Hollywood can try to shut up Jessica Chastain all it wants, but she's not about to stop calling out rampant sexism in her industry.
The Molly's Game actress said as much when she stopped by The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon last night. Consider this a "smashing the patriarchy" two-fer: Chastain's defiant comments about sexual harassment, even at the risk of professional backlash; and a skit mocking film auditions that expect every woman to be a throaty-voiced sexpot.
The "Every Audition Ever" skit sees Chastain auditioning for the role of a woman named Angela, which requires repeating one very basic line: "Hi, my name's Angela. Nice to meet you." Easy, right?
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The offscreen casting director's prompts, however, emphasize just how sexist this process can be. Could Angela sound hotter? Younger? More like a "spicy little peppermint"? Come to think of it, does it actually even matter what Angela says, so long as she's hot?
A male actor featured in the skit, however, has no such problems. He nails his one line and (presumably) lands the job, no sexist feedback necessary.
Speaking of male actors, Chastain also told Fallon that an unnamed colleague took it upon himself to email her about her tweets condemning sexual misconduct from industry figures like Harvey Weinstein.
"In the beginning when everything first started going on [allegations about Weinstein], I got an email from an actor who was like, 'you're using your platform a little irresponsibly, maybe you should just simmer down,'" she shared. "It was shocking to me. For me, when someone tells me 'no' or 'stop,' I'm like, 'oh, really?'... It just kind of emboldened me more."
Chastain added that "silence is complicity." Bottom line: No actor is going to keep her quiet — and shame on those who try.
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