Babylon star Jean Smart on being in ‘awe’ of director Damien Chazelle and the film’s divisive reception: ‘It’s going to be required viewing in every film school’

Actress Jean Smart revealed she was ‘quite shocked’ by Babylon’s ‘X-rated’ script initially, and – despite the divisive reception the movie has had so far – reckons it will soon become required viewing in film schools.

The Hacks star said she was ‘thrilled’ that writer-director Damien Chazelle thought to cast her in the upcoming movie, which exposes the seedy underbelly of 1930s and 30s Hollywood, but worried about some of its contents.

Speaking exclusively to Metro.co.uk ahead of the film’s UK premiere, she admitted: ‘I was quite shocked by the script actually. Really frankly, when I first read it, I thought, “Oh my god, are we really making this movie? It’s going to be X-rated and was it really that wild back then?”, which really wasn’t that long ago.’

‘But again, when you’re telling a story, you don’t just tell [it] about an average day in Hollywood. You’re going to show the highs and the lows and so this is three hours, but he’s [Chazelle] crammed everything in there that he has seen and read and learnt and researched about Hollywood,’ she added.

Some of the more outrageous parts of the film include orgies, a snake fight, an elephant evacuating its bowels and the depiction of a golden shower during sex.

Its cast is made up of real-life Hollywood figures like hotshot producer Irving Thalberg (Max Minghella), alongside original characters heavily influenced by the struggles and successes of real stars like Anna May Wong and John Gilbert.

The Emmy-winning star of Hacks had been ‘waiting’ for a big ensemble period film to come along (Picture: Getty)

Smart continued: ‘I’m sure that everything we see in there is based on the truth – but when you see it in a three-hour movie, you think, “Oh my god, is it possible that it was really like that?”, but obviously it wasn’t like that every day. It’s so ambitious and it’s so beautifully done, I’m just kind of in awe of Damien.’

The 71-year-old actress, who has won great acclaim over the years for her turns in series like sitcom Designing Women and 24 with Kiefer Sutherland, was delighted to get her teeth stuck into a juicy period piece and added to her lavish praise of La La Land and Whiplash director Chazelle.

‘As an actor, it’s great fun. And it’s always fun at least, to me, to do a period piece; I hadn’t done one in a long time. A big ensemble period piece was what I had kind of been waiting for, so that was a thrill when this came along.

‘But I still can’t get over the party scenes and how he shot those and remained as cheerful and delightful as he was every day. [It was] just astonishing! I really do think, whether you love it or hate it, this movie is going to be required viewing in every film school for decades.’

Smart plays influential gossip columnist Elinor St John, pictured here with Hollywood newcomer Manny Torres (Diego Calva) (Picture: Scott Garfield/Paramount Pictures)

Smart plays an influential Hollywood columnist, Elinor St John, who is carefully modelled on real-life examples of the time, like Hedda Hopper and Louella Parsons, and wields her power with equal ruthlessness.

That didn’t mean there weren’t some great moments of humour for the actress to enjoy though, especially her character’s set visit to see current reigning leading man, Jack Conrad (Brad Pitt), shoot his latest silent movie, which dissolves into a comedy of dark and stressful errors over the course of the day.

She shared: ‘I think the first scene I shot was the one where Elinor out in the desert, up on the hill, dictating her column to her assistant.

‘She’s got on that purple suit and that purple veil – which I don’t think you could really tell was about 15 feet long, if not longer – and she’s sitting there and she finally says – even though she’s as excited about watching movies being made as anybody, which is why she moved to California – but even she thinks that it looks a little bit ridiculous and says, “You know, I know Proust.” That’s one of my favourite lines.’

The actress relished the chance to learn more about the history of Tinseltown (Picture: Paramount Pictures/AP)

Smart confesses that she only really had a ‘surface level’ knowledge of Hollywood during the decade or so Babylon covers but shares that one of Chazelle’s driving forces to make the movie was to have an impact on what people were aware of.

‘That was one thing Damien really, really wanted to change, was what people think they know about Hollywood and making movies.’

For all the gaiety, excess and fun, that also means highlighting some of the tragic consequences of early innovation in US cinema.

‘He said one of the things that caught his interest when he was researching was how many drug overdoses and suicides were happening in the Hollywood community back in the mid-20s, which directly coincided with the switch from silents to talkies.’

Margot Robbie leads the starry ensemble as determined wannabe actress Nellie LaRoy (Picture: Paramount Pictures)

Brad Pitt is Hollywood’s number one leading man Jack Conrad, who offers wide-eyed Manny a leg up in the industry (Picture: Scott Garfield/Paramount Pictures)

‘That’s kind of what he said first piqued his interest about what had that done to people, how traumatic had that been, and why?’ Smart revealed.

‘We’ve all seen that that funny scene in Singin’ in the Rain, where they’re trying to teach Jean Hagen [who plays fictional silent film star Lina Lamont] how to have a nice speaking voice that she’s saying, “I ken’t stahhhn ‘im!” [“I can’t stand him!”], and they’re just thinking, “Oh dear…”.

‘That was the reality for a lot of people, especially if you were already established like the character of Jack. It’s one thing for Margot [Robbie]’s character, who was still kind of new, but she obviously had a hard time making the switch as well,’ said Smart, who has clearly become fascinated by what she learned making Babylon.

Singin’ in the Rain’s iconic scene where silent movie star Lin Lamont (Jean Hagen) struggles with her speaking voice (Picture: MGM/Universal/YouTube)

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Robbie’s character of Nellie LaRoy in the film is partially influenced by ultimate ‘it girl’ Clara Bow, whose star shone fierce and fast in the 1920s before falling into obscurity when sound came to the cinemas, whereas Pitt’s Jack Conrad is an obvious take on longstanding leading man John Gilbert, who was equally felled by the major transition to talkies in Hollywood, alongside his troubled personal life.

Smart added: ‘For Jack’s character to have been at the very tip-top of his profession and then to literally be a laughingstock – there must have been a lot of people who went through that and would be devastated.’

Babylon is released in UK cinemas on Friday, January 20.

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‘When I first read it, I thought, “Oh my god, are we really making this movie? It’s going to be X-rated and was it really that wild back then?”’