She鈥檚 one of the most celebrated actors of her generation, but Cate Blanchett wants to branch out even more into other filmmaking pursuits.
鈥淚鈥檓 always trying to get out of acting,鈥� she said at the Cannes Film Festival this week during a conversation with Variety鈥檚 Chief Correspondent Elizabeth Wagmeister. 鈥淚鈥檝e been trying to stop acting my entire professional life.鈥�
The two-time Oscar-winner was at the ritzy French cinema fest to present her new film, 鈥淭he New Boy,鈥� which premiered on Friday, a film she stars in and also produced. In the conversation with Wagmeister and her producing partner, Coco Francini, as part of Kering鈥檚 Women in Motion Talks, Blanchett talked about her work as a producer, which she said 鈥渇eels (like) an extension, for me, of my work as an actor.鈥�
The 鈥淭ár鈥� star acknowledged that while sometimes her work in film 鈥渋nvolves me being in front of the lens,鈥� 鈥渟ometimes it鈥檚 back behind [the lens]鈥� where she gets to be 鈥渁 little bit too bossy.鈥�
Blanchett is an accomplished producer, with producing credits going back to 1999. She executive produced the 2015 Todd Haynes film 鈥淐arol,鈥� in which she also starred, as well as last year鈥檚 鈥淭ár.鈥� Both of those films earned her best actress Academy Award nominations.
Blanchett also mentioned how on her 2020 FX miniseries 鈥淢rs. America鈥� 鈥� which is where she and Francini first met and began their producing partnership 鈥� they decided on the mandate that on all their projects going forward, 鈥測ou must interview a woman and you must interview a person of color.鈥�
鈥淲e鈥檝e both had experiences where we walked on set and done the headcount and you wonder why you sort of slightly feel alienated and annoyed some days,鈥� Blanchett said.
鈥淚 realize that I鈥檓 the only woman in the cast鈥here are 62 men, and yep, I鈥檓 the only woman. This ratio is bad,鈥� she also said. 鈥渋t鈥檚 really disproportionate. And it means that you鈥檙e always laughing at the same jokes. I do have a really good sense of humor, but it鈥檚 like, let鈥檚 change it up.鈥�
鈥淚 look forward to the day where we don鈥檛 even need to have interviews about women in cinema.鈥�
