How important is a little bit of nonsense now and then to you? It’s the most important thing. I once had a school report card that criticised me for ‘always finding the joke in everything’. I’ve tried my damnedest to do that ever since.
What, if anything, makes you believe in magic? Derren Brown, the mentalist and illusionist. I know everything he does is misdirection and stagecraft but his mind reading is mind-blowing – and he’s performed tricks on me that defy explanation. I’m angry that I’ll go to my grave not knowing how they’re done.
What was your last act of true cowardice? I told a restaurant chef his food was ‘absolutely friggin’ incredible’ when it was really bland.
What single thing do you miss most when you’re away from home? The basement room I turned into a movie theatre.
Do you have any odd habits or rituals? In my movie theatre, no one is allowed to talk. Or eat. And they have to drink from sippy cups. Not a joke.
What is your party trick? I eat anything. Nowadays everyone has a lactose intolerance or wheat allergy, but you can serve me whatever and I’ll clear my plate.
What is your mantra? ‘Everyone’s guessing.’ No one has life figured out, despite what they may tell you. Everybody is just stumbling along, trying to make their way. Once I realised that, a great burden was lifted from my shoulders.
What is your favourite smell? Napalm in the morning.
What do you always carry with you? The ability to laugh at myself. I don’t trust people who refuse to be the butt of the joke.
What is your guilty pleasure? I kind of enjoyed the lockdown.
Who is the silliest person you know? My partner, Mircea. She can make me laugh so hard with a silly dance.
What would be your least favourite way to die? Without featuring in the Oscars’ ‘In Memoriam’ section.
Stephen Merchant transitioned from stand-up to the screen when he collaborated with Ricky Gervais on writing The Office. It became zeitgeist TV, spawning two series, a Christmas special and the US version. Merchant co-starred in his and Gervais’ follow-up show, Extras. While juggling award-winning stand-up, radio shows, podcasts, producing, directing and screenwriting, Merchant has also acted in numerous films including Hall Pass, Logan and JoJo Rabbit. He is the co-creator, executive producer and writer of The Outlaws, which he also stars in. The third season will be released this summer on BBC and Amazon Prime.
Photograph by GREG WILLIAMS
*Arguably one of the most memorable (and quotable) scenes in 1971’s Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory is when Mr Salt mumbles, ‘It’s a lot of nonsense,’ to which Wonka replies, in a sing-song voice, ‘A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men.’
Photographs by GREG WILLIAMS Words by JULIA ROBERTS
We join Chopard’s global ambassador Julia Roberts on the set of the luxury jewellers’ TV commercial directed by James Gray. While filming in Julia’s adopted hometown of San Francisco, Greg asked her what inspired her when she first set out on her creative path.
‘I never thought of acting as a kid. I was surrounded by creative people but I was always the audience to it.
‘The first film that really made me take note of acting and how powerful it can be was Becket, starring Richard Burton and Peter O’Toole. I was in high school and I do not know why exactly, but it just stayed with me. I think it was the beginning of wanting to be connected to that form of expression.
‘I am inspired by so many people in this industry and not in this industry, too. I have a deep appreciation for all types of creative efforts.
‘I am as excited today going into a project as I was 30 years ago. Partly because it is all new every time. A new universe to puzzle out and explore.’
Photographs by GREG WILLIAMS Words by JULIA ROBERTS
Over awards season I’ve been lucky enough to be commissioned by Louis Vuitton to shoot Emma Stone before every major awards event – and then I’ve gone on to photograph her at The Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice, BAFTAs and SAGs while covering the events. That journey culminated in her winning the Oscar for Best Actress at the Academy Awards and I wanted to take a moment to revisit the pictures I’ve taken during that time…
When you’re commissioned to shoot for a fashion brand the first job is to take pictures where the clothes look their best. But I suppose what I’m additionally looking for is seeing the person behind the personality. So we have this lovely collection of pictures now, fashion photos and then seeing the human too. The Oscars were particularly special. I tend to photograph a number of actors before award shows and the last shoot of the day was Emma, right next to where the actual ceremony takes place. So after our shoot I got to walk to the red carpet as well as being side-of-stage when she came off with her Oscar, which was presented by an incredibly esteemed group of previous Best Actress Oscar winners. Then afterwards, before she went out to the parties, I went and took more photos in the hotel corridor and in the car. It’s nice to now look back on that body of work as a portfolio of pictures.
