Matt Damon’s latest feature film is now in theaters. In Stillwater, Damon plays an Oklahoma roughneck that finds himself in France to visit his daughter, who is suspected of murder. The film is directed by Tom McCarthy and also stars Camille Cottin, Abigail Breslin, Deanna Dunagan, and Lilou Siauvaud.
RELATED: Interview: Matt Damon Discusses Becoming a Roughneck in Stillwater
“Stillwater follows an American oil-rig roughneck from Oklahoma who travels to Marseille to visit his estranged daughter, in prison for a murder she claims she did not commit,” reads the official synopsis. “Confronted with language barriers, cultural differences, and a complicated legal system, Bill builds a new life for himself in France as he makes it his personal mission to exonerate his daughter.”
ComingSoon’s Alyse Wax spoke to Stillwater star Abigail Breslin about her role prep, shooting in Marseille, and more. Check out the video or a transcript below.
Alyse Wax: What inspired you to take the role as Allison Baker?
Abigail Breslin: I’ve always been a fan of Tom McCarthy, his writing, and a fan of Matt’s as well. So getting to work with them was obviously a huge draw, but also just the story and how beautifully it was written and how complicated it was is always a dream for an actor.
How did you prepare for your role as an inmate basically?
I was lucky that I got to go to the actual prison and talk with a lot of people that worked there and kind of have a walkthrough of what my day-to-day life would be like in prison. I think that that was really helpful and luckily the script was already so it made my job a lot easier.
RELATED: Interview: Camille Cottin Talks Stillwater & What’s Unique About Marseille
What was it like shooting on the streets of Marseille instead of a studio?
I don’t think that there’s any way to really replicate Marseille. It’s such an interesting and unique city, so I couldn’t imagine filming it anywhere else. I think that it would be near impossible to kind of capture that energy had we been anywhere else.
Was working with Tom, everything you dreamed it would be?
Yeah, he’s honestly just such an amazing actor’s director. He really doesn’t rush through anything. He really gives you the time and the space to explore the characters and he just is brilliant. I loved working with him.
