Tilda Swinton walked into the room and was greeted with applause (I believe she even applauded back) and she deserved it. Tilda did an amazing job in her role as “The Ancient One” in Doctor Strange. She was all smiles as she made her way to the her chair for us to interview her.
Here’s what she shared during our interview…
- Tilda Swinton didn’t have to audition for her role as “The Ancient One”…the director had actually written the part for her.
- She loved her costume, she said they felt like pajamas.
- Tilda said learning to cast spells (doing all these amazing things with her fingers) and then remembering what to say at the same time was sometimes a struggle.
- When developing her character, Tilda decided that the Ancient One would be completely serene through all the fighting…so keeping a serene face was sometime difficult.
- She did a lot of her own stunts but she did have a stunt double.
- It was her decision for her character to be bald. She had tried on various wigs (in different colors and lengths) but thought less was more for her character.
- When asked how she felt about joining the Marvel universe, she said it felt like she had joined the circus
“…it was like being asked to join the circus. We all joined the circus and we were all given these incredible costumes and everybody in the Marvel universe that I’ve met so far is so psyched to be a part of it, even though there are some people who have been there for years…technicians or people who have lit all these films for years, or Alex Byrne who does the costumes, she’d done like seven Marvel films – nobody’s jaded, everybody’s psyched, it’s a playground!…”
- She was really, really happy when she saw herself in the film…and while she normally feels weird seeing herself in the film, she said it was different
“… I don’t know whether it’s the way in which it’s in this heightened universe, and everybody looks…like Marvel characters…There’s something very smooth about everything, and that’s to do with the way it’s lit, and the way it’s designed. And it’s cut like a comic strip…it’s quite an experience…it was better than I’d hoped.
- When asked what she learned while filming Doctor Strange, she said she was reminded that it’s really important to do both the “physical kind of energetic life, alongside some kind of introspection… is a really healthy thing.”
- If she could only use one word to describe her character it would be “perspective”
- Fun Fact: She really likes horror films
More about Doctor Strange
From Marvel Studios comes “Doctor Strange,” the story of world-famous neurosurgeon Dr. Stephen Strange whose life changes forever after a horrific car accident robs him of the use of his hands. When traditional medicine fails him, he is forced to look for healing, and hope, in an unlikely place—a mysterious enclave known as Kamar-Taj. He quickly learns that this is not just a center for healing but also the front line of a battle against unseen dark forces bent on destroying our reality. Before long Strange—armed with newly acquired magical powers—is forced to choose whether to return to his life of fortune and status or leave it all behind to defend the world as the most powerful sorcerer in existence.
*Hits theaters Nov. 4th!
*I was invited by Disney and Marvel to attend a press junket covering Doctor Strange. All opinions are my own.
