Jeremy Strong, now infamous for his dedication to method acting, recently admitted that he doesn’t feel the “need to apologize” to those he works with who may think he takes the process “too seriously” in a recent episode of The New Yorker Radio Hour podcast.
The actor, who took on the role of tech billionaire Mark Zuckerberg for Aaron Sorkin’s “The Social Reckoning,” released Oct. 9, was asked by podcast host and New Yorker editor David Remnick how helpful he thought his method was to the director and his colleagues during filming, or, at the opposite end of the spectrum, how disruptive it might be to them.
“I guess I can’t really talk about it,” Strong began. “Of course, I never intend to interfere with anyone else’s experience or anyone else’s way of working. First, don’t do any harm, right? But commit to screwing up what you’re doing, and completely.” Remnick then chimes in to ask if Strong is frustrated with others on set who may not be as engaged, to which the “Succession” actor responds, “No, that just means I’m just there to fully commit to serving the material.”
He continued: “So if some people feel like I’m taking it too seriously, or that it’s changing the molecules in the room in a way that makes something uncomfortable, I guess that’s something that I don’t think I need to apologize for, because I believe, and I think the directors I work with all believe, that it’s in service of the material, and I personally think a lot of the reactions to it are personal in nature.”
Strong’s antics have long made headlines. In September, Sorkin told The New York Times that Strong treated his co-stars “the way he imagined” Zuckerberg would treat them while filming. Brian Cox, Strong’s co-star in “Succession”, repeatedly criticized the actor’s method of acting, calling it “fucking boring”, although he also noted in a later interview that Strong “was wonderful to play with”. “I had no disagreements with Jeremy’s acting,” Cox said. “He would be an even better actor if he got rid of that so there was a lot more inclusiveness in what he does.”
Strong, Jeremy Allen White, Mikey Madison, Bill Burr, Betty Gilpin and Billy Magnussen star in “The Social Reckoning,” which follows whistleblower Frances Haugen, who teams up with Wall Street Journal reporter Jeff Horwitz to expose the inner workings of Zuckerberg’s Facebook.
Gn entert
