The White Lotus star Aubrey Plaza’s spectacular ability to portray uniquely dysfunctional and comedically weird characters on screen has been a much-renowned quality of hers. Over the years, this character trait of the actor has only grown more prominently famous with her branching out into films and big-budget productions. Plaza, who gained the most recognition for the portrayal of April Ludgate, a sarcastic, witty, and deadpan character on the NBC comedy, Parks & Recreation, now steps into one of the biggest franchises in the world. And with that level of exposure also comes a certain magnitude of scrutiny, which can result in many old resurfaced interviews that can do significant harm in the current socio-political context.
Aubrey Plaza’s Resurfaced Interview Causes Mass Discomfort
A decade ago, the world of filmmaking and entertainment had still not gone through the rigors of cancel culture and the tidal wave of #MeToo. An actor could plainly speak about their uncomfortable experiences on the confined sets of a movie or a show without being immediately impeded by unspoken behind-the-scene rules, censorship, the threat of blacklisting, or plain old confidentiality clauses. As such, when a particular scene in the film The To Do List went a bit awry, Aubrey Plaza didn’t think much of it when bringing the incident up during Conan O’Brien’s talk show segment:
“In my head, I envisioned a nice scene where you see my hand slowly go out of frame. That’s what I thought I was going into, but then when I showed up, the camera was mounted on the ceiling, I was in my underwear and a Clinton t-shirt, and there were a bunch of old men smoking, ya know, the crew guys. And then I went and touched myself.
I thought I was doing one thing and then when I showed up, it was a whole different thing, it was a full-body shot. And I asked the director, ‘What should I do?’ And she said, ‘Masturbate, like it says in the script.’”
Also read: Aubrey Plaza: 15 Hilarious Moments You Need To See
A decade later, such an act would never come to pass. Sets of films and shows are required to have an intimacy coordinator which actors have claimed has been a godsend, especially considering how the coordinator’s primary and sole concern is not the production or the director but the actors themselves. This helps create boundaries, a safe space, and the ability to say no to anything that the actors may feel uncomfortable with.
Maggie Carey Praises Aubrey Plaza For Being “Gutsy”
may now balk at the off-hand manner in which the interview was approached by the talk show host and how Plaza had simply put her story out there for promoting the film without the specific intention of speaking against such practices or calling out the director for making her do something she was not prepared for, that too, with an audience present. But, at the time, director Maggie Carey had added to the conversation and spoke about the impressive endurance of her lead, Aubrey Plaza during the filming of The To Do List.
“She was so brave. She was game for everything, you know, which was so fun. And she had no problem putting herself in these very awkward situations. But, you know, it’s played for comedy and she just nailed it. It was just so fun to work with her. She’s very gutsy.”
Today, intimacy scenes are filmed with the help of prosthetics and several stages of barriers to prevent the occurrence of exactly what Plaza had described in the 2013 interview. As the actor now prepares for her debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Agatha: Coven of Chaos, future promotional interviews may be expected to bring up the issue and shine a light on practices that are now considered redundant or cancel-worthy in Hollywood.
Source: Conan O’Brien
