Sienna Miller: ‘I feel everybody should be able to play everybody’

Sienna Miller at 76th Venice Film Festival

I’ve been seeing quotes from Sienna Miller’s Telegraph interview for days, but I never got around to caring, sorry not sorry. But that was before I knew she went Full ScarJo in the interview. If you remember, Scarlett Johansson is pretty sure she should be allowed to play “any person or any tree or any animal.” What ScarJo meant at the time was that she should be able to play Japanese characters or transgender characters and NOT BE CRITICIZED for it. That’s the argument Sienna Miller made too, plus there was a weird Harvey Weinstein story.

On being able to play anyone or anything: “I feel everybody should be able to play everybody. It seems absurd to me to start to legislate on creativity. That’s not trying to be insensitive – of course, there are people who have a deeper understanding of experiences, and they should definitely be considered… It feels like liberal is becoming almost fascistic in its controlling of what can and cannot be done. It feels dangerous to me. If you started to restrict me to playing English women who went to boarding school at eight, I would give up.”

On Harvey Weinstein & Me Too: She says Me Too ‘intersected unhappily with her own life’. Miller revealed she used to call Harvey Weinstein ‘Pops’ and said ‘on some level’ she did this to deflect her suspicions about him. She said: ‘I’d go, ‘Oi Pops, give us a job’, and he’d go, ‘Ah, stappit.” The actor, who worked with the disgraced film producer on numerous films including Factory Girl, also said no one ever ‘propositioned her for work with sex’, adding if they had she ‘would probably have slapped them’. She added that Weinstein did yell at her but that was ‘just Harvey’ and she would brush it off as he spoke to men in the same way. ‘I know that you couldn’t say no to Harvey if he asked you to do something. For me, it would be, like, an extra week of press, so I imagine in a situation where it’s sexual, it would also be hard to say no, and that’s crushing.’

[From The Daily Mail]

There’s been a weird movement with actresses talking about their lowkey experiences with Harvey Weinstein in the past month or so. Renee Zellweger took pains to say that Harvey never did anything to her, and Jennifer Aniston said he only tried to bully her into wearing Marchesa. Now Sienna is saying that she called him “Pops” and he never propositioned her or anything. I get that these women are being asked and they’re answering honestly. But it feels very much like “look, he wasn’t raping and abusing EVERYBODY.” Which isn’t the f–king point.

As for what she says about “legislating on creativity,” baby girl can NOT play anything other than an English woman, so… I don’t know what she’s going on about. She can’t do any accent other than British, so it’s like she has to choose between “Posh” and “Cockney” and that’s her range. “It feels like liberal is becoming almost fascistic in its controlling of what can and cannot be done.” Again, it’s not some huge liberal conspiracy to say that maybe cisgender peeps shouldn’t play transgender characters for awards. It’s not a huge liberal conspiracy to say that marginalized communities could use some genuine representation on-screen, rather than having ScarJo and Sienna Miller play every f–king role.

Film Premiere of American Woman

Photos courtesy of WENN.

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95 Responses to “Sienna Miller: ‘I feel everybody should be able to play everybody’”

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  1. Mignionette says:

    ALL LIVES MATTER….

    • Wilady says:

      I don’t think that’s what she’s doing, come on. They asked, she answered honestly. She’s speaking her truth and should be able to just like the women who were assaulted. She shouldn’t be shamed for not having a salacious story, and she IS NOT excusing his behavior, nor toning it down, just speaking on how it was for her. That is what she called him, that is what he did, that’s what she did. The end.

      • Athyrmose says:

        Her ‘truth’ about representation, and diversity, is that she is uninformed.

        So, yes, this is a very ALL LIVES MATTER, response.

      • Anna says:

        There is no “her” truth, so let’s stop spreading that misconception. There is truth, period, and there is her own experience, but those two things are not the same.

        She’s a lovely, privileged white lady. And there’s certainly many of those. But let’s not pretend that she has the experience to speak for every actor. She doesn’t and she overstepped by talking about “everybody”. Her privilege is showing and we should absolutely call her out on it.

