Michelle Williams Is Defending Jeremy Strong’s Intense Acting Methods
Last year, Jeremy Strong had a whole lot of people thinking, “Shoot, it’s only an HBO show!” when he spoke of his long-rumored and very intense ways of getting into character and delivering a capital-P performance in a profile with The New Yorker. Some of Jeremy’s Succession castmates kind of agreed that it was a bit overkill to dive so deep into a role, whereas other serious thespian types, like Jessica Chastain, Anne Hathaway, and Aaron Sorkin, all jumped to Jeremy’s defense. Jeremy was probably glad when all this chatter about his actor commitment quieted down (the silence probably helps him think of new ways to be intense). But we’re back talking about Jeremy once again, this time because of Michelle Williams. However, it’s less of a headache than the first time around, because Michelle is also pulling some Toy Story soundtrack vibes by letting Jeremy know he’s got a friend in her.
Michelle got into it during the same interview with Variety where she revealed her baby son’s name (Hart), and that she’s currently pregnant with her third child, which is her second with her husband Thomas Kail (Michelle’s first is daughter Matilda, with the late Heath Ledger). Michelle also spoke of her very good friend Jeremy Strong. And when I say “very,” I don’t mean they share a personal trainer or once took a trip to Cabo together. I mean that after Heath Ledger’s tragic and sudden passing in 2008, Jeremy moved into Michelle’s home in Brooklyn for about three-ish years, and was there to support Michelle and Matilda through their grief. Michelle shared that revelation in Jeremy’s New Yorker profile last year, but she spoke of it again to Variety. via Entertainment Weekly:
“Jeremy was serious enough to hold the weight of a child’s broken heart and sensitive enough to understand how to approach her through play and games and silliness,” Williams said, adding “[Matilda] didn’t grow up with her father, but she grew up with her Jeremy and we were changed by his ability to play as though his life depended upon it, because hers did.”
Naturally, Michelle had feelings when it came to the response Jeremy’s New Yorker profile generated. Which is to say, she truly didn’t understand any of the hate Jeremy got from that, but mostly because she felt the words “method acting” was blurring people’s ability to understand what Jeremy gets up to before the director yells “Action!“.
“I think that unfortunately the word ‘method’ has become a buzzy one because of what happened to Jeremy Strong when he tried to describe his process,” Williams said. “He takes his work as seriously as he takes his play.” She added, “We’ve all been in awe of his talent. We’ve watched him work harder than anyone and wait a long time for other people to recognize it. So when he became so celebrated, we all celebrated.”
The term “method” does definitely make a person think of a certain type of actor, oftentimes one that has the cast, crew, and the rest of us at home rolling our eyes until our ocular tissue begs for forgiveness. So Michelle is trying to make it very clear that Jeremy is a legitimately good actor who is serious about his craft, and doesn’t have to resort to the typical cheap “method” acting stunts. I am glad she cleared that up. Because earlier in the interview she claimed that one of the ways Jeremy Strong helped out around her house was to give little Matilda pony rides. And I definitely pictured Jeremy Strong boring a poor child into a deep conversation about what type of pony he should be, an American Quarter Horse? A Dutch Warmblood perhaps? And what’s the pony’s motivation? The inherent feeling of being free in a fenced-in world, or like, oats?
Pic: Celest Sloman/Variety