The Big Picture

Amy Adams leads in the new horror-comedy film
Nightbitch
as a mom who transforms into a dog.
In this interview with Collider’s Steve Weintraub, Adams discusses being drawn to the unique and humorous storyline, exploring motherhood and transformation through mystical-realism.
The film tackles the struggles of motherhood, highlighting societal expectations and the need for community support.

Amy Adams has been top-billed in some of our favorite movies for decades. After making a name for herself as a multi-faceted supportive character actor in films like The Fighter, Doubt, and even Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, she’s maintained her depth of craft and variety of character work, leading massive hits such as Enchanted, Arrival, and Hillbilly Elegy — and in the process was nominated an astounding six times for the Academy Award. Now, she takes the lead once more in Marielle Heller’s (A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood) wild new horror-comedy Nightbitch.

Adapted from Rachel Yoder’s novel of the same name, Nightbitch follows Adams as the aptly named Mother, a stay-at-home mom who pauses her career to take care of her children. But as the monotony and everyday stresses build up, she finds herself literally transforming into a dog. The film co-stars Scoot McNary (Gone Girl), Jessica Harper (Suspiria), and Zoë Chao (Creature Commandos).

Collider’s Steve Weintraub had the pleasure of sitting down with Adams to discuss all things Nightbitch, including the film’s pervasive mystical realism, reflecting on the minutiae and realities of modern-day motherhood, and what it was like working with Jenna Ortega in Taika Waititi’s upcoming feature Klara and the Sun.

Amy Adams Revisits Working With Denis Villeneuve in ‘Arrival’
“It was very, very special to me.”
Image via Paramount Pictures

COLLIDER: How are you doing today?

AMY ADAMS: I’m well, how are you doing?

Doing excellent. How do you feel when people are wearing a bootleg t-shirt from a movie that you were in?

ADAMS: Oh! I just got it. I was like, “Well, that depends.” Oh, I love it. Actually, it makes me say I want one.

I love this movie so much.

ADAMS: Is that the human signal, or do you know which symbol?

I don’t actually know what symbol this is, but I wore this for a Shawn Levy interview — you know, he produced it — and it was only at the very end that he’s like, “Oh my God! You’ve been wearing this the whole time.”

ADAMS: I know! I really wanted to get a tattoo of one of them. It’s not too late.

You have plenty of time. If you don’t mind me asking about it, I love that movie so much. What do you remember about making it? Did you realize it would be so special when you were making it?

ADAMS: You can never predict, really, what the experience of others will be, but the experience of making it was very, very special to me. It was very singular and strangely meditative. Denis [Villeneuve] creates a very focused, quiet, fun, respectful set. It was lovely.

Making the Leap From ‘Disenchanted’ to ‘Nightbitch’
“I did have a little bit of time to shake Giselle off before I delved into the bitch.”

Jumping into why I get to talk to you. You are, as usual, fantastic in this role.

ADAMS: Thank you.

It’s so different than what you’ve done recently. I heard you went from the sequel of Enchanted to filming this.

ADAMS: Yeah, I did. That was sort of the film history of it. I did a play in between, so I did have a little bit of time to shake Giselle off before I delved into the bitch.

It’s so amazing the difference in roles. You get offered, I’m sure, some really good scripts. What was it about this one that said, “Oh, I need to do this?”

ADAMS: I actually received a manuscript of the book before we had brought Marielle on at all. Sue Naegle over at Annapurna Pictures was like, “Do you wanna develop this with us?” I read the book, and it just felt like such a unique point of view. When I started getting into the book and, of course, the stuff about transformation, there was such a great amount of humor in the book, but then also this relationship that she built with the husband that I thought was a totally, very realistic point of view of a relationship through parenting. I thought it looked like a really great opportunity to dive into this world of family and community through identity loss and transformation that just felt really unique and singular.

We really wanted to find the right person, and really, the first person we went to was Marielle because she just has such a great take on tone and this mystical realism, in a way. She said yes, and we were off to the races. She did such a great adaptation of the book in really finding a way to keep that really strong internal monologue pulled through the movie using different techniques.

How Does ‘Nightbitch’ Reflect Modern Motherhood?
“There’s this bar of expectation that keeps moving, and it’s just so frustrating.”

I know my sister is gonna love this movie. She’s a mom, and I talk to her all the time about the struggles. I think a lot of people are gonna be seen when they watch this. Can you talk about the fact that there are so many people out there who are dealing with so much with motherhood and family, and people don’t talk about it?

ADAMS: We don’t talk about it. It’s really hard because I think there’s this bar of expectation that keeps moving, and it’s just so frustrating because you never feel like you meet all of the expectations. Inside of a world that’s very comparative, it’s easy to think you’re not doing enough and to feel devalued. There is a real need for community inside of parenting that we’ve lost a little bit, and it would be nice if we could start treating our children like our future and our community.

Related “The Father Is Not a Villain”: Amy Adams Is Glad That the Dads Are Responding to ‘Nightbitch’ The actress plays a new mom who goes through a feral transformation in Marielle Heller’s latest film.

The other thing is — and I’m not trying to badmouth social media —​​​​​​​ but social media makes you see people through a filter. You think that’s the reality when, in actuality, everything is posed.

ADAMS: Oh, sure. That was such a great thing that Marielle did, too, with this movie. We really wanted to create something that was unfiltered, and I mean that literally and figuratively — just unfiltered. