BEST PERFORMANCES

Eddie Redmayne and Rami Malek Talk First Kisses, Portraying Famous Figures, and The Hills Reboot

Hollywood Tales


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Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Rami Malek and Eddie Redmayne are no strangers to transformation. In 2014, Redmayne took home the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything, and most recently, reprised his role as lovable wizard Newt Scamander in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald. Malek, meanwhile, took on a very different real life figure this year, as Queen frontman Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody. When interviewed together, however, the two are far more normal—though no less charismatic—than their larger-than-life on-screen personas, as they chat about everything from karaoke adventures to first kisses. Here, the pair chat about what they learned from their roles, favorite Halloween costumes, and Redmayne’s excitement about the upcoming The Hills reboot.

Have you two met before?

Eddie Redmayne: We met fleetingly. Rami Malek: We met just the other night. I was having dinner with some of my cast mates from Bohemian Rhapsody, and it was an incredible table you were sitting at. I think it would be a dream come true for a lot of people. So, I’m gonna make you name drop everyone. Go ahead. Redmayne: I can’t remember who was there. Malek: Yes, you can. Redmayne: Jamie Dornan, Armie Hammer, Justin Theroux. It was only in Los Angeles. I promise you that’s not my normal. Malek: I was intimidated to walk up to this table, and I could just see everybody flipping out that you guys were all together. Redmayne: But the first time we met, [it was] just after my daughter Iris was born, when sleep is really important. One night I heard these cranes going up outside, and I stormed outside, kind of furious. I saw these little letters on the thing saying there’s gonna filming here tonight. They were literally outside our front door, and they were filming Bohemian Rhapsody. We had this amazing makeup artist called Jan Sue who I worked with in The Theory of Everything, and Rami worked with on Bohemian Rhapsody. I texted her going, “You’re filming here?” So I took Iris, my daughter, and her first ever film set was your film set. I saw Rami from a distance, and I’ve gotta say you arrived on set so freaking in the zone that I was completely blown away by it. And then Iris started crying, and I was like, “Okie dokie.” Malek: I’ll say this; I took so many lessons from you and The Theory of Everything. I absolutely fell in love with that performance. So enchanting, so deep, so wonderful, and so inspiring. I said, “Give me everything that he had in that film.” I asked for Jan Sewell, and I asked for a movement teacher. Redmayne: What was that process like? Working with a dancer on The Theory of Everything, that changed my life for me. Malek: Almost the exact same thing. I met with choreographers to play Freddie Mercury, and the guy’s just not choreographed; he’s so spontaneous. I found Pauline Bennett, who was incredible with movement. I mean, there were moments she said, “giraffe” to me, and I kid you not, I could make a Freddie pose as a giraffe. Some moments she’d be like, “Okay, you know the, the lyrics to ‘Killer Queen?’ Do them as a Shakespearian soliloquy, if it were being played by Marie Antoinette.”

What was the very first thing you auditioned for?

Malek: This is a pretty good story, actually. This first thing I auditioned for, I got a call from a casting director and she asked to speak to the agent representing Rami Malek, and I said, “Uh, speaking.” And she said, “Well, what’s your name?” And I said, “Well, this is Rami.” And she kind of laughed and she said, “Are you SAG?” And I said, “No, but we can work on that too.” She started laughing and laughing, and she said, “Alright, call me when you have an agent and you’re set, properly.” And I go, “You’re already laughing, give me a shot.” It was three lines in the Gilmore Girls, that’s your answer. I got the part. I said something about an assistant pastor, Eric. That’s all I can remember, and now people will look this up. It was great. Great show, great team to be a part of. Redmayne: My first professional part was the book boy in [the West End musical] Oliver. I got to say, “Books you ordered from the bookseller, sir,” and then I had to run off. But the important thing was that I leave the books and then I run off too quickly, and so Oliver has to take the books back and he gets caught by the gang and stuff. But because I had this big moment, I would go home like, “Books you ordered from the bookseller, sir,” and I’d like gently saunter off the stage. The director came up finally and said, “You have to run off. It’s essential for the plot point that you run off.”

Dior Men jacket and pants; Urstadt Swan gloves; Givenchy boots.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

What was the first album you bought?

Redmayne: I think it was by the Beautiful South. You know not to get me started on music because I have the worst taste in music. Malek: [Mine was] Bob Dylan, I think. “Blonde on Blonde,” and I bought a Joan Baez album, I can’t remember the name of it. But she sang on one of his tracks or maybe numerous tracks, but I had to have them both. And then I bought Leonard Cohen. Redmayne: Rami, you’re making me sick! I bought “Always” by Bon Jovi. I like a good emotional ballad.

Eddie, do you have a karaoke song?

Redmayne: Alright, you know Leona Lewis’s “Bleeding Love?” It’s the greatest YouTube hole to go down: Leona Lewis, when she was on X Factor. Each week she just came and delivered and delivered. Occasionally she’d take her shoes off, and yeah, it’s a good YouTube hole to go down.

Do you still watch X Factor?

Redmayne: No, I don’t. But occasionally on a Saturday night I will turn it on, because, particularly when I’m working, I find like I can’t watch proper television. I have to watch just mindless reality TV. Malek: I can watch documentaries, maybe. I won’t watch movies, cause then I start comparing myself to the actors I’m watching. That’s a horrible, abusive thing to do to oneself.

Do you ever watch reality TV?

Malek: Not really, no. I work on the show called Mr. Robot, and Christian Slater and Carly Chaikin meet and watch The Bachelor, so I was like, “Okay, let me join in on the group fun.” That wasn’t for me. Redmayne: I’m quite excited because [The Hills](https://www.wmagazine.com/story/mischa-barton-joins-the-hills-revival), which was my original reality TV guilty pleasure, is coming back. Malek: What is The Hills about? Pitch me The Hills. Redmayne: The Hills is about various genetically beautiful [people] around LA just chatting to each other. It starts with Natasha Bedingfield’s song, which I didn’t buy the single of, but I might has well of.

Who was your favorite person on the show?

Redmayne: I was inclined to Heidi Montag, who I sort of had a bit of a love-hate relationship with.

Officine Générale pants; Atsuko Kudo Couture Latex Design gloves.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Do you have any secret skills?

Redmayne: I’m incredibly good at being early. I’m always the person who gets to the airport like a good four hours early. Malek: If we’re going on the time thing, I manage to get to the airport about a minute or two before the plane actually takes off. I’ve never missed a flight. Redmayne: When I first went on holiday with my wife, before we were married, we were going to Italy and it was agreed that we would meet on the plane because I knew that our burgeoning relationship would not last because she’s the antithesis [of me]. She’s like sensationally late all the time. And I’ll never forget, we were flying to Florence and I got on this EasyJet plane and I was sitting in the back surrounded by like three Irish monks and a nun and they were like, “Ladies and gentleman. I’m afraid this plane can’t take off because there’s one passenger that’s late.’ Then my wife comes in. If we had met in the airport, I think the relationship would have died before we even started. But fortunately, there were some calming Irish monks.

When was your first kiss?

Redmayne: It was at a school when I was about nine years old and the school that I was at, next door was a Swedish school. My friend was Swedish and there was a Swedish school disco and played a game of spin the bottle and if it landed on a girl, then I was gonna have to kiss them in the middle. It did land on a girl and I kissed her and I just remember the taste of Hubba Bubba. That’s my memory. Malek: I was very, very young, and I have an identical twin brother and he did really well with people across the board and girls, as well, and I got a little jealous, you know, that he’d had his first kiss. He’d had a couple first kisses and I hadn’t. I thought, “You know, let’s never use this twin thing to our advantage.” Redmayne: Oh, that is bad, mate. Malek: It’s bad.

What was your favorite Halloween costume?

Redmayne: In Britain, we have this weird thing with Halloween where you get dressed up as a witch or a wizard. When I was making a film called The Other Boleyn Girl with Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman, they had a Halloween party. All of the British actors and crew all turned up with a witches nose or a pointy hat and Scarlett came in this kind of extraordinary dress with all these birds attached to it and she was from The Birds and that sort of made sense ’cause it’s kind of horror, and Natalie came with her friends as the girls from Grease. I was like, “That’s nothing to do with Halloween.” Then got explained to me that basically in America, it’s just an excuse to wear whatever you want. Malek: We were shooting on Bohemian Rhapsody and since I had one of the greatest makeup artists in the world, we got off a little bit early and I had her turn me into Edward Scissorhands. I did Beetlejuice once. I really get into Halloween. My favorite was I did Forrest Gump, but the young Forrest. I made the leg braces myself. I went to Home Depot, and I got all the things to mechanically put this together. It looked pretty cool; so much that I got to do a film with Tom Hanks, and I thought, “I have to show him this, but will it be offensive at all?” But he just started laughing. He gets a laugh out of so many things, he just said, “Oh, you kooky kids.”

