Scarlett Johansson's Asteroid City Character Was Inspired By An Old Hollywood Starlet
Wes Anderson's latest movie, "Asteroid City," is shaping up to be one of his best to date. First reviews call it classic Wes Anderson fare, and with an unbelievably star-studded cast, it's hard not to believe it. One of those cast members is Scarlett Johansson, who previously worked with Anderson on "Isle of Dogs," but "Asteroid City" marks her live-action debut in the director's work.
In a very meta role, Johansson plays Midge Campbell, an actor playing an actor preparing for a role. With the 1955 setting of "Asteroid City," Johansson wanted Campbell to exude the characteristics of a classic Hollywood actor, working closely with Anderson to perfect her character.
"I liked Bette Davis for it because I thought her career was a good shape," Johansson said during the "Asteroid City" press junket, revealing that Davis was the blueprint for her character. "She felt like, you know, Bette Davis feels — I don't know — when you watch her, she seems comfortable in the space she takes up. So I felt like that could be a good beginning, and also her voice, actually. She has a little bit of that Mid-Atlantic thing, and understanding where that came from and all that stuff was helpful."
Johansson and Anderson created Midge Campbell during COVID
Although Scarlett Johansson could've looked at her own fame to craft her "Asteroid City" character Midge Campbell, she wanted to embody the stars of Old Hollywood, using Bette Davis as inspiration while she and Wes Anderson crafted the character together.
"I got the script from Wes. It was actually during the whole kind of shutdown lockdown," Johansson told "CBS Mornings." "So I was pretty thrilled to be getting anything to read at all. It felt like a hopeful something. You know, the story is very complex, and so I had a lot of questions. I'm playing an actor, playing an actor, preparing a role, and who is Midge Campbell? What is her reality? What kind of movie star is she?" Johansson and Anderson eventually settled on using Bette Davis for inspiration, and Midge Campbell became one of the actress's favorite roles.
During the interview, Johansson gushed about her character, calling Campbell a true movie star who's comfortable being herself in the spotlight. Anderson offered a similar take in the "Asteroid City" press junket, saying they took many of those qualities from what Davis did throughout her career. The director mentioned how Davis, and subsequently Campbell, created their own voices and space within the public, allowing them to be comfortable and unapologetically themselves.