Florence Pugh didn’t need superpowers to realize she was being judged for joining the MCU.
The Oscar-nominated actress, who earned breakout roles in independent films like “Lady Macbeth” and “Midsommar,” recalled the reaction to her starring in Marvel‘s 2021 “Black Widow” alongside Scarlett Johansson and David Harbour. Pugh went on to appear in the Disney+ Marvel series “Hawkeye” and will lead the upcoming MCU film “Thunderbolts.”
“So many people in the indie film world were really pissed off at me. They were like, ‘Great, now she’s gone forever,’” Pugh told Time magazine. “And I’m like, no, I’m working as hard as I used to work. I’ve always done back-to-back movies. It’s just people are watching them now. You just have to be a bit more organized with your schedule.”
In between her Marvel appearances, Pugh led Netflix film “The Wonder” and Zach Braff’s indie film “A Good Person.” And the overlaps with Pugh’s performances and Marvel deepen: Pugh’s “Don’t Worry Darling” director Olivia Wilde is set to helm an untitled Sony/Marvel movie.
Meanwhile, Pugh is set to appear in this year’s “Oppenheimer” and “Dune: Part Two,” both of which are already receiving Oscar buzz ahead of their respective July and November premieres. Pugh praised “Dune” auteur Denis Villeneuve in the Time profile, calling him a “bizarre, mad, creative genius.”
She previously raved about working with Christopher Nolan for the star-studded ensemble period piece “Oppenheimer,” saying the film was “quite possibly one of the most thrilling experiences” of her career.
“His dedication to the craft of filmmaking and old filmmaking is just magical to watch,” Pugh told BBC Radio 1 about working with Nolan. “To just watch every single crew member on that set work so hard for him, to get his approval. And not like in a weird way, but like everybody knows who they’re working for and everybody’s proud of being there. Everybody has so much pride in their own work and so what that does is it means that everybody is constantly trying to be better the next day. And I’ve never seen that feeling on set before. It’s very exciting.”
Up next, Pugh will lead Alexander Skarsgård’s directorial debut “The Pack,” produce the novel adaptation of “The Maid,” and co-lead an “East of Eden” remake with Zoe Kazan at Netflix. Pugh has also made headlines for her upcoming turn in A24 romance “We Live in Time” alongside fellow Academy Award-nominated actor Andrew Garfield.
