Anne Hathaway: Christopher Nolan Doesn't Allow Chairs on His Movie Sets

[Mariolee]

The genius has done it again.

During a virtual conversation with Hugh Jackman for Variety's "Actors on Actors," Hathaway, 37, reflected on her experience working with the award-winning British filmmaker on the 2012 movie, "The Dark Knight Rises" and 2014's "Interstellar."

While Hathway and Jackman were discussing directors who ban cellphones on set, Hathaway brought up Nolan.

"I don't want to contradict you," she said after Jackman had only named two directors who implement the policy. "But you've worked with three directors that don't allow cellphones: Christopher Nolan."

"Oh, that's right," recalled Jackman, who starred opposite Christian Bale in the 2006 magician drama, "The Prestige."

Hathaway then pointed out another one of Nolan's on-set policies and explained why she thinks he's "onto something" with his unique rule.

"Chris also doesn't allow chairs," she revealed. "I worked with him twice. He doesn't allow chairs, and his reasoning is, if you have chairs, people will sit, and if they're sitting, they're not working. I mean, he has these incredible movies in terms of scope and ambition and technical prowess and emotion."

"It always arrives at the end under schedule and under budget," Hathaway continued. "I think he's onto something with the chair thing."

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She also talks about her becoming Catwoman

"You know how you have those jobs and you just go, 'I don't know how I'm going to work again because this was such fun,'" Hathaway recalled. "I'm such a director nerd. I love just seeking out the best directors I can and then just watching them. Chris' whole approach to filmmaking is one of my favorite ones. He's broken it down to its most minimal, but also his movies are just so huge and ornate. That combination of really being intentional about what it was that we were doing -- and also, he's just so inspiring."

Hathaway, who followed a strict diet to put on the skin-tight Catwoman suit, said Nolan was more concerned about her getting stronger, rather than what she looked like.

"Chris sat me down and he said, 'It has nothing to do with your appearance. If we've shot tomorrow, I'd be so happy,'" she said, recalling Nolan's words. "'When we did 'Inception,' Joseph Gordan-Levitt trained for 12 weeks to do a four-day stunt sequence because he wanted to do every shot. I want you to do as much of the stunt work as you can. So I need you to be strong enough to do that. I can't have you be one of those actors that does one take, two takes and then you're too tired. I want you to do everything.'"

"That was what he told me to get me to embrace the physical side of the character and really commit that," Hathaway said.

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Source: https://toofab.com/2020/06/29/anne-...H-nfZLfLmN-KOD8PEBkthBo2tJX1HcU-fI-lmroi72rPI

Joking aside, I think Nolan is actually a wonderful director which is why his actors and his team keep returning to work with him. At first the no chairs thing could be seen as cruel, but then she says they always finished the work quickly because of it. And the whole thing about working out so she could do mostly her own stunts rather than how she looked was interesting too.

For the full talk between Hathaway and Jackman:


Edit:
As someone shared below, this may be a rule for just actors.


Edit 2: Spokesperson for Nolan

"For the record, the only things banned from [Christopher Nolan's] sets are cell phones (not always successfully) and smoking (very successfully)," Nolan's spokesperson Kelly Bush Novak of ID said in a statement. "The chairs Anne was referring to are the directors chairs clustered around the video monitor, allocated on the basis of hierarchy not physical need. Chris chooses not to use his but has never banned chairs from the set. Cast and crew can sit wherever and whenever they need and frequently do."

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Christopher Nolan’s Team Clarifies What He Bans From Set, and It’s Not Chairs — Exclusive

"Chris chooses not to use his but has never banned chairs from the set," a spokesperson tells IndieWire.

www.indiewire.com

 

[Deleted member 6263]

Christopher Nolan is a boring old biddy.

And his reasoning reminds me of my days working retail as a cashier. Cashiers were looked down on if they sat, as if they weren't high enough on an imaginary totem pole to be able to get off their feet for a minute like their respective lazy-ass managers. It comes off as a passive aggressive way of saying "you're not good enough to sit, you haven't earned the right to sit - so stand".

Edit: I don't dislike Nolan, I like his movies. And I guess I don't know enough about what Anne meant when she said what she said. Based on what I'm reading, though, this is a dumb policy. I guess I wouldn't know for sure how dumb it is unless I was actually on set. Still, reading her quote makes him out to be some sort of super boomer.

Edit2: well that new bit of info basically confirms it, there's not much to be upset about. Anne's original quote still portrays him as a grump.