Eddie Redmayne wears a Givenchy shirt and pants. Rami Malek wears a Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello shirt.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves. Hair by Malcolm Edwards at Art Partner; Makeup by Lucy Bridge for MAC Cosmetics at Streeters London; Manicures by Michelle Saunders for Essie at Forward Artists. Set design by Gary Card at Streeters London. Men’s wear editor: Sam Walker. Hair for King: Angela A. Perrantes; Grooming for Jordan: Carola Gonzalez for Malin & Goetz at Forward Artists; Hair for Jordan: Jove Edmond; Hair for Layne: Larry Sims for flawless at Forward Artists. Produced by Jeffrey Delich at Padbury Production; Production Manager: Lauren Sakioka at Padbury Production; Local Producer: Meghan Gallagher at Connect the Dots; Local Production Coordinator: Jane Oh at Connect the Dots; Photography Assistants: Sarah Lloyd, Tony Ivanov, Kyle Holmquist, Keith Coleman, Scott Froschauer; Retouching by Graeme Bulcraig at Touch Digital; Production Assistants: Michael Osborn, Nikki Patrlja, Dan Fleming; Fashion Assistants: Allia Alliata di Montereale, Nadia Beeman, Sharon Chitrit, Megan King, Brejon Golden, Jonnie Atkinson, Lindsey Hartman, Rosa Schorr; Set Assistants: Nicole McBride, Collin Lebrasseauer, Seth Powsner, Olivia Giles; Ballet Dancers: Morgan Quinn, Jaclyn Hamric, Corey O’Brien, Dominic Eustes; Tailors: Isa Kriegeskotte, Karla Yvette Miranda, Nastassia Bauta; Special thanks to Quixote Studios, Heirloom LA, Kitchen Mouse, Electric Avenue, Cast Partner.

Rami, what is your go-to karaoke song?

Malek: In Japan, they love karaoke and I went with the members of our version of Queen, and we dressed up in animal onesies and we did “Bohemian Rhapsody” in the shape of the original music video. It was filmed by someone and I’m sure someone will probably get drunk and throw it out there into the ether. [Now,] I’m not big on karaoke after doing Bohemian Rhapsody for six months. Redmayne: After doing what you had to do, and pushing yourself physically into such a space of exhibitionism and self-confidence that he had in those moments, has it changed you? Malek: Yeah, very much. I feel quite liberated. I learned a lot from him. He’s just so defiant, so authentic, so real, and that’s what you get when you see him on stage. He is his own perfect, beautiful self and he looks out into the audience, he says, “You have the freedom to do the same thing, so I’ll enjoy this and do this.”

Eddie, what did you learn from Stephen Hawking?

Redmayne: Actually, it’s weird because the film I’ve just finished is about people that go up in an air balloon and are trying to, in the 19th century, discover about the stars and the sky and the atmosphere, and the theme of that is one of Stephen’s great things, which is keep looking up. That idea of this world we’re in at the moment, of always looking down and into our phones and kind of insular and tying ourselves in, the idea of looking up was something that Stephen spoke about and I think it’s the most beautiful thing. Malek: That’s gorgeous. I did the last Night at the Museum with Robin Williams and he could see this evolution of everybody being on their devices. We got to shoot in the British Museum and I think he saw everybody kinda on their phones and he went off and was just standing by this rock. I thought, “Oh, he just wants to be alone, but what’s he doing over there, just staring out into space, is he okay?” And I walked over to him and, we had got pretty close over the course of doing those films, and I said, “What’s going on?” And he just whispers,”You know, it’s not often that you get a chance to be alone with the Rosetta Stone.”

Best Performances: Featuring Nicole Kidman, Claire Foy, Rami Malek, and 29 of Hollywood’s Biggest Stars

Claire Foy wears a Burberry top, corset dress, socks, and shoes; Charvet scarf. Emily Blunt wears a Burberry dress, shirt, socks, and shoes; stylist’s own top.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Kiki Layne wears a Prada top and headband; Tiffany & Co. earrings. Jonah Hill wears The Row jacket, shirt, and tie.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Margot Robbie wears a Chanel cardigan and skirt; stylist’s own top. Michael B. Jordan wears a Calvin Klein 205W39NYC cardigan and vest; Brioni trousers.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Nicole Kidman wears an Armani Privé dress; Cartier earrings; Cornelia James gloves; stylist’s own veil.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Mahershala Ali wears a Prada suit; his own top and bracelet. Amy Adams wears a Givenchy dress and belt.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Eddie Redmayne wears a Givenchy shirt and pants. Rami Malek wears a Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello shirt.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Saoirse Ronan wears a Celine by Hedi Slimane dress.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves. Hair by Malcolm Edwards at Art Partner; Makeup by Lucy Bridge for MAC Cosmetics at Streeters London; Manicures by Michelle Saunders for Essie at Forward Artists. Set design by Gary Card at Streeters London. Men’s wear editor: Sam Walker. Hair for King: Angela A. Perrantes; Grooming for Jordan: Carola Gonzalez for Malin & Goetz at Forward Artists; Hair for Jordan: Jove Edmond; Hair for Layne: Larry Sims for flawless at Forward Artists. Produced by Jeffrey Delich at Padbury Production; Production Manager: Lauren Sakioka at Padbury Production; Local Producer: Meghan Gallagher at Connect the Dots; Local Production Coordinator: Jane Oh at Connect the Dots; Photography Assistants: Sarah Lloyd, Tony Ivanov, Kyle Holmquist, Keith Coleman, Scott Froschauer; Retouching by Graeme Bulcraig at Touch Digital; Production Assistants: Michael Osborn, Nikki Patrlja, Dan Fleming; Fashion Assistants: Allia Alliata di Montereale, Nadia Beeman, Sharon Chitrit, Megan King, Brejon Golden, Jonnie Atkinson, Lindsey Hartman, Rosa Schorr; Set Assistants: Nicole McBride, Collin Lebrasseauer, Seth Powsner, Olivia Giles; Ballet Dancers: Morgan Quinn, Jaclyn Hamric, Corey O’Brien, Dominic Eustes; Tailors: Isa Kriegeskotte, Karla Yvette Miranda, Nastassia Bauta; Special thanks to Quixote Studios, Heirloom LA, Kitchen Mouse, Electric Avenue, Cast Partner.
Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Nicole Kidman in Boy Erased and Destroyer

“In Destroyer, I play a cop who’s been through a lot—she’s very American, very angry, distressed, and disturbed. I wasn’t the first choice for that role—it went to somebody else and she didn’t want to do it. I read the script and put my hand up and said, ‘What about me?’ ” Did the wardrobe contribute to the character? We took so long to find the leather jacket that I wear in pretty much every frame of the film. I became so obsessed with that jacket, I would wear it at home. I put it on first thing in the morning. My kids visited the set and were shocked at the way I looked. You know, I’ve been working as an actor since I was 14 years old. It’s a choice, but it’s also a calling. Sometimes, I kind of try to move away, but it always pulls me back.

Comme des Garçons coat, T-shirt, skirt, tights, and boots; headpiece by hairstylist Malcolm Edwards. Inflatable latex costumes by artist Sasha Frolova (throughout).

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Amy Adams in Vice

“My role in Vice is Lynne Cheney, Dick Cheney’s wife. It’s a huge responsibility to play a living person. I didn’t meet Lynne, and that’s interesting too—playing somebody who’s alive but whom you’ve never met. Plus, I age from 20 to 70 in the film, so that was another challenge.” Did her conservative politics affect your performance? I really just absorbed her point of view. Whether I agree with it or not doesn’t really matter. To get into character, I would have long debates about policy and politics as Lynne Cheney with our director, Adam McKay. I called him many names. I teased him about wearing shorts on set and how that was disrespectful. But I didn’t swear, because Lynne wouldn’t swear.

Valentino gown; Valentino Garavani earrings; Marc Jacobs boots.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Saoirse Ronan in Mary Queen of Scots and On Chesil Beach

“This is the first time I’ve played any queen or monarch. Mary had to hold herself in a certain way when she was presenting herself at court, but when she was on her own, in her intimate quarters, she was quite different. I began to feel like a bit of a boss. A boss queen!” Did you learn any royal skills? Yes, I learned to ride. My horse in the film was also Wonder Woman’s horse—his name is Prince, and he is the biggest diva I’ve ever met. Prince doesn’t do anything for anyone, especially me, and had a nervous cough that you’d hear right before we’d do a take. Everything I did was for that horse, just to get his approval.