      • Turtleshell says:

        THANK YOU. How else are women who DIDN’T have a violent or abusive encounter with him supposed to answer? Not even the worst rapist is going to attack every single person. I don’t understand condemning every woman who honestly says “well, he didn’t do this to ME” as them trying to defend him or minimize the victims or his crimes. Sometimes, it’s just the truth. In my opinion, She handled this better than many – it’s honest but doesn’t minimize, and still speaks to a general unease she felt that further validates the accusations. To me, expressing that unease is key – the truth of the matter is that sometimes the most sinister of predators put on an angelic and kindly face to many people, and calling out those trying to work through a dissonance like that is unkind, and honestly does victims no favors – pointing out that the wolves in sheep’s clothing still bleat like a lamb for some people gives less ammo to those who want us to believe that predators only come in one shape or form, and discount the experiences of their victims as a result.

      • Carol says:

        I could kind of understand what Sienna said about feeling restricted on what kind of characters she is “allowed” to play. I don’t think its coming from “white privilege” but rather trying to navigate a new landscape. The pendulum has swung from the right to the left. Both are ridiculous IMO. Hopefully the pendulum will swing more to the middle soon. And I don’t think there is a “movement” of actors that claim they weren’t assaulted by Weinstein. If they weren’t assaulted, why aren’t they allowed to say that? I don’t hear them saying Weinstein isn’t a monster. Just that they were spared for whatever reason that kind of experience.

      • Wilady says:

        Ok well I was an idiot. I’m just talking about the Harvey stuff, to be clear, not her wanting to play every part. There needs to be more diversity in film and media, and I’m all for that. I probably shouldn’t comment within two minutes of waking up, I’m not the clearest. Apologies.

    • Joanna says:

      Yes!!! 👍🙌🙌

  2. Tiffany says:

    *head hits desk reading title of story*

    * life head up and goes back to read story*

    *head hits desk after reading story*

  3. Keekee says:

    I actually thought her accent was on point in American Sniper the American accent that shock me are Kate Winslet and the actress from Gone Girl they are terrible.

    • amilou says:

      She was also pretty credible in a movie called American Woman in which she played a low-class homewrecker. I mean… her accent was pretty good. 😉

      • Fluffy Donuts says:

        She probably related to that role the most…

      • Justwastingtime says:

        I think she has an American mother? so presumably she should be able to manage that accent.

        Also cause I am shallow like that.. hideous dress

    • Earthbound says:

      Agree, I avoid any movie where Winslet is playing an American, her accent is the extreme end of the annoying American sound.

  4. Rapunzel says:

    Quick! Someone fund a franchise for Sienna and Scarjo so they can play trees for the rest of their lives. These grand thespians need to stretch their craft.

    • Lightpurple says:

      Coming soon to a cinema near you: Scarlet Johansson and Sienna Miller in A Pippin Has Fallen, the true behind the scenes story of how a rising Macintosh sapling shoved a well established orchard favorite out of the way to grab the staring roll as the brutalized Apple tree in The Wizard of Oz.

  5. Reef says:

    This is dumb and misses the point entirely. It’s especially galling coming from actresses that aren’t skilled enough to play the roles that were made for them.

  6. LadyLaw says:

    I mean if her point is that any number of actresses from diverse backgrounds could have done a better job than her in her roles then yes I agree.

  7. BlueSky says:

    When you are accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression

    • Jadedone says:

      So true, never heard someone say it so eloquently:)

    • Mignionette says:

      YEP, pretty much this.

      That pedestal is no longer looking so safe….

    • ItReallyIsYou,NotMe says:

      Thank you! I have been struggling to articulate this for a long time and you killed it!

    • Anna says:

      That’s exactly what her problem is (and people like her). She thinks that jobs are being withheld from her, yet it doesn’t occur to her that other people have jobs withheld from them ALL THE TIME due to the color of their skin or their sexual identity. All she sees is how it affects her.

    • TQ says:

      @Bluesky — This!

    • Storminachinateacup says:

      This by 1000% she’s fully aware of Britain’s past regarding the lack of opportunities for black actors in the UK leading them to migrate to Hollywood for work. She could have shown a lot more awareness but she chose not to. Defending Scarlet just makes her look like she feels threatened.

  8. Classicmoviecat says:

    Maybe that’s why she’s playing nobody nowhere lately

  9. Who ARE These People? says:

    Not bothering to look it up, but it sounds like she is an English woman who went to boarding school at age eight.

  10. Frida_K says:

    Güera says what?

  11. Jerusha says:

    If “everybody can play everybody“ means that Naomie Harris can play Jackie Kennedy or Gugu Mbatha-Raw can play Queen Elizabeth I or Octavia Spencer can play POTUS, then I’m all for it, but somehow it always seems to mean white actresses can play everybody and that’s already how it works.

    • StormsMama says:

      @jerusha
      YES!!! This!!!