 

[Deleted member 44371]

having no chairs while crews work 12+ hour days on harsh landscapes like iceland is not good in my opinion

 

[Xater]

So you create Bad working conditions so people work more efficiently? This just seems like another one of those things that would be scrutinized to hell and back if the movies were not as good.

 

[Spinluck]

So does ERA hate Nolan now?

Anne didn't seem bothered by Nolan at all.

 

[Deleted member 6173]

Chairs are for Oscar winners

 

[Gwenpoolshark]

And his movies are bad too.

 

[Arc]

Nolan is starting to seem like the Jared Leto of directors.

 

[DGenerator]

He also doesn't let people have bottled water on set.

 

[SkimpyMcChicken]

Lmao he took away the chairs.

Perhaps Regal can take away the chairs and we can all stand 6 feet apart to see Tenet

 

[AliceAmber]

What an ass. And to praise him for it?

 

[Heshinsi]

Somewhere Jeff Bezos is rubbing his chin like "hmm..."

 

[jelly]

If he sat on a chair and considered what he was filming, the takes wouldn't be so shit........sometimes.

 

[HStallion]

This isn't something specific to Nolan. I've worked in warehouses and other blue collar jobs with the same rule for the same reason.

 

[acheron_xl]

Is he a Dalek?

 

[Anton Sugar]

lol

As a crew member, fuck off, Nolan.

This may make "sense" for key roles and dept heads who probably aren't sitting that much, but there are plenty of roles that don't need to be working every second of their 12 hour day.

I *relish* a good sit-down on an applebox

No cell phones, I'm totally down with. That's the real distraction on a lot of sets.

This is also really interesting, because there is growing sentiment in film/video production that the way we were working pre-COVID was shitty. Esp seeing that it really is non essential, why is a 10-12 (at least) hour day considered normal?

 

[Deleted member 8901]

I don't blame him. We all saw what happens when you give a security guard a chair:

Seinfeld George Security Guard Chair

This reminded me of my friend hahaha. George: That's why I'm different. I can sense the slightest human suffering. From Season 7 Episode 3

www.youtube.com

 

[El Bombastico]

Christopher Nolan is a boring old biddy.

And his reasoning reminds me of my days working retail as a cashier. Cashiers were looked down on if they sat, as if they weren't high enough on an imaginary totem pole to be able to get off their feet for a minute like their respective lazy-ass managers. It comes off as a passive aggressive way of saying "you're not good enough to sit, you haven't earned the right to sit - so stand".

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That was exactly my thought. What an asshole.

 

[Ashhong]

Ah yes, such terrible conditions that each actor keeps coming back for multiple movies.

 

[Kewlmyc]

I assume it's because bottled water makes noises and moving chairs can make noises.

I would assume that people are still allowed to drink water from cups or to sit on the floor or lean against something. If not, then that's gotta suck.

 

[Anton Sugar]

So does ERA hate Nolan now?

Anne didn't seem bothered by Nolan at all.

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Anne is an actor. Not saying their jobs aren't sometimes physically demanding, but it doesn't really compare to, say, the grip & electric teams.

 

[Batatina]

People with back problems can do amazing work, but still need to sit and rest their backs sometimes... Sitting isn't not working, it might just be resting. Reducing labor conditions to stay in budget isn't the work of genius.

 

[a916]

Nolan has a reputation for also finishing movies quickly and under (or at the very least not going above) budget.

He seems like a guy who goes in, very focused, and gets things done quickly with little to no waste.

 

[Kolx]

What about people who suffer from medical conditions where they have to rest every now and then? you don't hire them?

 

[Video Kojima]

This dude sounds more and more disgusting every day.

 

[Deleted member 8593]

 

[krae_man]

Next up, he will remove walls so you don't have time to lean.

 

[entremet]

I know nothing about film making or film production, but boy is that attitude reminiscent of factory managers in the industrial era.

 

[Anton Sugar]

People with back problems can do amazing work, but still need to sit and rest their backs sometimes... Sitting isn't not working, it might just be resting. Reducing labor conditions to stay in budget isn't the work of genius.

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This, too. I have lordosis, which isn't a severe condition by any means, but standing for a while gets my back extremely tight. I stretch constantly through the day, do yoga at lunch, but once all my work is done for a shot/scene, I'm finding somewhere to sit down.

