Fans have taken to social media to express their anger after Jennifer Lawrence shared the harsh feedback she received from director David O’Russell during filming.
Lawrence and O’Russell have collaborated on three movies, starting with Silver Linings Playbook in 2012, which earned her an Oscar for Best Actress at the age of 22. They followed this with American Hustle in 2013 and Joy in 2015.
Throughout these projects, Lawrence received Academy Award nominations each time. While working on American Hustle, O’Russell was known for making Amy Adams cry, with Christian Bale reportedly stepping in to help resolve the conflict.
Recently, Lawrence appeared on The New York Times’ The Interview podcast, where host Lulu Garcia-Navarro inquired about her experiences working with demanding directors.
“I stay loose. I think David O. Russell really taught me how to… I think because of David, I’ve never really – it’s never really mattered what the director’s kind of methodology is,” Lawrence explained.
“I really felt like David, that was his way of of communicating in a non-bulls**t way. I never felt like he was like degrading or yelling at me.
“He didn’t like something, he was just like, ‘that was terrible – looked like s**t, do it better’. And that was like a very helpful conversation like, ‘oh, okay. Do it better, how so?’, ‘I don’t know? Slower, not so loud?’.”
She further mentioned that she isn’t easily offended and isn’t sure how fans handle the industry’s challenges.
Many fans have criticized O’Russell’s directing style, arguing that no one should be addressed in such a manner.
On Reddit, one user commented: “That’s pretty unacceptable for any workplace, so I can only imagine how awful he was to every below the line worker on that set.”
Another user added: “I hate how many women have to deal with these s**t managers and then defend them like this is acceptable. It’s not. I don’t care if he’s a ‘genius’ sounds like he’s an a**hole.”
Another person wrote: “As someone who dealt with being a woman in a hostile work environment by men, I’m so tired of these mediocre a**holes mistreating the women around them and us being ‘celebrated’ for taking it rather than coming down on the a**hole.”
“He never degraded me! He simply said my work looked like s**t,” a user joked.
Some questioned the director’s instructions, expressing concern over their effectiveness.
“‘That looks like s***, do it better’ is terrible direction,” one user wrote.
Another added: “‘That was terrible, it looked like s**t,’ is vague, unhelpful, and hurtful. Directors need to communicate effectively. If he didn’t like her take, he could have used constructive criticism.”
The publication has attempted to reach out to David O’Russell’s representatives for a response.