“Thor” star Tessa Thompson charmed a packed audience at a BFI London Film Festival screen talk on Monday, reflecting on her varied career from Marvel blockbusters to intimate indie dramas, including her latest project “Hedda,” which premiered at the festival.
The actor was particularly effusive about her “Thor” experience, describing director Taika Waititi as “a huge infant, just, he’s like an infant with a bank account.” Thompson praised Waititi’s childlike approach to filmmaking, noting “it’s terrifying” and “he should be stopped,” in the most affectionate way possible.
She had equally glowing words for co-star Chris Hemsworth, calling him “a baby with muscles,, a very big infant” who has “no inhibition” and “will just do anything you know, to get the laugh and to discover, so it’s a pleasure to work with him.”
“It’s so goofy making those movies sometimes,” Thompson said. “The mechanism of making those films requires a place of pure imagination, you know, where you just have to play like a kid.”
Thompson explained why she sought out the Marvel role: “I really wanted to make a movie like that, because I’m not sure I can do that, and I really want to figure out if I can. And it was just so fun. It really, really freed me up.”
The conversation also included Thompson’s latest project, “Hedda,” marking another collaboration with director Nia DaCosta. Thompson plays the title role in DaCosta’s contemporary adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s “Hedda Gabler,” produced by Thompson’s company Viva Maude.
Thompson spoke candidly about taking on the challenging role: “I really like to do things that terrify me, I really like that.” She noted that few women of color have played Hedda historically, though she emphasized that wasn’t the reason for making the film.
“I became conscious that I’m not sure I would have got the opportunity, were it not for a filmmaker that was interested in putting people like me in the center of a frame,” Thompson said.
The actor praised DaCosta’s vision for making Ibsen “accessible,” aiming for something that “actually felt sort of buoyant and had its own sort of fun and delight and felt delicious.” Thompson added: “The idea of getting to present something that might not be for everybody, but there might be a whole new generation or group of people that suddenly are like, Ibsen, who’s this? Ibsen felt really sexy and fun to me.”
Thompson also discussed her early collaboration with Ryan Coogler on “Creed,” describing how the director “really approached it still from a very homegrown independent filmmaker spirit” despite it being a big studio film. She and Michael B. Jordan improvised extensively, with Coogler recording voice notes that became embedded in the script.
When asked about watching herself on screen, Thompson admitted: “It’s not my favorite thing, but I am improving.” She revealed she used to squint whenever she appeared on screen at premieres, though producing has forced her to become more objective.
The actor emphasized the importance of the Meisner technique in her work, particularly the focus on listening and responding to scene partners. “Words are overrated, like dialogue and speaking is actually overrated when I think about character,” Thompson said. “So much is communicated in silence and so much that you don’t say.”
“Hedda” continues its festival run following its London premiere.