 

[UnderNewOwnership]

Cashiers were looked down on if they sat, as if they weren't high enough on an imaginary totem pole to be able to get off their feet for a minute like their respective lazy-ass managers. It comes off as a passive aggressive way of saying "you're not good enough to sit, you haven't earned the right to sit - so stand".

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This is pretty odd to me, given that super/hypermarket cashiers here almost invariably sit on chairs while scanning your groceries. Must be a US thing.

 

[El Bombastico]

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LOL

 

[Mariachi507]

Chairs are for Oscar winners

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Lmao

 

[Temascos]

No video/audio devices while on set? I can understand that, only for essential staff who need them but they'll probably use radios.

Seats? You bloody well need those, people are going to be standing for a very long time on a film set and at some point you need to rest your legs, fatigue and needless stress can risk injury.

 

[mattiewheels]

Coffee's chairs're for closers.

 

[Deleted member 6263]

This is pretty odd to me, given that super/hypermarket cashiers here almost invariably sit on chairs while scanning your groceries. Must be a US thing.

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It may depend on the store, and it may have been just my time in retail as a teenager. I can't speak for every retail place, just the ones I worked at.

 

[Gustaf]

ok boomer

 

[Sqrt]

I can't stand standing. Since I was a kid, my legs burned whenever I was asked to stand in one place. I either need to sit or keep walking/running. This sounds like hell to me.

 

[MrPink]

lol

As a crew member, fuck off, Nolan.

This may make "sense" for key roles and dept heads who probably aren't sitting that much, but there are plenty of roles that don't need to be working every second of their 12 hour day.

I *relish* a good sit-down on an applebox

No cell phones, I'm totally down with. That's the real distraction on a lot of sets.

This is also really interesting, because there is growing sentiment in film/video production that the way we were working pre-COVID was shitty. Esp seeing that it really is non essential, why is a 10-12 (at least) hour day considered normal?

Click to shrink...

Have to wonder if it's a rule more so for the key roles/actors. There must be plenty of exceptions or a separate area to sit I'd imagine but since Anne didn't elaborate further, we don't have tons to go on.

https://twitter.com/vishnevetsky/status/1277734624366600192

 

[PJV3]

Fine for actors, regular workers should get chairs and tea.

 

[Speevy]

CHAIR TO ME

 

[Ubik]

This really needs to be elaborated on. Like, surely there must be break areas for the heavily unionized film industry and the chair rule is just for the actual filming area. The actors for sure have trailers and such.

 

[UnderNewOwnership]

It may depend on the store, and it may have been just my time in retail as a teenager. I can't speak for every retail place, just the ones I worked at.

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Ah, that sort of explains it. Around here, the cashier is more likely to be a 50-something-old lady, rather than a teenager (teenagers tend to work shit-paying jobs as game testers for the likes of EA/Ubisoft).

 

[BadAss2961]

 

[JigglesBunny]

Everyone knows damn well that Heath would have never been able to churn out that Oscar worthy performance had he been allowed to sit down for twenty minutes between takes. A true auteur understands the sacrifices needed to make real cinema.

 

[Daniel Westlake]

I really hope no one defends the chair thing because that's objectively awful and depending on how it's implemented discriminatory against the physically impaired

 

[Deleted member 6215]

So does ERA hate Nolan now?

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Who knows? Why don't you start asking all 50,000 members and get back to us.

 

[Viewt]

Fuck off with that nonsense. You're not gonna let me sit down? Motherfucker, try it, I'll sit on you. Wouldn't that be in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (for stuff shot in the States, at least)?

The training thing does make sense, though. Conditioning is important for being able to sell action on-screen, so if her training was more about stamina than glamour, then I don't think it's an issue.

 

[Torpedo Vegas]

Try and stop me.

 

[a916]

Have to wonder if it's a rule more so for the key roles/actors. There must be plenty of exceptions or a separate area to sit I'd imagine but since Anne didn't elaborate further, we don't have tons to go on.

https://twitter.com/vishnevetsky/status/1277734624366600192

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She also said on set... in my mind I kind of assumed on set meant the film stage and not the trailer or whatever backstage they have.

 

[Video Games Are Dumb]

Nolan has a reputation for also finishing movies quickly and under (or at the very least not going above) budget.

He seems like a guy who goes in, very focused, and gets things done quickly with little to no waste.

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That's where I'm at. Sets turning into camping trips pretty quick. I'll take a chairless shoot over 50 useless retakes.

But if someone else with Nolan experience speaks out, I'd listen.