Balenciaga dress and shoes.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Lakeith Stanfield in Sorry to Bother You

“The director of the film, Boots Riley, had been following me for quite a while before I finally met him. He handed me the script for Sorry to Bother You literally put it in my hands. I was like, Who is this strange person? When I read the script, I realized I had no idea how deeply strange he is. But his strangeness revealed itself to be another form of beauty.” Growing up, who was your cinematic crush? Jennifer Love Hewitt. I loved her. I couldn’t comprehend anything, except that she was beautiful. What’s your favorite Halloween costume? I’m always the Joker. Every year. Soon there will be a black Joker movie, and it will be me.

Maison Margiela Artisanal Men’s Designed by John Galliano suit; Tiffany & Co. earrings; John Hardy cross necklace; Chrome Hearts thick chain; Hoorsenbuhs long chain; Stanfield’s own rings.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Margot Robbie in Mary Queen of Scots

What was your first red-carpet outfit? I was 18. The Australian equivalent of the Emmys is called the Logies, and I was nominated. It was my big moment, the biggest thing that had happened to me. So I went all out on the dress: It was very short at the front, long at the back, lots of layers, bright colors, and shiny fabric. It was, like, orange, black, orange, black—with a big bow at the back. I had stipple-looking hair, and I was very tan. It was…a look. I don’t regret it, because I was 18 and having fun. I can dress boring for the rest of my life.

Staud coat; Giu Giu turtleneck; Vex Clothing tights; Urstadt Swan gloves; Manolo Blahnik shoes; stylist’s own veil.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Timothée Chalamet in Beautiful Boy

Beautiful Boy [which is about a father and his son, who is addicted to drugs] was a script they’d been trying to get made for 10 years. Every guy actor my age had gone up for it. I’ve been lucky, but a lot of the bigger Hollywood movies like Spider-Man, things like that, I didn’t get. So, for Beautiful Boy, I did a lot of research and read about drugs, and I brought the books to my first meeting with the director. I could see in his eyes that he was thinking, This kid is nuts. But I felt this movie—the subject of drug addiction—was so important. I wanted to make an anti-glorification-of-drugs movie. And I think we did.” Did you meet Nic Sheff, whom you play in the film? Yes. I met him a week before we started shooting. And there was nothing about Nic that fit my stereotype of an addict. That was the learning grace of this movie: Nic is alive and well, but the reality is, it’s a day at a time. You never really beat it. You lost so much weight. Was your mom worried about you? My mom was worried! I lost 18 pounds. First, I’m in a movie where I was having sex with a peach, and then it was like, “I got another movie!” She said, “Great!” And then I had to tell her what it was about.

Charvet shirt.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Claire Foy in First Man

Growing up, what was your favorite toy? I had a disgusting pillow until I was about 21. Shamefully, I took it to university. Do you get nervous before filming? Oh, yes, I get nervous. It’s a gradual process of trying to work yourself up to being brave enough to be on set. You always worry that everyone’s going to say, “Ooh, we’ve made a terrible, terrible mistake.” What was the name of your first pet? Thumper. And the first street that you lived on? I don’t know. So you’re a one-name sensation: Thumper is your porno name. Thumper it is.

Burberry cape; Falconiere bonnet.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Eddie Redmayne in Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald

What was the first record you bought? Bon Jovi. “Livin’ on a Prayer” is such a good song. I love a good emotional ballad. The greatest YouTube hole to go down is Leona Lewis when she was on The X Factor. Every week, she just came and delivered. Occasionally she’d take her shoes off. Do you watch other reality shows? I’m quite excited because The Hills, which is my original reality-TV guilty pleasure, is coming back. I had a bit of a love-hate relationship with Heidi Montag. Do you have a secret skill? Yes. I’m incredibly good at being early. I’m always the person who gets to the airport four hours early. I drive everyone crazy.

Dior Men jacket and pants; Urstadt Swan gloves; Givenchy boots.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Michael B. Jordan in Black Panther

Do you have a favorite movie villain? For me, it’s a tie between Heath Ledger as the Joker and Michael Fassbender as Magneto. Villains, like Erik Killmonger in Black Panther, are the most interesting characters. They are the ones you can empathize with—they want you to not like them, but you can still understand their motivation.Even though you’re the villain in Black Panther, do people on the street still say “Wakanda forever” to you? They don’t immediately realize that my character is not exactly pro-Wakanda. Midway through saying something, it registers: Oh, he wasn’t really with Wakanda. But by then they’ve already committed.

Is it difficult to act when you’re basically naked? I’m always naked. So, no.