      So utterly tone def and privileged of her. Just take one day out of the year Sienna to get your head out of your arse and reflect on what you are saying and why it’s insensitive and ignorant at best and idiotic and insulting and marginalizing at worst

    • Christina says:

      Thank you. Lupita can play Cleopatra. I’d pay to see that.

  12. Sunnee says:

    There is a grain of truth in what she says. For example Jeffrey Wright, an African American actor has played Basquiat and he’s played an English character. So did Forrest Whittaker, in the Crying Game. Whittaker also played Idi Amin. The Wayan Bros played white women, Tyler Perry plays black women all the time. Idris played an African American character in The Wire. A couple years ago a few African American Actors were not happy that Black British actors were being given roles as AA characters in American movies. Likewise Tilda S played Bob Dylan. I think actors should be given roles that challenge them. But, we all know when it crosses the line. It’s like what the Supreme Court said about porn, it’s hard to define but We know it when we see it.. Peter Sellers playing French detective Clousseau was not offensive but when he played a Chinese detective in Murder by Death, with all the racist tropes, it was offensive. Scarjo playing a Japanese character is no longer her being challenged but rather it’s co-opting and over stepping. It’s not fascism to be asked to be sensitive to other cultures and communities.
    As for Weinstein, I don’t know. The denial by some sound a little… too contrived.

  13. stepup says:

    People’s ability to have compassion for marginalized groups (I.e., not complain about PC culture) is limited to one’s past actions. So, like, if you’ve never shot and killed an innocent unarmed person before, you can tolerate that being in the “bad” category. If, however, you once used certain words or held (what you’re now learning are) oppressive beliefs (wittingly or not), then you’ll get defensive about those things being labeled unacceptable and hop on the “PC has gone to far!” train. Because part of the human condition is believing we’re much better people than we are, and it’s excruciatingly difficult for people to see their true faults.

  14. CROWHOOD says:

    Everybody:
    Sienna Miller: OI LOOK AT ME

  15. J says:

    Off topic, but how much work has she had done? It doesn’t even look like her in the pink dress.

    • Mar says:

      Totally!!! The first pic is obvious that she has had some injections and I don’t like it at all. She has such great bone structure and doesn’t need that at all. The bottom pics she is way more natural and beautiful!!

    • severine says:

      Thank you! I was thinking the same thing. Her face looks swollen. Why would she need any work at her age?

  16. Layla Beans says:

    She’s an idiot. The end.

  17. Originaltessa says:

    I go both ways sometimes. Do I think an able bodied person can play a paraplegic? Or can a gay guy play straight and vice versa? Sure, of course. It’s acting. Should a woman play a trans m to f? No, I don’t think so. Should Emma Stone play an Asian character? Yeah, noooooo!!!!

    • megs283 says:

      I disagree due to that fact that there ARE disabled actors who are not getting jobs in Hollywood due to their physical limitations. Speechless actually cast an actor with CP to play a character with CP…and it’s awesome.

      Or, at least give everyone a fair chance in the casting call. If the person can’t act, don’t pick them.

  18. Mignionette says:

    10 -12 years ago she was the talk of the town, now she is barely being cast…. cue the more out there sound bites.

    She needs to hone her craft and literally graft and use what little platform she has left to make a real difference and not allow herself to get sidelined into these debates which inevitably will weaken her brand.

    • Christina says:

      Yeah, Sienna sure did just weaken her brand. So tired of this shit.

      Used to like Scarlett. Et tu, Sienna? Et Tu?

      She made some movies I really liked. Now I know that she is self-absorbed and doesn’t care about me and my people or our stories. Why don’t they see how disrespectful this is to marginalized people? We are a massive market, but White/cis folks control the access to roles, so this will continue until the folks of color who make art get to run white dominated media institutions. Yeah, there are a few exceptions to the white/cis rule, but not enough to combat this crap.

  19. Myrtle says:

    I agree everybody should be “allowed” to play everybody, in a general sense, but everybody shouldn’t be CAST to play everybody. Not in a film. Actors act, and a really good one can play any role well. But that doesn’t mean directors should hire white people to play black or Asian people, cis people to play trans people, and so on. Give everyone a chance, oh white people of privilege. Be gracious and woke and step aside.

  20. A says:

    Why is Sienna Miller still a thing? her Harvey’s Girl days are long gone now so who is still taking care of her glorious career?

  21. Digital Unicorn says:

    Girlfriend is butt hurt she’s not getting roles, she’s not a bad actress but her personal life/antic’s always overshadow her work and that means people will think twice about hiring her.

