'11
I’m kind of bummed that I’m not going to be watching HBO’s Mildred Pierce, but I guess I’ll just end up watching it whenever it comes out on DVD. It premieres this coming Sunday, and it looked good. Anyway, for those who aren’t watching it, Kate Winslet plays the resilient matriarch and Evan Rachel Wood plays the spoiled-bitch daughter. Everything is Depression-era, period detailing. Even the biscuits, you know? Meaning there were no Brazilian waxes during the Depression. So when it came time for Evan Rachel Wood to discuss her nude scene, her screen mom Kate Winslet gave her a word of advice: go for the biscuit merkin.
To prepare for the part of Mildred Pierce’s daughter, Veda, in HBO’s depression-era miniseries “Mildred Pierce,” Evan Rachel Wood worked for months with piano and dialect coaches. But there was one aspect of the role that no amount of studying could ready her for – full-frontal nudity.
“I was a lot more nervous than I thought I was going to be,” Wood said of the shocking scene she has at the end of the series’ fifth and final installment opposite Kate Winslet, who stars as Mildred Pierce.
“I hadn’t made my mind up if I was going to go full until we were rehearsing, and I was talking to Todd [Haynes, the series' writer and director] – like ‘What do you think?’ – and he was like, ‘I think we’re going to be chickening out if we don’t just go for it.’”
At a New York press event for the miniseries, a retelling of the classic James M. Cain novel, Wood told us she credits Winslet, who famously bared all in “The Reader,” for giving her the courage to strip. “I looked at Kate and she was like, ‘You’ve got to do it. Trust me, it’s so brave. Put a merkin on and you’ll be fine.’” A merkin? “Let’s just say, I had to wear a wig because it was in the 30s, and everything had to look like it was in the 30s,” explained Wood with a laugh.
“Kate helped me,” she continued. “She gave me strength. She kind of dared me. I also felt I had to prove it to myself. I had to do it at least once — get it all on film now so when I’m 80 I can look back at it and say, ‘Yeah! I did that!’”
What about “True Blood,” a show that seems to have nudity written into ever actor’s contract? Wood, who stars as vampire queen Sophie-Anne, said she’s still waiting to be asked to disrobe. But even then, she nervously confessed, “I don’t know. It depends. I can’t say I had a lot of fun.”
[From Fancast]
If I had ERW’s body, I would be all “can we get more nudity into the contract?” But I suppose every woman feels like her body isn’t up to snuff, etc. It’s funny to think that there is such a thing as period-detailed pubic hair, but it makes sense. Have you ever looked at 1970s porn? It’s amazing how different the body and the hair situations were even a few decades ago.
By the way, you know what ERW is doing right now? She’s filming in Cincinnati, being directed by George Clooney in The Ides of March. Clooney “hand-picked” her for the role after telling her that she goes from “innocent to sexy in the drop of a hat.” Yeah… Clooney wants to see her biscuit merkin.
Also – is the Marilyn Manson stuff over? I think it is, but you never know. I hope ERW realizes that she could do much better.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
Written by Kaiser
Posted in Evan Rachel Wood, Kate Winslet
- Heidi Klum is a rock singer now [Crazy Days and Nights]
- Heidi Klum never gets it right [Go Fug Yourself]
- Lots of gorgeous photos of Tom Hardy [Lainey Gossip]
- Kate Moss is wasted [D-Listed]
- Marvel creates superhero for boy with a hearing aid! [Jezebel]
- Daniel Radcliffe wants a superhero movie [Evil Beet]
- Cool photo of couple marrying - with tornado in background [Fark]
- The best onscreen wedding parties [Buzzsugar]
- Men in Black III review [Pajiba]
- Obama bogarts the weed [Gawker]
46 Responses to “Evan Rachel Wood says Kate Winslet convinced her to wear a biscuit merkin”
Leave a Reply
By commenting you agree to our comment policy
Use the "Report this comment as spam or abuse" link to ask the moderators to delete a comment if it's offensive. If your comment disappears, it may have been eaten by the spam filter. Please e-mail cbcomments at gmail.com to get it retrieved.
Get an icon next to your name by signing up for a free Gravatar
So she was fine basically having sex on camera with Manson for that creepy as hell Heart Shaped Glasses music video, but Kate Winslet had to convince her to get naked? Suuuuure………
Report this comment as spam or abuse
what makes me laugh is how they have pubic wigs, when hello they all have their own hair they could just not wax for a bit? hardly a tough task.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
LOL….biscuit merkin!
This should be a good miniseries, can’t wait!
Report this comment as spam or abuse
@Violet, that’s what I was thinkin’ too. Then I realized those rich, lucky bitches probably got permanent hair removal.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
Seems like I saw that Marilyn Manson and Diana Agron were somewhere together. I hope I’m mistaken.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
Biscuit merkin sounds like something served in a little chi chi cafe…….
Report this comment as spam or abuse
It kind of makes me throw up a bit to contemplate ERW’s biscuit. It’s been with Marilyn Manson. Talk about taint.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
Yeah but we all have crummy guys in our past that we can’t believe now that we ever dated.
I know when I saw my ex a couple of summers ago I could hardly imagine being anywhere near him, let alone dating him for almost 5 years.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
so, is it really full frontal nudity if they’re sporting a merkin?
the wig would certainly cover any, errr, distinguishing details.
if i were an actress and was asked to go full frontal i’d feel more comfortable with a merkin.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
Funny, she’s done a nude photoshoot, and of course, that stupid video with Marilyn Manson. Now she gets all shy and has to be convinced?
