Marielle Heller had her big acting break in “The Queens Gambit,” a chess drama that has already been viewed on Netflix by over 60 million households. But prior to her performance as Alma Wheatley, Ms. Heller was already a big name — off the screen.
She directed award-winning films like 2019’s “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood” and 2018’s “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” Female directors remain a minority in the U.S. film industry, and Ms. Heller has spent her career navigating what she describes as a male-dominated Hollywood “machine.”
“I do think there’s a weird stigma where people probably think that female directors are a risk,” Ms. Heller says, explaining that people “watch a male director make one little indie that comes out of Sundance and they go, ‘I see potential in that kid.’ And then they watch a female director come out of Sundance and make one little indie and they go: ‘That was excellent. I’ll wait to see her next movie to see if she gets a job.’”
In this episode of “Sway,” Ms. Heller and Kara Swisher discuss what it’s like to be “difficult” women, why Hollywood lets Tony Soprano get away with murder but worries that female characters are “unlikable,” and how Ms. Heller — despite all her directorial acclaim — still gets offered 30 to 40 percent less pay than men who do the same job.
You can find transcripts (posted midday) and more information for all episodes at nytimes.com/sway, and you can find Kara on Twitter @karaswisher.
Best Of: Jon Stewart
Best Of: Matthew McConaughey
Best Of: Stacey Abrams
Best Of: Jason Miller
Best Of: Fran Lebowitz
First Person: She’s Gay and a Republican. Is There a Place for Her in the G.O.P.?
Best Of: Monica Lewinsky
Best Of: Elon Musk
Kara in the Hot Seat
‘Venture Capitalists Are Going to Turn Into Vulture Capitalists,’ and Other Predictions From Andrew Ross Sorkin
Would You Upload Your Consciousness to the Cloud?
‘The Senate Needs a Soul’
As Bitcoin Busts, What’s the Future of Web3? And What Even is Web3?
Can We Tech Our Way Out of Climate Change?
David Axelrod, Sarah Longwell and Preet Bharara on What to Look For in the Jan. 6 Hearings
Best Of: Dave Eggers Created the Google-Amazon Mash-Up of Your Nightmares
Are Elon Musk and Twitter Trapped In a Bad Marriage?
David Ellison on ‘Top Gun: Maverick,’ Working with Tom Cruise and Hiring John Lasseter
When It Comes to Gun Control, Will ‘Baby Steps’ Fix Anything?
The C.E.O. of Condé Nast: ‘ This Is No Longer a Magazine Company’
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Insight Story: Tech Trends Unpacked
Zero-Shot
Fast Forward by Tomorrow Unlocked: Tech past, tech future
The Unbelivable Truth - Series 1 - 26 including specials and pilot
Lex Fridman Podcast