Margot Robbie thought about quitting Hollywood after Wolf Of Wall Street
Margot Robbie muses over the frustrations of stardom and reflects on one of her "lowest moments" after Wolf Of Wall Street premiered
Aux News Margot Robbie
The trials and tribulations of fame have caused many a star to wonder: How can I go on? Funny how most of them seem to go on anyway. But that doesn’t negate how invasive and cruel fame can be, as Margot Robbie learned after starring in Martin Scorsese’s Wolf Of Wall Street at just 22 years old. The blonde bombshell role catapulted her to stardom so intense that she considered hitting the brakes on her career entirely.
Navigating instant fame after Wolf Of Wall Street was one of Robbie’s “lowest moments,” according to a new profile in Vanity Fair. “Something was happening in those early stages and it was all pretty awful, and I remember saying to my mom, ‘I don’t think I want to do this,’” she recalls. “And she just looked at me, completely straight-faced, and was like, ‘Darling, I think it’s too late not to.’ That’s when I realized the only way was forward.”
Among the actor’s classic frustrations are fake tabloid news (“You want to correct it, but you just can’t. You have to, I don’t know, look the other way”) and press junkets. “They only want sound bites and I don’t resent them for it, I get it—they’ve got three minutes,” she shares. “But it’s like tap dancing through a minefield because you’re so tired and you’ve done it for hours and hours, and to keep on guard all the time…. You can say it right a thousand times, but you say it wrong once, you’re fucked.”
Robbie herself has become accustomed to an A-lister’s life: “I know how to go through airports, and now I know who’s trying to fuck me over in what ways.” What bothers her, understandably, is when her family gets caught in the crossfire. “If my mom dies in a car accident because you wanted a photo of me going in the grocery shop, or you knock my nephew off a bike—for what? For a photo? It’s dangerous but still weirdly nothing feels like it changes.”
Put that way, one does wonder why anyone would sign up for stardom. “The way I try to explain this job—and this world—to people is that the highs are really high, and the lows are really, really low,” Robbie tells the outlet. “And I guess if you’re lucky, it all balances out in the middle.”
44 Comments
Protect her. She seems like a really delightful person.
Watching her facial expressions in the scene in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood where she goes to the theatre and watches herself on screen for the first time made it clear to me that she isn’t just exceptionally beautiful, she’s also extremely talented. Her face told and sold the story 100%.
Agreed on the Once Upon A Time In Hollywood scene. She was also fantastic in I, Tonya. I’ve watched that movie multiple times now, not because I am a big Tonya Harding fan, but because Margot Robbie sold me so hard on the movie.
Haven’t seen that yet! Wasn’t that interested in it but maybe I’ll check it out on strength of Margot’s performance
She’s completely naked in several scenes of this movie, so yes, she’s definitely come a long way.
That’s the thing about this article’s tone-it reminds me of the Sharon Stone Basic Instinct muff shot, and relevant consequences. Stone has proven herself to be a decent actress for sure(Casino?). But it’s a way to break into instant stardom using a guaranteed iconic thingy or whatever you call it?
Allison Janney also kills in her role, tho you won’t like her because she plays such a hateful person.
She was also fantastic in I, Tonya.The amazing thing about that performance is that she said she had no idea of who Tonya Harding was before she took the role.
“The amazing thing about that performance is that she said she had no idea of who Tonya Harding was before she took the role.”
It’s not like she did an impression of Harding.
That’s the moment I knew she wasn’t just an A-lister but a straight up movie star. When your face can hold the attention of the camera like that, it’s a rare talent.
Tarantino: “That’s great, babe. OK, let’s set up for the foot shot!”
Im very glad she’s come so far in almost ten years. I wish her all the best. Its quite clear she is magnificently talented.
Next Margot Robbie AVClub article “What Margot Robbie Ate Last Week”
*Insert Slideshow w/ 5 ad pages*
….ok?
Don’t they have paparazzi on Krypton?
TMZod?
This is a weird thing to say, but she should try to be more like Harley Quinn
Yeah, I definitely think she should *looks up Harley Quinn* be more like the abused sidekick of psychopath.
be more like Harley Quinn
Like, more murdery you mean?
Also I like the multi-colored pigtails
Or at least carry a baseball bat everywhere just in case.
Or, as in the gif, do cocaine as if one had an entire pallet of it.
On the other hand no one told Daniel Day Lewis what he could or couldn’t do in such matters.
She’s one of those down-to-earth, talented, beautiful celebrities who if I had just a chance to be near for a just a moment, she would look in my direction and ask “Who’s that?” as she sees a 6′-3″ male model standing behind me.
I assumed it was harassment over The Scene, which in a sense I guess it was, but it sounds like she wasn’t ready to be tossed immediately into the center of the Hollywood universe. Her mom was right, though.
sounds rough! I feel for her!
I have to say I unfairly mischaracterized Robbie when she first started out because I foolishly thought she was like the characters she portrayed. Since then, she’s vividly proved me wrong by turning in stunning performance that have nothing to do with how she looks, and doing even more interesting work behind the scenes.
She considered retiring because after The Wolf Of Wall Street, the next thing on her desk was The Marmosets Of Mediterranean Avenue: A Monopoly Story
Wasn’t she already pretty well-known in Australia (and by extension, most of Europe) because of Neighbors? I would think the infamous tabloids down there would have already given her prep work for dealing with the same in Hollywood.
Being an Aussie, but not a Neighbours watcher, I hadn’t heard of her until Wolf. The tabloids here mostly focusses on the bigger here and I am not sure she was a big enough name at the time, despite 300+ episodes. I don’t think she was known outside the Neighbours fanbase.
No one in Australia watches Neighbours. It was like Fosters – it’s shit we sell to the Poms.Half the time we here about “famous Aussie actors” is when they’re already famous elsewhere – cultural cringe is real.Hell, most don’t even bother working in Australia. Most are straight on the plane to LA (or London) as soon as they turn 18.I knew one or two in uni who’d gone over, failed to make it, and come back…
We have this weird thing in Australia where we don’t give a shit about our celebrities unless they are popular overseas. Steve Erwin was a no one until he left for the US to make it big, then suddenly he’s a celebrity.
Yep, tall poppy syndrome is definitely a thing here in Australia. There’s a sweet spot of fame, where we don’t want to know you, until we suddenly love you, until we suddenly don’t. Very weird.
Australian here – she hadn’t really registered with me before Wolf of Wall Street. The only thing I’d seen her in before that was the original Australian version of Review With Myles Barlow
She was recognisable from Neighbours (long-running soap opera in Australia, at one point stupidly-popular here in the UK, but now since cancelled) but she wasn’t someone who really stood out, even if that programme helped launch multiple careers (Kylie Minogue, Guy Pearce amongst others). It doesn’t help that, heh, Neighbours was dull as hell.
I don’t think anyone wonders why people sign up for stardom. Money, free shit, recognition, money, adoration, maybe money.
Well, she signed up to be an actress. That’s not quite the same as signing up for stardom. She’s utilizing her passion and talent with other talented people. There’s satisfaction in THAT, too.
each have their own ideas
No huge loss if she drops out of the spotlight.
I mean, I get it “The AV Club” but I am confused by the tone of this article. It seems to swing wildly from “aw BOO frickin’ HOO, Lady, Ya famous. GROW A PAIR!” to “Seriously though guys, fame seems like a mental health nightmare” over and over. In some cases in the same sentence.
She definitely doesnt need to grow a pair