The Red Sea Film Festival hosted a conversation with actress and producer Dakota Johnson, where the Fifty Shades of Grey star spoke candidly about the “love–hate” relationship she now has with the industry as someone who also works behind the camera.
After a decade in Hollywood as an actress, Johnson co-founded the production company Tea Time Pictures in 2020 with her partner Ro Connelly. Through it, she has backed several recent indie projects, including Am I OK?, Daddio, Cha Cha Real Smooth (Bailando por la vida), and Splitsville. Speaking at the international festival in Saudi Arabia, she said this new phase of her career has been far more challenging.“There’s something about acting that makes me feel like I’m in a bubble,” she said, “but when you’re producing, you see what happens behind the curtain, and it’s really ugly.”
Dakota Johnson on navigating the production side of her films
“Sometimes the financiers are really shady. It can be heartbreaking. As a producer, it can be heartbreaking. As an actress, too. But both producing and acting are incredibly rewarding, and I feel really grateful that I get to do both,” she said.
Johnson is also set to produce her directorial debut, A Tree is Blue, which does not yet have a release date. During the event — where she discussed working with Luca Guadagnino, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz — she reflected on how her approach to choosing projects has evolved. “I’m learning more now about choosing what’s right for me,” she said. “I was definitely talked into doing some things in the past that, in hindsight, weren’t the right fit. But that’s part of the experience — and I’m lucky to have this job.”
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