Jessica Lange, Michelle Yeoh, Charlize Theron, Emma Stone, Jennifer Lawrence and Sally Field
The first pictures were taken before the Golden Globes at the beginning of January. They’re quite a nice example of the difference between commissioned pictures and the pictures that I take slightly more for myself. The first picture was used by Louis Vuitton – I can make the product look good, but I’m also getting that glint behind the eye, that authenticity is still coming through the pictures. But then there’s another example of a photo that you can look at and completely understand why Louis Vuitton might not choose it to showcase their beautiful clothes. You can barely see the dress, it’s at an odd angle; but it’s a lovely, alive, fun, playful picture of Emma. It’s right up there with my favourites from award season. I love how first person it is and how the audience looking at that picture feels like they’re beaming with the same sunshine. We were in the penthouse of The Sunset Tower Hotel and there was a fire escape ladder going up to the roof. It was a lovely prop for me to encourage Emma onto. Also the net curtains, both backlit and front lit, work really nicely.
The next pictures were before the Critics’ Choice Awards. She was shielding her eyes because it was so bright. That wasn’t the picture that I had in mind – you try not to put your subjects in glaring light, but sometimes I quite like it because there’s something in those contrasts, the shapes and shadows. The pictures that the brand used were backlit.
These shots before the BAFTAs are tons of fun, she was literally dancing in her room. In those situations, I very much encourage play, I try for it. My favourite quote, and one that we use in Hollywood Authentic Magazine, is Willy Wonka saying ‘A little nonsense now and then, is relished by the wisest men’. I try to bring a little nonsense to as many of my shoots as I possibly can.
The shots taken for the SAGs show a natural beam, and you just sense Emma’s personality – that she’s a very down to earth, generous person. You just see that in those pictures.
It all stepped up for the Oscars. This was shot for Louis Vuitton again and this is where the two jobs really collide. This shot is a fashion photo, but it’s not the expected one. We were going through these hotel back corridors to head to the red carpet and I happened on this closet where they keep all the towels and dressing gowns, and I loved all these hangers. It felt like a nod to ateliers and fashion.
Awards season is a marathon and it felt like Emma was coming to the end of the journey – regardless of whether she won – after many months running at this thing, it’s done. So there was definitely playfulness going in the lifts. What I was also doing was finding the shapes in the dress in a playful way that feels authentic to Emma. There was also a beautiful shot where Emma turned around, and she hit a piece of light just before she got to the red carpet.
Then I left her to walk the carpet, and I ran inside to shoot the awards. That’s when I’ve got a completely different hat on – a change from capturing portraits to being an event photographer. These photos are taken incredibly quickly – often I get a shot in just one frame. Someone will walk past me and I’ll literally just ‘click’ one frame and it’s just that look back or that reaction that I get. Even though it’s event reportage I’m still trying to deliver the Greg Williams viewpoint; spontaneous, authentic, giving the audience the sense that they’re there.
After Emma had won her award, she left the stage with these incredible past winners: Jennifer Lawrence, Charlize Theron, Sally Field, Jessica Lange and Michelle Yeoh. She’s won an Oscar and she’s surrounded by absolute titans of her field. And it’s just a really special moment. You’re also not in any control of anything at that stage, you really are the observer. I can ask people to look in the camera, but actually the nicest pictures are when they’re all cuddling, crying, emotional and hanging on to each other – not worrying about, or thinking about the photo for a second.
Jessica Lange, Michelle Yeoh, Charlize Theron, Emma Stone, Jennifer Lawrence and Sally Field
After the awards Emma changed into another Louis Vuitton look. And then I got these really joyful shots of her with her team, holding the Oscar and really having some fun posing with it. There’s a lovely shot of her sitting on the floor of the corridor and a beautiful one of her walking through, which is a perfect balance of what I want to achieve and what Louis Vuitton wanted.
