Rebecca Hall and Ben Whishaware both known for their impeccable, realistic performances, but they each offer perhaps their most stunningly authentic portrayals inPeter Hujar’s Day, which premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. True to its title, the movie from Sundance veteran Ira Sachs chronicles a day in the life of photographer Peter Hujar in a mere 76 minutes. But rather than take the audience through that day in real time, he is shown recounting it to his Linda Rosenkrantz, an author recording it for her next book.
Peter Hujar’s Dayis based on the transcript of that exact conversation between Hujar and Rosenkrantz, which took place in 1974 but was not recovered until a few years ago. And while it contains interesting factoids about his encounters with fellow creatives such as Allen Ginsberg and William S. Burroughs, the true record it keeps is of the experiences of struggling artists in New York City’s downtown scene — and perhaps most significantly of the friendship between two people whose work is seminal to American culture.
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ScreenRantinterviewed Whishaw and Rebecca before the world premiere ofPeter Hujar’s Dayat Sundance Film Festival, where the actors heaped praise on their director’s methods for pulling out sincere performances. Whishaw revealed what aspects of Hujar he most wanted to share onscreen, while Hall shared how she connected with her costar offscreen to bring authenticity to their friendship onscreen. Finally, they each offeredupdates onBlack Dovesseason 2andGodzilla vs. Kong 3respectively.
Ben Whishaw Focuses On Paying Tribute To A Pure Artist In Peter Hujar’s Day
The actor also teases Sam’s mindset inBlack Dovesseason 2.
ScreenRant: What was it about Peter Hujar’s personality and or life that you most wanted to bring out in your performance?
Ben Whishaw: Well, it’s a tricky question because I know that there’s lots about him and his life that we don’t cover in our film.
It’s really just him talking about one day of his life, so it’s a very small window into him, so I didn’t want to make any statement about him. I just wanted to be him, really talking. I think what comes through for me when I see it is his [artistry], really. He was an artist; a pure artist. He was just motivated by the wish and desire to make art. So, it’s his struggle and his work.
Someone else that Whishaw considers a “real artist” is director Ira Sachs, with whom he previously collaborated forPassages– and with whom he will be reuniting forThe Man I Love. The actor-director duo share a sensibility for the nuances of relationships in daily life, a precept thatPeter Hujar’s Daytakes to nearly the extreme.
ScreenRantasked Whishaw what stands out to him about Sachs’ directorial vision, and the artist had plenty of items on his life:
Ben Whishaw: I think he’s also a real artist; a singular artist with his own distinct taste and his own way of making work. I love him because I think he really loves actors, and I think he is always searching for the truth.
And he’s tough. He’s hard on you in the best way. He’s quite frightening a little, because he’ll tell you very bluntly if he doesn’t believe what you’re doing. I like that we don’t rehearse. You just begin because I think, as I said, he’s trying to find something that’s not acting. It’s real in a deeper way.
When he’s not looking inside himself to pull out a truth deeper than acting, he’s leaning into his action muscles inBlack Doves, where he stars as an assassin named Sam alongside Keira Knightley’s Helen. Season 1 ended with him killing the men responsible for the murder of Helen’s lover, but Whishaw warns that there is far “more killing to be doing”before Sam can escape his own vicious cycle.
ScreenRant: You’ve been killing it, literally, inBlack Doves. I know season 2 is a long way off, but how down in the dumps is at the end of season 1, and how tough are things going to be for him?
Ben Whishaw: I guess they’re going to be quite tough. I mean, he’s survived, so that’s something! But for how long?
Yeah, I think he’s going to have a new lease on life. And I think he’s got some more killing to be doing, sadly, before he can change direction.
Rebecca Hall Needed Just 1 Lunch To Become Best Friends With Ben Whishaw For Peter Hujar’s Day
The actor also gives an uncertain update on her status inGodzilla Vs. Kong3.
ScreenRant: How did you step into the role of Linda, given that she’s a real person existing among us, and you have the record of how that day when exactly?
Rebecca Hall: I don’t really know. I just tried to honor her. I talked to her on the phone, I listened to her talk, and I tried to honor her Bronx accent without doing it too much or over the top. Just [without] trying to caricature her in any way.
I really think she’s quite a remarkable person, but a lot of the job was to be present in the moment of this scene that is the movie and listen to Ben be Petr Hujar as he describes his day. So, a lot of it was very intuitive, in a way.
What’s fascinating aboutPeter Hujar’s Dayis that, while the transcript of Peter and Linda’s conversation was preserved for posterity, the original recording was lost. Sach’s movie, therefore, is truly bringing that moment in time back to life. It doesn’t just help reveal who they were as individuals in that moment — which is especially important for Hujar, who didn’t gain recognition for his art until after his death — but also what they meant to each other as friends.
Hall didn’t have any trouble mining the screenplay for the essence of that friendship, in large part thanks to Sach’s unique approach to establishing the characters’ bond. She revealed toScreenRanthow she and Whishaw forged their onscreen bond:
Rebecca Hall: I don’t think you really can build that kind of chemistry. It either happens or it doesn’t. Ira sent Ben and I off to go and have lunch on the first day before we started shooting, instead of a rehearsal. He doesn’t rehearse.
We went to a diner — one of the old, still existing diners that was around in the ’70s in the West Village — to just get to know each other. We knew we had to be close friends onscreen, so there was a sense that in that lunch, we should just tell each other everything about each other.
It was a fast track to a very good friendship, and I think that shows on the screen. I have a feeling about him, which is very rare when you meet another colleague, that’s like, “Oh, I feel like I’ve known him for years.” And I really did.
ScreenRant: You have an extremely wide range of work, including the Monsterverse. You’ve graced us with your presence in twoGodzilla vs. Kongmovies now, but where is Ilene going next?
Rebecca Hall: I don’t know. Where am I going in the Monsterverse? Nowhere, apparently! No one’s asked me, so I don’t think I’m in the next one.
Given Kaitlyn Dever’s recent casting announcement fortheGodzilla Vs. Kongthreequel, it’s disappointing that Hall doesn’t know whether she is in the next movie. That being said, there is still a chance that her character Ilene will be tangentially connected to the story being told, acting as a bridge and only requiring a few scenes’ worth of filming.
But while fans await Hall’s next appearance in the Monsterverse, they can also catch her in Ryan Murphy’sThe Beauty, with Evan Peters and Anthony Ramos.
More About Peter Hujar’s Day (2025)
A recently discovered conversation between photographer Peter Hujar and his friend Linda Rosenkrantz in 1974 reveals a glimpse into New York City’s downtown art scene and the personal struggles and epiphanies that define an artist’s life.
Check out more Sundance 2025 interview coverage here, including:
Peter Hujar’s Daypremiered at Sundance Film Festival 2025 on January 27 and is currently seeking U.S. distribution.
