# Actors Debate David Fincher’s 50 Takes and Stanley Kubrick’s Directing

- Original post: https://www.twitter.com/i/status/2120904046894862473
- Source account: [@soyemajuarez](https://x.com/soyemajuarez)
- Source language: English
- Duration: 2:05
- Published: 2026-11-13
- Canonical URL: https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing

## Transcript

[0:00](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing) N- uh, not like a s- I, I can't think of a specific moment, but, uh, you know, having worked on, um, a movie with him, uh, there, uh, you know, uh, the director, you know, does things a lot, which I, which I loved.

[0:10](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=10) You know, occasionally I felt frustrated because I thought, uh, you know, we would do like, you know, let's say 50 takes of, of a shot, and, and I, I felt 48 of them were, were, were just, uh, terrible and mortifying.

[0:22](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=22) And, uh, so I, I felt bad because I felt like I did a lot of bad stuff, uh, at the end of the day.

[0:27](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=27) But you also felt like you did two that maybe you wouldn't have done had you not been given 50 opportunities of- To say that 48 takes were bad and two were good, it's kind of hard.

[0:35](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=35) Are you always that hard on yourself? Yeah, I usually keep... I mean, I've been in, like, two movies.

[0:39](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=39) I'm embarrassed to say this in, in this room, but, uh- But I'm going to ask you how you feel about- I, I usually keep, like, uh- They, he, uh, Fincher would do 50 takes regularly on each, on each- Which director? David Fincher. Yeah. Yeah.

[0:51](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=51) You don't want to work with him? No, no, no. It, it's a, it's an incredible experience.

[0:57](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=57) But, but, but, but are you, are you always that critical of yourself?

[1:00](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=60) Yeah, usually more so. I mean, I, I, I- I'm curious because you work with so many directors, uh, and you seem shocked that the director would do that many takes.

[1:08](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=68) Let me say, can I say one thing? Yeah. To me, Stanley, the great Stanley Kubrick- Yeah ... was an actor's enemy. Well, he did 100 takes per scene.

[1:15](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=75) He was an actor's enemy. And I can point to movies that he's done, the worst performances I've ever seen in movies. Which ones?

[1:21](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=81) And yet... The Shining. Uh, what's the one about the- A Clockwork Orange.

[1:26](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=86) A Clockwork Orange. Terrible performances.

[1:28](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=88) Maybe they were great movies, but they're terrible performances.

[1:31](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=91) How does he know the difference between the first take and the 70th take?

[1:35](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=95) I mean, you know, I mean, what is that about?

[1:37](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=97) Well, he- Even Brando did 40 takes, 60 takes on the sh- on that...

[1:41](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=101) I said, "Why would you do that?" He said, "Well, the guy, you know, the guy's supposed to do it."

[1:45](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=105) Brando did on which film? Yeah, on the, on the, with the- Oh, The Fugitive Kind, right?

[1:50](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=110) The burn, the burning, you know. I mean, why would he, you know, why would anybody do that?

[1:54](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=114) I mean, commercials you do that, but I mean, maybe it helped you. I don't know.

[1:57](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=117) At what point do you say no? I'm not being judgmental.

[2:00](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/9a7da321KMaR/en/actors-debate-david-fincher-s-50-takes-and-stanley-kubrick-s-directing?t=120) Maybe it was good for you, but I, I, I don't, I don't quite get that.