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Lea Seydoux, an actress who was most recently seen in Denis Villeneuve’s hit sci-fi epic Dune: Part Two, said during an interview that being an actress in Europe is easier than it is in America.
According to Seydoux –who has also featured in films such as Inglourious Basterds, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, the James Bond films Spectre and No Time to Die, and the Wes Anderson movies The Grand Budapest Hotel and The French Dispatch — the American entertainment business is harsher on women than it is in Europe.
“The industry in America… I find it harsh on women. It’s hard for women to age. I don’t want to be afraid not to be desirable or to lose my contract,” Seydoux explained in an interview with Harper’s Bazaar U.K.
“In America it’s economic, and when it becomes a matter of making money, you lose your freedom. I don’t feel comfortable with the fact that you have to tick all the boxes. Being a woman on screen is easier in Europe,” she said.
“It’s tough for someone who’s not totally American to lead a Hollywood film,” she continued. “I’m not trying to be popular, I’m just trying to enjoy myself. In America, you have to conform. I don’t want to adapt myself to the system, I want the system to adapt to me!”
Seydoux is certainly not the first actress to voice this sort of opinion, as many actresses over the decades have been vocal about how their opportunities dwindle as they age.
In addition to her American projects, Seydoux also has an extensive international career, starring in films such as Blue Is the Warmest Colour, The Last Mistress, On War, The Beautiful Person, Farewell, My Queen, Saint Laurent, Diary of a Chambermaid, and many more.
Given the success of Dune: Part Two, is virtually guaranteed that a third film in the franchise, which will be based on Frank Herbert’s Dune: Messiah, will be greenlit, meaning Seydoux will likely reprise her role as Lady Margot Fenring, who, similar to Rebecca Ferguson’s Lady Jessica, is a member of the mysterious coven of witches known as the Bene Gesserit.