    Sienna has always been a bit of a shallow airhead – plus what has she done to her face. In some shots she’s almost unrecognisable.

  22. Valiantly Varnished says:

    Meanwhile I as a black actress was told that my career would ALWAYS be limited because I’m black and can’t play “every” role. But sure white blonde lady you TOTALLY should be able to play Rose Parks. FOH. I am so sick kf these privileged blonde white actresses with limited acting range thinking THEY should have access to every role. But why do they feel that way? Because they HAVE always had access to every role. White actresses have played asian women, black women Latina women for DECADES. But now that WOC are gaining more visibility within the industry and parts are being played by them you have chicks like Sienna and ScarJo whining.

    • GirlMonday says:

      GIRL!!!! Say it one more time and louder for the cheap seats in the back.

    • BlueSky says:

      No lies detected

    • TQ says:

      Truth!

    • Melanie says:

      100 percent!

    • Nan says:

      Yes! Also, I would like to see, oh, maybe an indigenous Australian actor play Sienna in the Sienna Miller life story, because that wouldn’t bother her at all, right?

    • Bookworm says:

      That’s just stupid. There are so many roles that don’t depend on a person’s color, etc.

      For example, in the book The Bone Collector, the character isn’t black but Denzel played him in the film. Just get the best actor!

      That’s where the change needs to be. Not just make more “black” movies, but put nonwhite people in roles that have nothing to do with color.

    • kerwood says:

      @VV, Very well said.

      I’m a bit disappointed in Sienna Miller because I sort of liked her in the past. I never thought she was a great actress but she was charming.

      But actresses like her and Scarlett Johnansen are getting nervous because they’re going to need more than being White women with nice asses to get by. There are a whole crop of Black actresses who have nice asses too AND they can act. I’m sure Zendaya is keeping a lot of White actresses up at night.

  23. Chimney says:

    Sienna Miller isn’t a strong actress so why would she say this?? She was something like an It Girl for a second but only in the UK and only because she is rich, pretty, and liked to party. She can barely do any role and should hush up.

  24. Valerie says:

    This isn’t going to help you get a role, Sienna.

  25. Amaria says:

    With her acting range, it’s a rather funny opinion to have. She can barely play a white British chick.

  26. Lilah casting says:

    Yeah sienna that’s the problem not you the fact she can’t act or that her personal life is a mess.

  27. Flying Fish says:

    Shut up Sienna and crawl back under that cannot act rock from whence you came.

  28. DaisySharp says:

    Another idiot. At least we don’t have to see her everywhere, unlike Scarjo.

  29. Savannah says:

    With her logic why not just go back to men playing women? Let’s do that cause we can’t limit who plays who.
    Sienna is privileged and ignorant. She would get the idea if she couldn’t get work because men where prefered to play women.

  30. Melanie says:

    She should stick to her favorite role of homewrecker. She’s very good at it.

  31. MariaS says:

    I love how these rich, white liberals suddenly find liberalism so much like fascism when they learn it’s time to make room at the table for the people whose stories have been ignored altogether or white washed.

    • StormsMama says:

      @marias
      She doesn’t sound “liberal” at all-
      Let’s not get into that-
      But I agree with your observation – it’s on point
      (Though I find sarcasm immature and loathsome)
      And I appreciate you calling her out

      • Joanna says:

        I love sarcasm! To me, being sarcastic takes more wit and is funnier than just jokes. I love a dry sense of humor.

      • MariaS says:

        Yes, that’s my point. She doesn’t sound liberal here at all now that she feels she has something to lose, but she has described her upbringing and herself that way.

  32. Suzieq359 says:

    Without the description I wouldn’t have known it was her. What has she done to her face?

  33. JRenee says:

    I think she wants to be clear she wasn’t a Weinstein victim. I understand that. She didn’t defend him, she just doesn’t want to be mistaken for one of his victims…

    The everyone should be able to play everyone, un huh. Just stop casting folks without diversifying. She’s oblivious with that..

  34. Faye G says:

    She’s not very… bright, is she? Equating a reasonable discussion about representation on film with “liberal fascism” is completely daft. The other commenters are right, seems she’s just looking for attention after her It girl days have faded.

  35. Lucy2 says:

    This argument again? Did she not see how people reacted to Scarlett? Everyone can play everyone when truly EVERYONE has equal opportunity. We’re not there, so Scarlett and Sienna can just sit down and give someone else a chance.

