Naomi Ackie (I Wanna Dance With Somebody, Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker, Small Axe, Mickey 17, The Thursday Murder Club) stars in Boots Riley’s anti-capitalist satire I Love Boosters, part of the 70th edition of the BFI London Film Festival (LFF), which runs through Oct. 18. But on Saturday, she discussed not only her new film, which features her opposite the likes of Keke Palmer, Demi Moore, Don Cheadle and Taylour Paige, but also her broader career experiences and insights into the acting profession during an LFF Screen Talk.
During the session, moderated by Grace Barber-Plentie, BFI London Film Festival programmer, the star repeatedly drew applause and laughter from an adoring crowd that left the room buzzing about Ackie’s passion and natural charisma.
One recurring theme was the actress’ seamless move between smaller U.K. productions and Hollywood movies, as well as between film and series.
Ackie shared that she enjoys this variety of opportunities but also acknowledged that she feels most at home in the U.K. capital’s industry circles. “The London film scene feels like home,” and running into old friends and acquaintances feels “so comfortable,” she told the audience. “I feel, controversially maybe, [that] in America, it feels like Hollywood, and Hollywood is not a thing that I’m particularly stimulated by. It’s a machine, and I respect it, but it’s not necessarily the thing that makes me feel the most comfortable.”
Barber-Plentie pointed out that many of the U.S. directors that Ackie has worked with started with smaller independent films.
The star shared that this may also explain one of her recent favorites. “I’m obsessed with Obsession,” she told the London audience. “You look at that director [Curry Barker] – he’s been doing YouTube shorts for the longest time!”
Speaking of horror movies, Ackie mentioned that she was off to L.A. later in the day to start promoting Clayface. “Has anyone seen It Follows,” she also asked, drawing many shouts of “yes” from the crowd. “The sequel [They Follow], I just finished this summer.”
Her approach to genre films: “I just love doing horror because it’s actually the funniest job,” she told the LFF Screen Talk. “I said to my team: ‘Guys, maybe I should ease up on the horror.’ Horror is popping right now. It’s the best genre right now.”
Ackie also offered her take on what has been driving the popularity of horror films, namely war and other horrors in the news. “I think it’s because, as a global community, we are extremely anxious. Did you see that tornado in Sydney?” she said before sharing her own worries. “Also, everyone, get your tins! Please, get your tins of food and your water. I’m not even joking. I bought a crank radio. … And the candles. I’ve got matches, magic straws just in case the water gets dirty.” The actress emphasized, though: “I’m afraid, but I don’t want to put that on you.”
Ackie didn’t only discuss horror, but also comedy during her appearance, including I Love Boosters. “I love a female friendship,” she offered in expressing the joy she felt on the set. “Representing female friendship is a special thing.”
A special experience of a very different sort was, of course, her work on Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker. She recalled how she felt she wouldn’t get the role, as she has done after various other auditions, only to get a surprise call back. But the actress highlighted that even Star Wars and other big roles didn’t change certain things for her. “It didn’t change me from the inside,” she explained. “I still live exactly the same, and that was eye-opening.”
Ackie also shared on Saturday that the, or one of the, hardest roles she has ever taken on was playing Whitney Houston in I Wanna Dance With Somebody. “I’m a perfectionist, and this shit sent me crazy because you can never know a person,” she recalled. “It was something about the pressure of people knowing Whitney, people loving Whitney, me playing her. Am I good enough? This is a mountain. I remember saying to my sister: ‘I feel like I’m a baby looking at the top of a mountain, and somehow I need to crawl up to the top.’”
Concluded Ackie: “It was probably the most difficult part, but I look back at the film now, and I’m like: ‘Good for you!’ That’s probably one of the favorite things I’ve ever done. The reviews weren’t the most incredible; the box office didn’t do great, but for me personally, it changed my approach to my craft. Because once you do something like that, I was like: ‘Give me anything!’ … Because I know I’ve probably done one of the hardest things I can in my life.”
At 35, Ackie has done so many different things, but there are some roles that she would like to take on in the future. Recalling how she grew up loving West Side Story and Grease, the actress said: “I really would love to be in a musical. I just love it. It offers so much joy to me.”
She also recalled how her character in Lady Macbeth, opposite Florence Pugh and Cosmo Jarvis, becomes mute halfway through the movie. “It taught me that we communicate a lot with our bodies and not with the words we say, and I still use that to this day,” Ackie said. “I was chatting to Lashana [Lynch] the other day, and I was like: ‘My dream is to do a film where I don’t say anything.’ And she said: ‘Me too.’ I feel like a lot of actors might feel that way.”
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