12 Movies and Series Actors Needed Persistence, Self-Irony, and a lot of Nerve to Star in

When we sit in a soft chair and turn on an action or a comedy movie, we mostly pay attention to the story. And we rarely think about how the actors might have felt during certain scenes. For example, an adventure movie character going through the jungle in a jumpsuit with glitter, or an actor following the director’s orders in very hot weather.

We at CHEERY watched our favorite movies and series again and then decided to read the interviews with the actors from them. And we found out that for many of them, the filming process was quite hard.

House of the Dragon

Milly Alcock, portraying Rhaenyra Targaryen, said that the dragon scenes were not very exciting. And Matt Smith, playing Daemon Targaryen, wasn’t thrilled by the pixelized imitation of the sky. He thought he would be in a fairy tale, but in fact, he was in front of a blurry wall.

And Smith was also a bit shy in all the hot scenes with his character. Not, the scenes themselves, but the amount of them. In an interview, they laughed and said that the creators probably overdid it, trying to attract the viewers’ attention.

WandaVision

Paul Bettany, who we know as Vision in the Marvel mini-series, got skin problems due to a very special makeup. At first, he didn’t want to complain, but then he decided to tell that he had a very serious discomfort every time the makeup artists would remove the red cape.

He had to play Vision 6 times a week. So, in order not to traumatize his skin too much, they had a small sauna on the set where Bettany could sit until the makeup would become softer.

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law

Tatiana Maslany, who portrayed the main character in this series, said that for a long time, she couldn’t figure out how she was supposed to move. The character is way bigger than her. So, in order for Tatiana not to feel awkward, the creators had to invite a tall stunt double.

The double was 6 ft and 7 in tall. The crew asked her to do certain movements and the actress would copy them.

Dune: Part One

Almost all the actors in this film were nervous that they would have to work with Charlotte Rampling. The actress almost portrayed Lady Jessica in one of the adaptations, and this time she played Gaius Helen Mohiam, Reverend Mother of the Bene Gesserit.

She had only 3 scenes in the film, but Rebecca Ferguson, Timothée Chalamet, and even director Denis Villeneuve were really anxious every time Rampling would appear on the set. They had mixed feelings: they loved her and feared her. Chalamet even said that she had some special inner strength.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

According to director Sam Raimi, until the middle of the filming process, he had no idea how the film would end. The writers would bring new pages of dialogue and plot twists 2-3 days before working on the scenes.

And sometimes, the script would change several minutes before filming. The actors asked to do it, because they had played these characters many times, and they knew exactly which actions and lines would fit and which wouldn’t.

The Lost City

In this film, Sandra Bullock had run around the jungle in a sparkling jumpsuit that would quickly turns into a dirty rug. At first, she was happy she would wear it and not have to wear a bra.

But then, she had to deal with a very delicate problem: she was shy about using the bathroom in the jumpsuit. She hoped that nobody else would go into the bathroom when all of her clothes were somewhere around her knees.

Swiss Army Man

For the most part of the film, Paul Dano had to carry Daniel Radcliffe that portrayed a farting Manny. In an interview, that actor said he regretted not visiting the gym before the filming.

This movie wasn’t easy for Radcliffe, either. For example, at beginning of the film, he was a water bike, Dano’s character rode. This scene was made without special effects, and Daniel couldn’t blink while the salty water was splashing on his face.

Black Widow

A lot of scenes for this film were shot in Albuquerque, New Mexico, literally in the middle of the desert. The actors would complain about the heat, but it was probably the worst for the actress in the main role — Scarlett Johansson. “It was so hot, I would wring out my socks at the end of the day,” she said.

She wore a real wetsuit that didn’t let the air through. So, once she had hallucinations right in the middle of an action scene.

The Theory of Everything

Before playing the genius and terminally ill scientist Stephen Hawking, Eddie Redmayne visited the Queen Square Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases in London and consulted a neurologist. After that, for 4 months, the actor was practicing with a choreographer to copy the movements of such patients.

He lost 15 pounds, and in between the takes, he tried to stay in character and remain in the wheelchair in a bent position. So, an osteopath told the actor he might develop back problems.

The Phantom of the Opera

When Christina finds herself in the underground lair of the Ghost, she discovers a doll in a wedding dress that looks incredibly similar to her. But in fact, it wasn’t a dummy. Emmy Rossum played it.

At first, the decorators created a mask, copying the actress’ face. They wanted to put the mask on a dummy, but it was too obvious — their eyes looked unnatural. So, Emmy decided to become the dummy. She got makeup and had to stand motionless while the camera was filming the close-up.

Jurassic World Dominion

To portray his character, Chris Pratt needed to be in perfect shape. So, he’d have to work out and the trainer would set up cones, boxes, and mats that Pratt would practice the movements from the action scenes. The trainer called it “Jurassic assault course” and made the actor jump, transitioning into rolls.

Besides, he had to ride a motorcycle, a favorite vehicle of his character. And he doesn’t have the best emotions about motorcycles, because, in the first movie of the franchise, he went over the steering wheel and fell into the mud.

Loki

Tom Hiddleston was so committed to his character that he had to endure the jokes of his colleagues. He once decided to tell the crew about Loki to explain what his character thinks, how he makes decisions, and how he dresses. So, he gave a multi-hour-long lecture about Loki.

So, Anthony Mackie and Paul Bettany that are also in the Marvel universe teased Tom a little because of how long his lecture was.

Would you agree to star in a popular film if you knew you would have to deal with huge challenges on the set?