    Also, I have no issue with her sharing her experience with Weinstein, but it would be nice for her to express a little sympathy for those he did harm.

  36. Forwhatitsworth says:

    Hollywood has spent years excluding minorities and that is something that needs to change – 100%. Hopefully with the huge commercial successes of films like Crazy Rich Asians and Black Panther that discrimination will continue to change for the better.

    Separately, it might also be true that confining roles to a certain type of person could be a negative. It sucks that Hollywood missed a chance to cast an awesome Japanese actress instead of mediocre ScarJo for Major Kusanagi, a Japanese cartoon, but it doesn’t suck that Disney cast Halle Bailey, a woman of color, as a caucasian cartoon, or that marvel chose a female Captain Marvel.

    So I don’t think they’re necessarily wrong when they argue that anyone should be able to play anyone, but I think that what these women are missing is that until the inequality from point one has been better resolved, it’s difficult to have one conversation without the other.

  37. Izzy says:

    Oh, do shut up, Sienna.

  38. Edo says:

    If everybody can play everybody then the idea of illusion as in physical resemblance will be discarded. Not sure that is possible in its entirety.

  39. sue denim says:

    On HW, I think what some of these women may be saying is that he was hiding in plain site, the very fact he didn’t assault all women, gave him a certain credibility and in to others. I used to see him at film festivals, he was always surrounded by women and handlers, we all knew he was beyond abusive in negotiations and dealings throughout a film project, he was completely slovenly and gross, yet somehow we believed the beautiful women were with him by choice…? How did we miss that his behavior everywhere else, to everyone else wouldn’t extend to vulnerable young women?

    And yes, on a separate note, the whole white privilege of wanting to play anyone is ick…

  40. Dizzy says:

    I kind of get what’s she’s saying about anyone playing anybody. There’s many stage plays where women play male characters now. Particularly Shakespeare plays. Also colour blind casting in Shakespeare plays. Where you can have a black woman playing Juliet even though historically Juliet would have been white. and yes Romeo and Juliet are based on real people.

    • kerwood says:

      No, the story of Romeo and Juliet was NOT based on real people. Brush up your Shakespeare. There’s a balcony in Verona that’s called ‘Juliet’s balcony’ but it’s just an attraction for the tourists.

  41. Hmmm says:

    She doesn’t look like herself anymore

  42. Marianne says:

    And in a perfect world, sure. But until other actors who are of different sexual/gender/race etc are truly equal and getting the same opportunities as everyone, take a seat. You Sienna, are still gonna find roles whether you’re playing a british woman who went to baording school or not.

  43. Rose says:

    Wasn’t Sienna RIDING THE METOO WAVE JUST A FEW MONTHS AGO? She is the upmost hypocrite for this AND the fact that everybody KNOWS in or outside the industry that she was a Harvey girl. She legit owes her careet to him, her bf and her who!sh ways (never forget her Getty Baltazaar affair, her mom was very much validating as well, as she vacationed with the pair). This girl should thank her lucky stars. I almost wish Harvey’s team made sure to destroy these women who validated Harvey’s disgusting behavior by revealing their dirt.

  44. Kyra says:

    The fact that sienna thinks she shouldn’t be confined to her race and class in her casting the way the rest of actors (ie not the famous ones) are is reflective of both her career privilege and her white privilege. I certainly can’t play English girls who went to boarding school at eight, nor Irish nor, for that matter, American. But to speak to my personal experience, for example, I get to watch non-jews tell my story all the time. I can only imagine how much more infuriating it must be to be a person of color and watch your stories being told by actors in parts they themselves should play, or to watch movies with roles intended for a person of color that have been rewritten for a white person, and on and on.

  45. S says:

    “I think everybody should be able to play everybody,” Ms Miller said. “For instance, I’m playing a twat in this interview right now, and aren’t I amazing at it?”

  46. tw says:

    She’s not the sharpest knife in the drawer, is she?

  47. Well-Wisher says:

    I hope that sentiment will include all trained thespians who can actually act irregardless of their age, race or gender.
    I suspect she is only concerned about her career in spite of her limited range.

  48. Ladygyms says:

    So if I get you correctly celebitchy Sienna has no talent and should be restricted to play only posh British characters. But if a white wiman has talent wants to play a Chinese we need to look for a talentless Chinese to make the minorities happy. But we need to shut up Sienna sounds like but y’all are saying the samething but from your own standpoint. So there is no discrimination my money my film my choice. When you have your money make your own rules then.