The actress also shared her opinion about the accusations of S- abuse against Luc Besson, director of the emblematic film
On September 14, 1994, Leon: The Professional, a film known in Latin America as The perfect assassin, came to the big screen. It was a complete success around the world, but it also marked the debut of one of the most iconic actresses of the 21st century: Natalie Portman.
The artist held an interview with The magazine as part of the promotion of her upcoming film in May and December. The film's theme made the multi-award-winning actress relive her experience in the film she starred in with Jean Reno, where her character, a 13-year-old girl, falls in love with the "Perfect Killer." When asked about the reception that both her performance and the film had in the audience in 1994, Portman assured that although it was a key date in her career, there are moments in the film that today "embarrass" her and make her have a "complicated" relationship with The Perfect Assassin.
"It's a film that's still very much loved, and people come up to me about it more than almost anything else I've done, and it gave me my career, but certainly when you look at it now, it has some aspects that they pity others, to say nothing else. So, yeah, it's complicated for me."
A film that cost Natalie Portman her childhood
This is not the first time that Natalie talks about the consequences that she had to play a girl in love with an adult man in the cinema. In previous interviews, Portman confessed that the first fan letter she received featured a rape fantasy; These and more uncomfortable experiences of hers made the actress choose to continue a career outside of kissing, and other situations that continued to S- her. The film not only affected her on the recording set but also on a personal level in the discovery of her S-.
“I think being S- as a child took me away from my own S-, because it scared me and made me feel like the only way to be safe was to say, 'I'm conservative,' 'I'm serious and you should respect me,' 'I'm smart,' and 'Do not look at me like that'. At that age, you have your own S- and your own desire, and you want to explore things and be open. But you don't feel safe, necessarily, when older men are interested."
Natalie Portman's opinion on the Luc Besson accusations
It seems that The Perfect Assassin continues to haunt Portman 28 years after its premiere. In 2018, the director and screenwriter of this film, Luc Besson, was accused of rape by actress Sand Van Roy and three other women. So far, the director has denied the accusations, and even a judge closed the Van Roy case in 2022.
Portman was questioned about her case in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, confessing she was "devastated." Rebecca Keegan, in charge of conducting the interview, captured in this that Portman was insecure when she was asked if she had been surprised by the accusations. Keegan persisted by asking the Black Swan star if she saw any indication of these behaviors during her work on The Perfect Killer, to which Portman replied: “I really didn't know. She was a working girl. She was a girl. But I don't want to say anything that invalidates anyone's experience."
