‘I thought I was going to die’: Natalie Portman went through hell on the set of this movie

If Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan remains one of his director’s most famous films, it is undoubtedly thanks to Natalie Portman’s selfless performance. But at what cost did the actor get involved like that?

At the famous New York City Ballet, competition is everywhere within the troupe, especially as Nina (Natalie Portman) is willing to sacrifice everything and turn her back on the lead role in Swan Lake, which the choreographer is preparing. Thomas (Vincent Cassel). ). When a new recruit, Lily (Mila Kunis), arrives, the competition is raised to a whole new level…

To prepare for the role, the actor invested physically (with a year of dance classes and weight loss) and financially (by paying for said lessons while the film was waiting for the green light from the studio). It was he who offered Mila Kunis to play his rival, and she performed “90%” of the dance scenes according to the director. The close-up scenes of the legs, and especially of the people with the whips, were shot by stuntman Sarah Lane, who He claims that he did not get the recognition he deserved.

But filming was so intense and the scenes so mentally and physically demanding for Portman — she regularly injured herself, especially her toe — that she thought she might die on set, she told Entertainment Weekly (via THE HuffPost):

There were nights when I literally thought I was going to die. It was the first time I realized that you can get so involved in a role that it drags you down.

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Portman also says in this interview that the studio didn’t know how to sell the film to the public. And here is his answer to this question:

“Everyone was worried who would want to see such a film. I remember them saying, ‘How do we convince men to see a ballet film?’ How to convince women to watch a thriller? We’re going to put on a lesbian scene, everyone wants to see it.”

Ultimately, Black Swan is a dive into the heart of the rivalries and ambitions of some very high profile dancers. The film explores the physical and mental toll of pushing yourself to compete on this scale. Even if it’s not far from flawed – especially the descent into psychophobia – Black Swan is an intense psychological thriller that was nominated for 5 Oscars and gave Natalie Portman the best actress statue.

If you’re a subscriber and want to watch or rediscover the movie, it’s available on Disney+.