Voice of America
11 Sep 2019, 13:05 GMT+10
TORONTO - Renee Zellweger said she felt a "sense of responsibility" to portray the late singer Judy Garland as authentically as possible in the movie "Judy," which was shown at the Toronto Film Festival on Tuesday to a standing ovation.
The film depicts the last six months of Garland's life, arriving in London in 1968 as part of a sold-out concert tour meant to refurbish her financial state.
Amidst a rocky custody battle with her fourth husband and accompanied on the tour by her fifth and final husband, Micky Dean, played by Finn Wittrock, Garland struggles with depression, anxiety and addiction.
Zellweger called her portrayal of Garland a "continued sort of exploration" between the famous actress and singer's public persona and her private experiences.
"There are many parameters that are non-negotiable that have been said on the public record and through Judy's own words and things. So you kind of feel a sense of responsibility to represent that as authentically as possible," Zellweger said.
"And then the rest was pretty difficult to know because we're talking about very private moments that haven't been shared and it's sort of an interpretation of what the experiences of the person who was living under those circumstances at that time might be like."
Zellweger is known for method acting, where she doesn't break character even when a scene is finished filming - a trait that helped her fellow cast members inhabit Garland's world too.
Wittrock didn't even recognize his co-star the first time he saw her in character.
"From kind of that point on until the end, I very rarely saw this Renee Zellweger, you know? I hung out with Judy," he told Reuters Television.
Zellweger's performance has received positive reviews.
"Renee was perfect because she's a great actress, but also she sings, she's very funny and she has a big heart," said Rupert Goold, the director of the film. "Audiences feel they know Renee at a certain level, that she's one of them. And I think that's a very Garland-like quality."
"Judy" is released in the U.S. on September 27.
Get a daily dose of Baton Rouge Post news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Baton Rouge Post.
More InformationRIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil: At a two-day summit over the weekend, the BRICS bloc of emerging economies issued a joint declaration condemning...
LONDON, U.K.: This week, BP appointed Simon Henry, former Shell finance chief, to its board as a non-executive director effective September...
OTTAWA, Canada: With Canada Post struggling to maintain operations amid labour unrest, rivals like FedEx and UPS are stepping in to...
NEW YORK, New York - U.S. and global markets showed a mixed performance in Tuesday's trading session, with some indices edging higher...
PARIS, France: French military and intelligence officials have accused China of orchestrating a covert campaign to damage the reputation...
NEW DELHI, India: Birkenstock is stepping up its efforts to protect its iconic sandals in India, as local legal representatives conducted...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: With just weeks to spare before a potential government default, U.S. lawmakers passed a sweeping tax and spending...
(Photo credit: Washington Commanders) While the Washington fan base discusses a throwback name, the Commanders confirmed the team...
New Delhi [India], July 9 (ANI): The Delhi High Court on Wednesday reserved order on bail pleas of Sharjeel Imam, Umar Khalid and six...
Kiev cant be expected to both demilitarize and forgo NATO membership, the French MoD has said Demilitarizing Ukraine and leaving...
Kiev can't be expected to both demilitarize and forgo NATO membership, the French MoD has said ...
Shipments are reportedly being rerouted through Thailand and Mexico American companies are skirting China's export ban by rerouting...