Hermès sweater.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Joanna Kulig in Cold War

“The director, Pawel Pawlikowski, wrote the part of Zula for me. I knew that the inspiration for the character came from his mother. Zula is her real name, and, like me, she was blonde. I saw her photo.” Was that the hardest part about portraying the character? No. The hardest part was the dancing. In general, I have a problem with coordination. I spent six months in a Polish folk ensemble learning how to dance. We partied together, we drank together, and we’d dance for six hours during a concert. It was like a family, and I started to build the character of Zula. Soon, I had her thoughts and personality. And I finally learned how to dance!

Chloé dress; Louis Vuitton hat.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Elizabeth Debicki in Widows

“I was a dancer for many, many years, and I thought I was going to be a ballerina. When I was about 12, I went to a summer school for the Australian ballet and I was already taller than my teacher. So I remember saying to myself, I’m going to have to rethink this plan.” Did you audition for Widows? Yes, I put myself on tape in my friend’s garage. How glamorous! I remember wearing a lot of eyeliner. I picked out some hoop earrings. And, funnily enough, in the finished film, she ended up looking a lot like she did in my test.

Marc Jacobs coat; Noel Stewart headpiece; Cornelia James gloves; Falke tights; Vivienne Westwood shoes.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Regina King in If Beale Street Could Talk

“I took a break from making films. My son, Ian, was getting to the age, around sixth grade, when kids are starting to spread their wings, and everything that was being offered to me was outside of Los Angeles, except for TV. I didn’t want to travel to make films. So I like to say I was one of the first movie actors who made the leap into television.” Do they call Beale Street your comeback film? I like to use the LL Cool J song: “Don’t call it comeback. I been here for years.”

Givenchy dress; Graham Tyler hat; Linda Farrow sunglasses.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Willem Dafoe in At Eternity’s Gate

“I painted in a movie called To Live and Die in L.A., but it wasn’t about painting—it was more about counterfeiting and killing people. In playing Vincent van Gogh, painting was the key to the character. I had to know what I was doing. The director, Julian Schnabel, would say, ‘Hold the brush like a sword’ and ‘There’s no such thing as a bad mark.’ I began to think that painting is about making an accumulation of marks. Acting is the same: You create a character scene by scene. It’s a series of marks that start a rhythm, and that rhythm sends you where you need to go.” Who is your cinematic crush? Warren Oates. When I saw him perform, I thought, That’s not an actor, that’s a man. It kind of broke my heart to find out he was actually a trained actor.

Balenciaga coat.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie in Leave No Trace

“I play a girl who is with her father in the wild, far away from civilization. Since I live in New Zealand and couldn’t fly to America, I auditioned on tape. We had a lot of props: a bucket, a toothbrush, a sleeping bag, and a rabbit named Coco. I also ran through the New Zealand bush with a GoPro in my mouth and sent that off as well. I didn’t meet the director in person. Six months later, on Christmas, I found out that I had gotten the part.”

Moschino Couture dress; Capezio tights; Sergio Rossi shoes.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Steven Yeun in Burning

“I like filming death scenes. When I was on The Walking Dead, I had known for some time about my character’s death. I was really excited for that day—I was looking forward to getting my skull bashed in. In Burning, my death scene was really fun. That was the only time it snowed, which was unexpected, and it added some magic to the moment. Everybody fantasizes about what it would be like to die. If I could make a career out of being killed, it would be okay.” Do you have a secret skill? Yes. I’m really good at getting parking spots. I’m so confident that the spot is going to be there, that it’s always there. Right in front.

Gucci jacket, shirt, pants, hat, and shoes; Charvet tie.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Elsie Fisher in Eighth Grade

“I have been acting since I was 5. My first job was doing the voice of Agnes, the youngest daughter, with the big ponytail on top of her head, in Despicable Me. I was in the sequel, but I was too old for Despicable Me 3, because I can’t do my 5-year-old voice anymore.” In Eighth Grade, there is a pool-party scene that is nerve-wracking. You wear a very awkward green bathing suit. Yes, it is anxiety inducing. I did not pick the bathing suit. They wanted a lime green one so my character would stick out. I still have it. I mean, I don’t go to the pool that much, but that’s my bathing suit now. I love it.

