Halle Berry Returns to Her Method Acting Roots in Upcoming Film “Never Let Go”
With a career spanning several decades, Halle Berry is no stranger to the acting world, and has always been dedicated to her craft in a way that many actors nowadays are not. As the first Black woman to win an Oscar for Best Actress, Berry stands in a league of her own. Commitment and devotion to her roles have always been qualities that she’s embraced, and in the past she has even tested the limits by engaging in method acting in order to truly immerse herself in her characters’ shoes, sometimes to the extreme.
Method acting, also known simply as the Method, is a technique utilized by many famous actors and performers, with the goal being sincere and poignant performances done through genuinely embodying a character and/or living their experiences. Though many prominent actors have adopted the tactics of method acting, there are an equal number of critics. Those who are wary of method acting argue that it can cause an actor to become too deeply invested in a character’s persona, potentially leading to psychological harm and difficulty separating reality from fiction. With that said, the results of method acting often do produce very genuine-seeming performances, and demonstrate the lengths that some actors will go to sacrifice for the sake of their artistry. Though, with filming techniques and technologies constantly advancing, fewer and fewer actors tend to practice method acting.
Halle Berry is one of these rare actors. She got her start in the 1991 Spike Lee film “Jungle Fever,” where she played a strung-out and short-tempered drug addict, and prepared for the role in an unconventional, but effective, way. In order to truly capture the lifestyle of her character (without becoming a drug addict), Berry prepared for the role by going weeks without bathing, to the point where she noticed her co-stars had begun avoiding her. Her performance ultimately wowed audiences, and landed her in the eyes of superstardom.
Now, in preparation for her upcoming role in the psychological thriller “Never Let Go,” Berry continues with her method acting tactics. While speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, she revealed some of the things she did to gear up for the role, like skinning squirrels and learning how to live off the land. The film, which is set to release in September, centers on Berry as a single mother of fraternal twin boys living off-grid in a remote house in the woods after an apocalyptic event. Berry’s character and her kids are targeted by an ominous, evil entity and their only lifeline is the sanctuary of their home. When they do have to leave to venture into the woods, they tether themselves to ropes tied to their house, with Berry urging her sons to ‘never let go.’
“Never Let Go” hits theaters on September 27th, where we’ll be able to see the fruits of Berry’s labor and the results of her mastery as a method actor.
