Emily Blunt And John Krasinski Had A Tense Whispered Argument On The Set Of A Quiet Place
Veteran actors who just happen to be married, Emily Blunt and John Krasinski, took a somewhat roundabout route to finally working together in the sleeper sci-fi horror hit "A Quiet Place." Interviewed on the Smartless podcast (via Spotify), the actress recalled that the concept for the film was initially presented to Krasinski in treatment form with the aim of snaring him as the movie's lead. When Blunt heard the pitch, she found the idea so evocative that she proposed he direct the film and that he cast a friend of hers in the part of the wife. Krasinski would take his spouse's advice and eventually direct the movie as well as co-star in it. But before that, he would also co-write the script.
As it turns out, after reading the script while the two were on a plane trip, Blunt liked Krasinski's writing so much that she sheepishly asked him if, instead of her friend playing the wife, she could have the role. He apparently thought it was a great idea, and the rest is horrific alien-monster-movie history. With Hollywood productions well known for being a bit of a pressure cooker for cast and crew alike, it's understandable that dust-ups can happen between working couples on a film set. And the truth is, the Blunt-Krasinski duo had a memorable little spat of their own while making "A Quiet Place."
Emily Blunt had issues with John Krasinski's plan for a close-up shot in A Quiet Place
The central narrative conceit of "A Quiet Place" involves roving packs of carnivorous, sound-triggered alien beasties who land on Earth and proceed to hunt down and wipe out most of the human race. John Krasinski and Emily Blunt play a couple who, along with their children, attempt to survive in this dangerous new world by scavenging their remote, rural setting for food and supplies while being very, very quiet.
In the same Smartless podcast noted above, Blunt said the working relationship between her and her husband was generally fine, but "We had one terrible whispered fight on set ... which all the crew heard." The quarrel was over a long, tracking shot with no cuts allowed. The shot was planned to end in a close-up on Blunt where she would be required to cry on cue — something she said was not a strong point for her. The actress asked that the shot be cut before her close-up, so she could prep the tears. But apparently, the requested pause didn't happen. "So, I do remember just pulling him in back room and being like, 'You told me that you would stop [filming for] the close-up!'" Asked how the couple resolved their tiff on the set of "A Quiet Place," Blunt explained, "We just drank a lot of whiskey when we got home, and it was great."