Naomi Watts is days away from shooting new film, was ‘the most nervous’ acting with birds in ‘Penguin Bloom’
No, this is not a normal film festival.
Naomi Watts is out of breath picking up the phone on Friday while settling in to talk about “Penguin Bloom,” her film which debuts Saturday at the Toronto International Film Festival. It’s not a normal year – the festival is largely virtual, save for scattered public outdoor screenings and drive-ins in Toronto proper – and most stars are nowhere near it, appearing virtually through video panels and press conferences.
In fact, Watts literally just paused a home workout to grab the phone. “I just got off a treadmill because I’m about to – wait for it – start filming next week. I’m in Canada and right now I’m in lockdown (and) in quarantine,” says a winded Watts, who is with her children before beginning her next film, “Lakewood.” “I’m on a treadmill because in the movie I do a lot of running and sprinting.”
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She’s still wrapping her mind around the reality of going back to work. “On one hand, I’m so ready to be in a creative space and do what I love to do, which is storytelling, rather than sitting at home on the phone a lot and talking, which is not my comfort zone. But of course, it’s nerve-wracking at the same time,” says Watts, who will be COVID-19 tested about three times a week on set.
The story also meant Watts had to act with not just one real bird, but several.
“This was the part that made me the most nervous about taking the role on,” she says. “Magpies are famously known as not being particularly nice creatures, they don’t have a good rap out there. So how could we have a connection to this bird? It has to act! It’s hard enough getting children to act – and other animals, like dogs, much less wild birds.”
