Working as a director for more than two decades, Taika Waititi has established himself as one of the greatest filmmakers of this generation. He started gaining widespread popularity, when his two short films Two Cars, One Night, and What We Do in the Shadows were nominated for the Academy Awards. Waititi has also worked with Marvel Studios to direct Thor: Ragnarok and Thor: Love and Thunder, he is a heavyweight when it comes to making smash-hit blockbusters.
However, Taika Waititi is not only a talented director but also a great actor, as his portrayal of Adolf Hitler in Jojo Rabbit was outstanding. While the viewers were entertained by his acting skills, Scarlett Johansson felt quite awkward acting alongside the director for obvious reasons.
Taika Waititi’s Multiple Roles Made Scarlett Johannson Uncomfortable
Taika Waititi has been outstanding in Jojo Rabbit, he has not only written the script and directed it but also acted in the film. While directing a film is difficult to do while acting in the scenes and switching back and forth as a filmmaker and actor is a task in itself. Moreover, Waititi played the modified role of Hitler, which was quite different from what we had read in our history textbooks.
Though it looked smooth and effortless on the screen, there were a lot of difficulties while shooting the film. During a talk with The Hollywood Reporter, Scarlett Johansson shared her experience of working alongside the filmmaker as his co-star, and how it made her feel “very strange.”
“When you’re working with a director who’s also acting with you, it’s hard because sometimes they are looking at you as a director and sometimes they are looking at you as a fellow actor. But then you’ve also got the Hitler garb, which was very strange.”
In the same interview, Tomas McKenzie shared how she felt looking at the director of the film dressed up as Hitler, “Just looking at Taika, you go, ‘OK, you are really funny and there is obviously a lot going on in your head.'” This was not just the case with actors and child actors in the adapted film but also with the Free Guy actor as he said how it was weird and uncomfortable for him as well.
Taika Waititi Felt Uncomfortable As Adolf Hitler in Jojo Rabbit
The studio that was involved in making the 2019 film wanted to continue with the project only if Waititi played the version of young Jojo Betzler in his head. While giving an exclusive interview with The Guardian, Taika Waititi shared that though he was a director of the film, it was somewhat weird and against his nature.
“It just felt uncomfortable. The clothes were uncomfortable, the glue-on mustache was uncomfortable, and I had to have my hair dyed and straightened, which just made me feel weird all day long. I like to be everyone’s friend as a director, to have a nice familial feel on set, and I’m trying to encourage sharing of ideas and a cool, creative space … but I’m dressed like Hitler. It just changes things, really.”
The director added that he felt so uncomfortable playing the historical figure that he suggested taking off the mustache and felt like taking off his jacket as he did not want to be seen with a “f**king swastika on your arm trying to direct kids.”
“I would take off the moustache whenever I wasn’t in the scene, and I’d wear a hat, and always take off the jacket because you don’t want to be walking around with a f**king swastika on your arm trying to direct kids.”
While the director felt uneasy portraying the character and roaming around as a figure who has been so vehemently hated, his acting skills were outstanding and his acting was one of the key reasons that made the film so intriguing to watch.
Jojo Rabbit can be streamed on DIRECTV.
