Photo: John Sciulli/Getty
Jessica Chastainhas fond memories of makingThe HelpwithViola Davis.
On Monday, the Academy Award winner paid tribute to her former costar who was honored with the 48th Chaplin Award, recalling to PEOPLE how much fun they had while filmingThe Help.
“You know, we all had such a good time onThe Helpand we all had to gain weight because they wanted us to be curvier and that was a lot of fun,” Chastain, 46, tells PEOPLE. “All of us gals in Mississippi eating grits and caramel cake. Oh, we had a really good time.”
“They got us special food. It wasn’t typical crafty,” she adds of production going a step further than the usual snacks served at craft services. “It was like full-on ‘gain weight’ [food].”
As for honoring Davis, 57, along with a fellow legend likeMeryl Streep, Chastain joked that she was a bit confused — though Chastain holds three Oscar nominations and one win in 2022 forThe Eyes of Tammy Faye.
“I’m nervous. Literally, I’m like, what am I doing in this room?” she humbly shares. “But when Viola asks, I run, I’ll do what she — I am at her beck and call. So I am very happy to be here. I cannot hold the candle to some of the other luminaries in this room, but I’ll do my best to honor her, as best as I can.”
Dale Robinette/Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection (2)
The HelpearnedViola Davisher second Oscar nomination, but years later she said she regretted making the movie. Davis clarified that she’s still grateful for the bonds she made with Chastain,Emma Stone,Allison JanneyandBryce Dallas Howard.
“I just felt that at the end of the day that it wasn’t the voices of the maids that were heard,” Davis said in 2018. “I know Aibileen. I know Minny. They’re my grandma. They’re my mom. And I know that if you do a movie where the whole premise is, I want to know what it feels like to work for white people and to bring up children in 1963, I want to hear how you really feel about it. I never heard that in the course of the movie.”
“But not in terms of the experience and the people involved because they were all great,” she added of her appreciation of hanging with the ensemble on set. “The friendships that I formed are ones that I’m going to have for the rest of my life. I had a great experience with these other actresses, who are extraordinary human beings. And I could not ask for a better collaborator than [writer-director] Tate Taylor.”
From left: Julius Tennon, Meryl Streep, Viola Davis and Jessica Chastain.Zuma / SplashNews.com
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“These accomplishments barely scratch the surface of her incredible spirit,” theA Doll’s HouseBroadway star added. “She is Viola. The humanitarian. The mother. The wife. And I feel extraordinarily lucky to say, my friend.”
source: people.com