So what you’re seeing here is a number of hats being worn over the season; the fashion photographer, the personality photographer, the portraitist and the reportage photographer. I switch very rapidly between those, sometimes in split seconds. I’ll be hiding behind the camera, getting something quite beautiful, and then I’ll peek over the camera and pull a silly face, and suddenly I’ll get a shot of laughter or a shot of joy. That’s part of the game of being a photographer, being able to wear these different hats. There’s this lovely sentiment; when you take a portrait it’s not a picture of the person, it’s capturing the relationship between the photographer and the subject. That’s what I’m doing a lot of the time, because I have established relationships and I come away with a set of pictures that feel distinctively mine.
Words by JANE CROWTHER Photographs by GREG WILLIAMS
Awards season closed with an Academy Awards that was a who’s who roster of past recipients and powerhouse Hollywood talent. Twenty previous winners announced the four acting categories – each group leaving the stage as a gang with their latest inductee, a newly-formed club hanging out stage-side after each award. The community at the heart of acting was celebrated in this way, and also in a moment when the backstage team were brought centre-stage to celebrate the solidarity shown across the industry during the strikes earlier this year.
Da’Vine Joy Randolph was welcomed into the Best Supporting Actress community with Lupita Nyong’o, Jamie Leigh Curtis, Regina King, Mary Steenburgen and Rita Moreno championing each nominee in her category. Robert Downey Jr joined the best supporting actor club alongside Ke Huy Quan, Sam Rockwell, Tim Robbins, Christoph Waltz and Mahershala Ali; while his Oppenheimer castmate Cillian Murphy became a Best Actor winner with Forest Whitaker, Matthew McConaughey, Brendan Fraser, Nicolas Cage and Sir Ben Kingsley. Watching the show stage-side, the actors resembled Oscar statuettes as they stood together. The best actress category saw Emma Stone climb the podium to join Sally Field, Jessica Lange, Jennifer Lawrence, Michelle Yeoh and Charlize Theron.
Jamie Lee Curtis, Mary Steenburgen, Regina King, Da’vine Joy Randolph, Lupita Nyong’o and Rita Moreno Robert Downey Jr.Steven Spielberg and Cillian MurphyJessica Lange, Michelle Yeoh, Charlize Theron, Emma Stone, Jennifer Lawrence and Sally Field
It was Stone’s second Best Actress award but the evening was notable for its firsts. Winning was a first for Robert Downey Jr (after three nominations), for Christopher Nolan as director, he and his producer wife Emma Thomas for Best Film, and for a British film to win Best International Film with Jonathan Glazer’s The Zone Of Interest. Matthew McConaughey waiting in the wings after Nolan’s win gave him a heartfelt congratulatory hug.
Family was also a theme of the night, especially as the date was Mothers’ Day in the UK. Bradley Cooper brought his Mom as his plus-one while Martin Scorsese attended with his daughter, Francesca. Best original screenplay winner Justine Triet in a sparkling Louis Vuitton suit noted her and her co-writer partner Arthur Harari juggled diapers and lockdown during their writing of Anatomy Of A Fall, Stone talked of her toddler daughter turning her life ‘technicolour’ and Nolan thanked his wife and producing partner Thomas – ‘producer of all our films and all of our children’.
Christopher Nolan and Matthew McConaugheyJonathan GlazerMartin and Francesca ScorseseJustine Triet and Arthur Harari
Meanwhile, Sean Lennon, exec producer of best animated short, War Is Over, asked the audience to wish his mother, Yoko, a happy birthday and Mother’s Day. It was also a family affair for Billie Eilish, in houndstooth Chanel, and her songwriter brother Finneas O’Connell, whose performance of Barbie’s What Was I Made For? electrified the room and won the siblings their second Oscar for best original song.
