, as well as being in a family with somebody that ultimately comes apart. There are many different kinds of feelings you have when your relationship was expected to go one way, and then it’s not fulfilled in the way you imagined it would be. That understanding was very helpful to me.”
Marriage Story shines a light on the way in which divorce lawyers inevitably take advantage of the legal system, often producing cruel outcomes. Perhaps her rather extensive experience with divorce lawyers might have come in handy?
She laughs. “No,” she shakes her head. “No news flash about divorce lawyers. I don’t have that much insight.”
But, apparently, she is not discouraged when it comes to the subject of romantic optimism evidenced by her striking 11-carat engagement ring, presented to her in May this year by fiance Colin Jost, head writer of Saturday Night Live.
“He loves to laugh, and there’s a lot of laughter in our house because of that,” she smiles. “Relationships, in my experience, are always the healthiest when both people feel fulfilled by their passion.”
Changing gears, our discussion turns to Jojo Rabbit, in which director Waititi defangs the Fuhrer and instead infuses him with a goofy persona.
Johansson plays a single mother who hides a Jewish girl (Thomasin McKenzie) in the attic, while her 10-year-old son (Roman Griffin Davis) admires his invisible friend, Adolf Hitler, played by Waititi.
Waititi, whose origins include both a Maori and Jewish heritage, says of his latest offering, “I’m not in the business of trying to be a shock artist. I’m not here to make a controversy. I don’t mind if it follows me around, but it’s not my intention. My intention is to tell a good story, and I’ll use whatever elements I have at my disposal to do that.
“It was 80 years ago this year that [Charlie] Chaplin released The Great Dictator; there’s a fine tradition of using comedy to attack bullies and people who promote hate and intolerance. So I feel like I’m in good company,” he says.
“So if anyone feels like saying it’s too soon to use humour, it’s not soon enough.”
Johansson, who shares Waititi’s Jewish ancestry, weighs in.
“Watching this movie with an audience was transformative. It was amazing,” she smiles. “They were raucous. They loved all the slapstick, and then something really profound would happen, something really horrifying, and it was like you could hear a pin drop. People were audibly gasping or even verbalising their disbelief,” she says.
“I think the studio was very brave in saying, ‘It’s OK to laugh.’ It can be a message that I think is important for everyone to hear.”
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Next up for Johansson is her long overdue solo outing as Black Widow, in a prequel being directed by Aussie Cate Shortland and also starring Florence Pugh and Rachel Weisz.
It marks her ninth outing as the famed Russian assassin in Marvel Cinematic Universe and comes after the much loved spy was killed off helping save the universe in the record-breaking Avengers: Endgame.
While the famous Marvel cone of silence has already descended, she does say, “I love playing her, and I find the Marvel movies are just as fulfilling as any other film, but in a totally different way.
“I continue to understand my job on a deeper level as I get older. I love acting now more than I ever did. I find it all really exhilarating.”
Marriage Story streams on Netflix from Friday; Jojo Rabbit is released on Boxing Day.