Kirsten Dunst reveals surprising fear of the use of cameras in her role in A24’s “Civil War”

A surprising fear plagues Kirsten Dunst in the production of A24 Civil Wara film about journalists traveling to the White House in a divided America. Dunst plays Lee Smith, a renowned war photojournalist who heads from New York City to Washington, DC, alongside a team of war journalists, in the dystopian thriller. Committed to authenticity, Dunst immediately asked director and screenwriter Alex Garland to “hand her the camera” as she was “a little unsure” about not accurately portraying her character’s profession. In an exclusive video shared with PEOPLE, Dunst recounts:

“That was actually my biggest fear. It might look like I didn’t know what I was doing with the camera, or like I was holding it in a way that didn’t seem like part of my body,” she adds.

Civil War

3.5/5

Release date

12 April 2024

Studio

A24, DNA films

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Garland placed great importance on a realistic representation of photography in civil war. To ensure this, still photographer Murray Close worked closely with Dunst and co-star Cailee Spaeny. Close explains that the way people hold their cameras in films is a clear sign that they are not photographers.

Interestingly, the name of Dunst’s character is a reference to Lee Miller, a model turned photographer who became a war correspondent for Vogue during World War II, documenting events such as the London Blitz and the liberation of Paris. She was one of the first photographers to capture the horrors of the Buchenwald and Dachau concentration camps. Last year, Kate Winslet portrayed Miller in leea biographical drama that is scheduled to hit theaters later this year.

Cailee Spaeny enjoyed her role in the Civil War

After her acclaimed role as Priscilla Presley in Sofia Coppola’s biopic, Spaeny now plays aspiring photographer Jessie Cullen. In the video, Spaeny also talks about her experiences preparing for her role.

“I’ve never had so much fun researching a character. For some of these roles, you have to learn, I don’t know, fencing or baton-wielding or something like that. Now I know how to use a film camera, which is really useful.”

She adds:

“I use about 20 rolls of film a night. For me personally, it’s been a great trip.”

Dunst next appears in Charlie McDermott and Sara Rejaie’s indie drama rhubarbabout two adult siblings who try their best to deal with their individual and collective grief after the death of their beloved dog. She will also star in Ruben Östlund’s next English-language feature film, The entertainment system has failed. The social satire is set on a long flight where the unthinkable happens: the passengers are left to fend for themselves (literally) after the entertainment system fails. The film is said to be an ensemble cast, but the only confirmed stars so far are Dunst, Keanu Reeves and Daniel Brühl.

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Spaeny is involved in several highly anticipated projects, including the sci-fi horror Alien: Romulus, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Crime Thriller, and the second season of the Emmy-winning Netflix series beef. Garland will work with A24 again for his next directorial effort. War.