London – This film was his ticket to the Hollywood Olympus – and at the same time to his personal hell. For Florence Pugh, the horror film “Midsommar” (2019) was her acting breakthrough. Nevertheless, he recalls the shoot with mixed feelings, during which director Ari Aster (39, “Hereditary”) forced him to undergo a tour de force rarely seen on screen.
Pugh’s film character, Dani, travels to Sweden with her boyfriend to take part in celebrations in a remote community summer solstice (Summer midday). But instead of enjoying a lively party, they actually expect conditions like a cult. A subsequent nervous breakdown was caused Florence Pugh not just in front of the camera, as he now reveals!
In “Midsommar,” Florence Pugh delves further into the psychological depths of a Swedish cult
“Midsommar” is Florence Pugh’s worst film
Marvel star on The Louis Theroux Podcast: “This movie made me sad for about six months afterward and I don’t know why I was depressed.” The horror in “Midsommar” unfolds primarily psychologically – Pugh seems to go beyond her limits in some scenes.
Later work in the delightful film “Little Women” gave him a temporary distraction Emma Watson (35) and Timothy Chalamet (29). But as Christmas approached, depression returned, and Pugh realized it stemmed from “Midsommar.”
“I have never seen such a level of anguish or psychological distress as was required of me in this script,” concludes the Englishman. “That’s why I got into it.”
Pugh with Jack Reynor (33), who plays her not-so-likable boyfriend
Pugh on “Midsommar”: “Make me messed up”
In the first minutes of “Midsommar,” the film’s character Dani loses her sister, then succumbs to mental anguish. Florence’s suffering in that scene? Not just played! “I just put myself through hell. It really messed me up.”
Florence Pugh at the premiere of the Marvel film “Thunderbolts” in April
Pugh explained that she doesn’t blame director Aster in any way. He even called him a genius. He takes responsibility for his pain, puts pressure on himself, and exhausts himself.
Professionally, it paid off — after that, big roles kept coming, including in the Oscar-winners “Oppenheimer” and “Dune.” Nevertheless, Florence Pugh has learned her lesson and said of her abuse of art: “I wouldn’t do that again.”
