She is warning her daughter not to marry her college boyfriend.
Ford explained to EW his choice of Linney for the role.
And I also wanted someone who would play really well opposite Amy.
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
And I realize that Im just a link in the chain.
Linneys performance inNocturnal Animalslasts only three minutes and 15 seconds, but its a one-scene wonder.
Actors have received Oscar nominations for about the same screen time or less.
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
(Spouses and ex-spouses in the Academy could no doubt sympathize with her characters rage.)
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Hello Laura, where are you calling from?
LAURA LINNEY:Actually, its very ironic.
© 2016 FADE TO BLACK PRODUCTIONS, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Im in a dressing room at the Tom Ford Shop in Atlanta.
I just had a fitting for an event thats coming up.
And Im wearing a dress of his.
Had you worn him before?
No, Id never had the opportunity to.
How does it fit?
And it takes on such a different meaning to me now.
If I didnt know him, I might ask, How do you have quality control like this?
Hes in every department, thoroughly involved.
Anybody who calls him a brand is pretty lazy.
Hes a global force.
And I dont know any fashion designers at his level who have successfully made a film.
Not to mention two films.
Had you ever met him beforeNocturnal Animals?
I nearly fell out of my chair when I heard that he wanted me to do this.
I so admiredA Single Man.
Theres no one like him, really, in the world, so I was unbelievably flattered.
Theres a rich passion to him thats not overwhelming but its very embracing.
you might see his mind going from one evolving thought to the next.
I was interviewing Tom and I referred to your performance as a small part.
And he got tongue-in-cheek defensive, saying That is not a small part!
You know, I had such a wonderful time.
Theres something about being in one really well-written scene and playing a very self-contained character.
And this woman was just terrific to work on.
Did you shoot this scene in a day?
Oh, yeah, it was less than a day.
Because the movie has such a great style, theres a temptation to think of your scene as camp.
No, no, no.
I think anybody whos grown up in the South knows its not camp.
What was your reaction to first reading it?
And writing like that is not easy to do.
Thats the thing Ive been telling a lot of people when we talk about Tom.
You might not even be aware of it.
And then behind the symbol theres meaning.
And then behind the meaning, theres something primal.
And I find that thats his unbelievable talent.
And he can do all that without you fully realizing it.
Did you realize all that when you sawNocturnal Animals?
I felt almost the way you do when youve been sleep deprived.
How much were you in communication with Tom before filming the scene?
We had been emailing each other.
I picked out listings for four or five big expensive houses, all of them a different style.
And then I asked him, Which house would she live in?
And he told me and a lot of the questions were answered.
And then what about the characters accent?
Its definitely upper-class Texan.
My family is from southern Georgia, so I had some background with a Southern accent.
But Texans have a different way of speaking.
I didnt want any southern Georgia stuff to sneak in there.
I went and listened to lots of Lady Bird Johnson.
A sentence isnt spoken it unrolls.
Once you got on set and met Tom, how involved was he in discussing wardrobe and hair?
Oh, he was right there.
Now, the hair in the scene
That is my hair!
I was very offended when I heard someone say it was a wig.
It is not a wig, thats my hair.
Do you know that everybody thinks it was a wig!
How did they achieve that?
There was some assistance in the back.
But thats the way that my mother wore her hair and the way that Toms mother wore her hair.
Thats a typical look from that era, which is almost an era before the character.
Shes still stuck in a look from a previous, sort of conservative time.
Which is also helpful to understand her.
I was surprised to realize that you and Amy Adams had never been in a movie together before.
We hadnt, no.
But we had a blast.
Lots of laughter that day.
And theres the fact that youre not far enough apart in age to actually be mother and daughter.
No, Im nine years younger.
I mean, shes nine years younger.
But credit to Tom for thinking of you.
Because of the flashback structure, it works.
I dont know how he got to that decision.
I wondered for a second whether it was going to work.
But how fantastic that it did.
And I totally agree.
Amy is playing much younger for that scene and Im playing older, so my casting fits.
Your character says to her daughter, Were more alike than you think.
Yes, thats right.
And then, with a smile, she says, We all turn into our mothers.
Well, listen, theres something very powerful about ancestry.
And mothers know best.
In certain situations, particularly with who youre dating.
Its completely annoying and infuriating and horrifying and insulting, but they tend to be right about that stuff.
My mother was always right.
And it pissed me off!
Is there something great about popping in for a cameo?
Its like a spectacular piece of delicious candy, like a rich, dark piece of chocolate.
Its the same thorough work as a larger part, but just on a smaller scale.
The world that he lives in, beautifully, is not a world that Im accustomed to.
Also in 2000, you were the star of Kenneth Lonergans first film,you could Count on Me.
Hes on top of the world right now withManchester by the Sea.
Does he compare to Tom Ford?
They both understand their own writing in a very profound way.
Thats a whole other level of skill and instinct and intuition.
Kenny is a writer first, Tom is a designer.
But Im so impressed with people who can apply their talent in one medium to another.
Is it thrilling for you to see Lonergan receive such universal acclaim now?
I saw him at the Telluride Film Festival and I just burst into tears.
I could barely keep my thoughts together.
I was so proud of him and the movie is just so stunning and human.
When theres that combination of your friend and that key in of success, its overwhelming.
What are some of your favorite small, one-scene-wonder jot down performances in movies?
Lynn Redgrave inKinsey.I know I was in that film but, I mean, come on.
Try not to cry during her one scene.
That was so deeply beautiful, what she did.
Theres something about watching her face.
And she gave the performance, all of that in a few minutes.
And that was one of her last movie roles.
And while Im thinking of movies I was in, how aboutEd Harris inThe Truman Show?
He has more than one scene, but I was there and witnessed it.
He only shot for the last two or three days of the film.
And he turned in that performance!
I called him on the phone and I was like, Motherfer!
Well, perhaps he owes you a similar punch in of call now.
Thats nice of you.
Nocturnal Animalsis now playing nationwide.