She’s a good actress but I just don’t like her as a person.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
Hmmmmm….Wonder if I could use the word “merkin” when I play Scrabble? LOL
Report this comment as spam or abuse
Well depending on how long they’ve been waxing their pubic hairs can affect whether they can grow hair down there anymore or in a uniformed fashion/natural pattern.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
I don’t know about you guys but I know for me, It takes easily a couple of months or more to grow it out so it looks thick enough as if it’d never been removed. I can see the need for a merkin.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
I could wax it all off today and tomorrow be fully tufted. Really, it’s a losing battle, so I lost it and am happy. Good thing I’m old and married and my husband doesn’t care.
ERW is such a pretty girl, she looks lovely in the photos above. She’s still tainted from the whole Manson thing, though. Dita, too. What is up with these gorgeous women and that awful, awful man?
Report this comment as spam or abuse
I agree Edith, I think she is really pretty, and also a good actress, but the MM thing makes her a little icky.
I’m looking forward to this, I saw a preview for it on HBO the other day. I’ll watch Kate Winslet in just about anything.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
It is NOT “brave” to do full frontal in a movie. Bravery connotes a noble sacrifice made to benefit someone else. Actors are just attention starved exhibitionists who like to show off their buff bodies.
It would be “brave” of her to give one of her kidneys to a child on the wait list, or it would be “brave” of her to run into a burning building and save someone’s life. But standing nude in flattering light and having someone film it is not brave.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
What is a biscuit merkin????
Report this comment as spam or abuse
The irony is that here in Brazil the so called “Brazilian wax” doesn’t mean the completely shaved look, it’s more like a well-trimmed landing strip.
Many call it “Hitler’s Little Moustache” (but I don’t like relating something that’s supposed to be good to a mass murderer).
Report this comment as spam or abuse
It.can take @ least a couple months to ‘restyle’… so I can def see the need for biscuit merkins.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
@Jenna- MM said that they actually were having sex on camera for that video, but who knows.
Maybe EWR was just nervous to be seen with a bush.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
I like the way the director says to her “we’d” be chickening out if “we” don’t do it.. Nice!
Report this comment as spam or abuse
I’m so excited to see this! The miniseries, not her biscuit.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
Oh, Todd Haynes is the director! I love his movies, I must see this miniseries.
I love ERW, she’s so beautiful in a classy way, her skin is amazing and I usually like the way she’s styled.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
@Kaiser: I think Clooney is already seeing her biscuit merkin in a while. Did you see how happy he looked while shooting in Cincinnati? How affectionate she was with him and his parents on the set? No signs of EC near him, just saying…And as I said before: let the rumours begin!
Report this comment as spam or abuse
@ jessica – Basically, it’s a pube-wig.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
In college, we created an imaginary student named Harry Merkin and sign him up for classes. Then when the professor called attendance….
Report this comment as spam or abuse
@ Violet: Kate Winslet said that for The Reader, she tried to grow it out, but she’d been waxing so long, it wouldn’t fully grow in.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
I think “Biscuit Merkin” was going to be Ashlee and Pete’s next kid’s name if they’d have stayed together…
Report this comment as spam or abuse
LOL @ bobster
Report this comment as spam or abuse
Thank you Bellaluna!! Good grief!! LMAO!!
Report this comment as spam or abuse
meh, she’s not even that good of an actress.
I thought she was painfully bad (and annoying) in True Blood.
and the MM taint will take years to wash off. as MichaelK would say…”ick. nast.”
Report this comment as spam or abuse
Ita Audrey..
Report this comment as spam or abuse
@OriginalGracie:Cosign that!
Report this comment as spam or abuse
Kate Winslet also had a pretty nakey scene in Jude. It was a child birth scene with lots of blood. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like it in a more or less mainstream movie.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
Biscuit Merkin should be the name of a band.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
@Nudgie: Hahahahaha, that is priceless!
Report this comment as spam or abuse
I’m excited for this movie. However, is anyone else offended that Kate Winslet is playing mother to ERW????!!!! Wouldn’t an actress 10 years older than KW make more sense? There are so many………
Report this comment as spam or abuse
@Anti-icon: I read that ERW doesn’t even show up until the last 2 hours of the 5hr long miniseries. The miniseries covers Kate Winslet’s character over Veda’s (ERW’s character) childhood into adulthood, so Winslet has to cover 20 years or so of aging.
BTW, am I the only one who thinks that ERW is a wretchedly horrible actress?? I literally cringe watching her on True Blood…
Report this comment as spam or abuse
They must’ve cut some scenes from The Reader because Kate’s biscuit cover was nowhere in sight.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
So basically she didnt want to do it but was talked into it. ggrrreeaaatt =(
Report this comment as spam or abuse
LOVE her! She’s one of the most talented and underrated young actresses in Hollywood!
Report this comment as spam or abuse
@JustALark – merkin isn’t in the official Scrabble dictionary.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
This is a hoot, I remember when Mary-Louise Parker explained in an interview that she’d demanded a merkin when she did “Angels in America,” because a Mormon wasn’t about to have a landing strip. Parker’s one of those naturally thin people as we know, and she mentioned in the interview (before “Angels’” release) that the merkin was going to look huge and jungley… and she was right! I support merkins because I think waxing looks stupid, unless you have the kind of pubes that travel away from your mound.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
“a Mormon wasn’t about to have a landing strip.”
Uh…really? How can anyone actually KNOW that?!?!?
Report this comment as spam or abuse
#31, completely agree.
#38, it’s not just you. I don’t even watch True Blood, but I’ve always thought ERW was a horrible actress. She looks pretty in these pictures, but in general I don’t find her attractive in the least. And of course, the whole MM thing taints her as well. She was cute as a kid, though.
Report this comment as spam or abuse
@Eve – in the States, when you denote “brazilian wax”, it mostly means you have your butt crack waxed. Sounds painful to me. Thank God I am not hairy.
Report this comment as spam or abuse