Cynthia Erivo, FINNEAS, Billie Eilish and Ariana Grande
Their competition, Mark Ronson’s ‘I’m Just Ken’, may not have taken gold but Ryan Gosling’s full-throttle rendition of the song while wearing a custom pink Gucci suit involved the entire auditorium and featured many of the movie’s Kens, including Ncuti Gatwa and Kingsley Ben-Adir. It was a measure of the top-drawer nature of the show that Slash showed up to perform the guitar solo. It was one of many moments that demonstrated the star wattage wielded by the event – with iconic filmmakers and performers appearing together to remind movie fans of past classics or tease of future collaborations. Furiosa’s Chris Hemsworth and Anya Taylor Joy (in silver Dior); The Fall Guy’s Emily Blunt, shimmering in cream Schiaparelli, and Ryan Gosling; Beetlejuice 2 stars Michael Keaton and Catherine O’Hara; Twins co-stars Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito (both jested with Keaton over Batman) and Wicked’s Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo in character–appropriate gowns – Grande in pink Giambattista Valli and Erivo in structural green leather from Louis Vuitton. Zendaya, currently starring in the world’s number one movie, added further star power in Armani Prevé.
Mark RonsonNcuti Gatwa and Kingsley Ben-AdirAnya Taylor-Joy and Chris HemsworthSlashEmily Blunt and John KrasinskiDanny DeVito and Arnold SchwarzeneggerZendaya
Nolan’s win felt all the more resonant for being handed out by multi-award nominated Steven Spielberg, who gamely played along with jokes by Kate McKinnon. But when it came to addressing world events, the show did not shy away. Jonathan Glazer made an impassioned speech about the Gaza/Israeli conflict, Cillian Murphy (in Versace) dedicated his award to ‘all the peacekeepers in the world’, Mstyslav Chernov, feature documentary winner for 20 Days In Mariupol, reduced the audience to silence with his speech about Ukraine. Host Jimmy Kimmel addressed US politics when he read out a social media review of the show by Donald Trump. “Isn’t it past your jail time?” he responded.
The night’s big win belonged to Oppenheimer presented by Al Pacino, with Emma Thomas confessing to having ‘dreamt of this moment for so long’ as she accepted Best Picture and praised the team surrounding her, including Florence Pugh in silver bejewelled Del Core. The cast and filmmakers hugged backstage, dazzled by the amount of gongs in hands.
Florence PughJimmy Kimmel and John Cena
An impressive, slick show that re-established the Academy’s dominance in awards season, presided over by four-time presenter and ultimate pro Kimmel, the 96th Oscars closed out as a true celebration of cinema and its stars – putting the difficulties of the past year firmly in the rear view window.
Ryan Gosling
AWARDS
Best Film: Oppenheimer
Best Director: Christopher Nolan
Best Actress: Emma Stone
Best Actor: Cillian Murphy
Best Supporting Actress: Da’Vine Joy Randolph
Best Supporting Actor: Robert Downey Jr
Best International Feature Film: The Zone Of Interest
Best Animated short: War Is Over
Best Animated Film: The Boy And The Heron
Best Original Screenplay: Anatomy Of A Fall
Best adapted Screenplay: American Fiction
Best Makeup and hair styling: Poor Things
Best Production Design: Poor Things
Best Costumes: Poor Things
Best visual effects: Godzilla Minus 1
Best Film editing: Oppenheimer
Best documentary short: The Last Repair Shop
Best documentary film: 20 Days In Mariupol
Best cinematography: Oppenheimer
Best Live Action short: The Wonderful Story Of Henry Sugar
Best Sound: Zone Of Interest
Best original score: Oppenheimer
Best song: What Was I Made For?
Words by Jane Crowther Photographs by Greg Williams
How important is a little bit of nonsense now and then to you? A life without nonsense is no life at all. It’s what keeps us from taking ourselves too seriously, one needs a daily dose to keep us sane.
What, if anything, makes you believe in magic? I think the profundity of our mere existence is magic, so therefore everything in our lives should be considered exactly that.
What was your last act of true cowardice? Discovering a nest of brown widow spiders under a chair in our garden, and having my wife dispose of them as I ran away shrieking.
What single thing do you miss most when you’re away from home? My children, without question. It’s one of the hardest things about having to travel so often. Whenever I’m away from them, it feels like a piece of me is missing.
Do you have any odd habits or rituals? I find it very difficult to function if I can’t submerge myself in water at least once a day. Be it a bath, pool, ocean, lake, anything really, as long as I can hold my head underwater for a moment. There’s something incredibly levelling about being in and under the water.
What is your party trick? Nowadays, just showing up counts as a party trick. I find it gets harder and harder to leave the house with each passing year.
What is your mantra? To be grateful. Every day, no matter what, there are countless things in our life to be grateful for. In the same way, I often lean on the old adage “sleep on it”, a mantra in itself.
What is your favourite smell? The smell of flowering jasmine is pretty extraordinary, but a Christmas tree would be my absolute favourite, not only for its smell but for all the feelings and memories it helps to conjure.
What do you always carry with you? A healthy dose of scepticism, optimism and gut instinct.
What is your guilty pleasure? Far too many of them to feel guilty anymore.
Who is the silliest person you know? My Uncle Danny, and he’d probably say the same for me. Our time spent together is always filled with laughter and silliness. It’s why we are so close.
What would be your least favourite way to die? Young (if I’m still allowed to call myself that). I want to spend as much time as humanly possible with the ones I love. I want to see my kids grow up, meet my grandkids and even great-grandkids, if I were to be so lucky.
Day of the Fight, which Jack Huston directed, wrote and produced, is a black-and-white feature in part inspired by Kubrick’s first short film of the same name. With a stellar cast – Michael Pitt, Joe Pesci, Steve Buscemi and Ron Perlman – there’s even a small part for Jack’s young son, continuing the family tradition as the fifth generation of Hustons in cinema.
*Arguably one of the most memorable (and quotable) scenes in 1971’s Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory is when Mr Salt mumbles, ‘It’s a lot of nonsense,’ to which Wonka replies, in a sing-song voice, ‘A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men.’
Cailee Spaeny, who last night won the Volpi Cup for best actress at the 80th Venice film festival, shot on the way to the premiere of Sofia Coppola’s eighth feature Priscilla. Spaeny plays Priscilla with Jacob Elordi as Elvis. The film is based on executive producer Priscilla Presley’s 1985 memoir Elvis and Me.
Cailee Spaeny and the Priscilla cast have been granted an interim agreement from SAG-AFTRA encouraging the cast to promote the film.
Priscilla is released on the 27 October.
Cailee Spaeny wears jewelry byBulgari, dress by Miu Miu, with make-up by Loren Canby, hair by Kiley Fitzgerald and styling by Nicky Yates
Mads Mikkelsen before the premier of his new movie The Promised Land at the Venice Film Festival on Friday.
Playing in competition in Venice, Nikolaj Arcel’s film portrays Mikkelsen as Capitain Ludvig Kahlen who in 1755 sets out to build a colony in the uninhabitable heath of Jutland following the Kings call to cultivate the land.
Arcel and Mikkelsen have previously collaborated on the Oscar nominated A Royal Affair. The Promised Land will be released 5 October, 2023.
Mads Mikkelsen wears watch by Chopard, suit by Zegna.
Michael Mann’s film is showing in competition at the 80th Venice Film Festival with Adam starring as Enzo Ferrari alongside Penélope Cruz, Shailene Woodley, Sarah Gadon and Patrick Dempsey.
An American biographical sports thriller film written by Troy Kennedy Martin about Enzo Ferrari, the Italian founder of the car manufacturer Ferrari. Based on the 1991 biography Enzo Ferrari: The Man and the Machine by motorsport journalist Brock Yates.
Adam Driver wears custom Burberry, grooming by Amy Komorowski
Jude Law moments before the world premiere of Firebrand, for which he has received unanimous praise for his explosive performance as King Henry VIII.
Law stars alongside Alicia Vikander as his sixth wife, Catherine Parr, in the film directed by Karim Aïnouz, which screened in competition at the 76th Cannes Film Festival.
Jude Law wears custom Brioni, styled by William J Gilchrist and grooming by Alain Pichon
Natalie Portman returns to Cannes for Palme d’Or nominated film, May December, directed by Todd Haynes, with Portman and Sophie Mas acting as co-producers on the film under their production company MountainA.
The story follows actress Elizabeth Berry (Portman) who travels to Maine to speak with Gracie Atherton-Yoo (Julianne Moore) to do research for a film about her notorious tabloid romance with Joe Yoo (Charles Melton), a school boy at the time, and twenty-three years her junior.