Gucci dress; Eugenia Kim hat; Sophie Buhai necklace.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Jonah Hill in Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot

In the film, your character, Donny, has a fantastic fashion sense. One of the things that inspired me was a photograph of Yves Saint Laurent in Morocco in the ’70s. I looked at it and was like, Oh, level-10 Marrakech! So Donny wears a lot of caftans and Moroccan stuff in the movie—kind of our Tom Petty and Yves Saint Laurent level-10 Marrakech. He also has a very calm, Zen outlook on life. Donny had conquered a lot of the things that were dark and demonic about himself, and he was able to be peaceful and calm. That was a joy to play. I miss being Donny— even his long blond hair. What was your most memorable birthday? My mom once sent a mariachi band to play my favorite song, “Feliz Navidad.” It was winter in New York and eight mariachis played my song. I was like, “Am I hallucinating right now?”

Raf Simons coat; the Row T-shirt and jeans; Paul Smith boots.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Kiki Layne in If Beale Street Could Talk

How did you find out you had the part in Beale Street? It was nine in the morning and Barry Jenkins, the director, called and woke me up. He just got to talking and didn’t introduce himself. Finally, he said, “Girl, do you even know who you’re talking to?” He went on to tell me that they were giving me the role! I was trying to rush him off the phone so I could really go crazy and cry and call my mama. What is your go-to karaoke song? “Drunk in Love,” by Beyoncé. Especially if you’ve got somebody that’ll hold down Jay Z’s part. That’s definitely the move. I feel like you have mood hair: Sometimes it’s long, sometimes it’s short—up, down. Oh, yeah, we gotta switch it up. You never really know how it’s gonna be: Will it be curly? Straight? And watch out when those colors start coming in!

Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello dress and boots; Prada headband; Tiffany & Co. earrings.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Carey Mulligan in Wildlife

“Paul Dano, who cowrote and directed Wildlife, called me and said he was going to send me the script. I was kind of flattered that he thought I could play Jeanette.” She’s a tormented character. Did you have trouble shaking her off at the end of the day? No. When you’ve got kids, they expect you to come home and be Mom, not some weird drunk woman. At the end of the day, I take off that hat, leave that person at work, and come home and watch the Food Network. I love Chopped. They make disgusting things, but I do like Bobby Flay. Chopped and Bobby Flay are the perfect antidote to films like Wildlife.

Michael Kors Collection dress; vintage hat from New York Vintage, New York; Tiffany & Co. earrings; Carolina Amato gloves; Capezio tights; Jimmy Choo shoes.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Yalitza Aparicio (far left) in Roma

“The shoot for Roma lasted six months. We shot in chronological order. It was a very long process for me. I had not seen any of Alfonso Cuarón’s films. I actually didn’t know who he was. Alfonso asked me not to watch any of his films until we were done with the filming. He didn’t want me poisoning my mind with any images or ideas.”

Marina de Tavira in Roma

“I was the only actor in Roma with any previous experience. It was really challenging. First-time actors—and many of them were children—have a completely different way of working. Alfonso Cuarón would play tricks on us—make things happen that we were not expecting. That way, he made real life appear on set.”

From left: Valentino gown. The Row gown; Tiffany & Co. earrings.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Emily Blunt in Mary Poppins Returns

“The hardest thing about playing Mary Poppins was learning how to dance. One day, you’re handed a hat and a cane, and I was like, Oh, my God. And, also, the initial idea of taking on a character that iconic was daunting. But once I got over my fears, it was deliciously fun.” What was your first red-carpet outfit? It was for My Summer of Love, and I was far too tanned. I was wearing a very bright yellow dress. I always laugh at how sweaty I looked. Horrible. Who is your girl crush? Rihanna. I mean, come on. She’s smoking.

Louis Vuitton coat; Eugenia Kim hat; Manokhi gloves.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Rami Malek in Bohemian Rhapsody

“The first thing I auditioned for I almost wasn’t allowed to audition for. I got a call from a casting director, and she asked to speak to the agent representing Rami Malek. I said, ‘Uh, speaking.’ She kind of laughed and said, ‘Call me when you have an agent.’ I go, ‘You’re already laughing—give me a shot.’ It was three lines in Gilmore Girls. I convinced her to let me read, and I got the part.” Besides in the film, have you ever sung any Queen songs in public? In Japan, with our version of the band, we dressed up in animal onesies and did “Bohemian Rhapsody,” like the original video. It was filmed, and I’m sure someone will get drunk and throw it out there into the ether.

Officine Générale pants; Atsuko Kudo Couture Latex Design gloves.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.
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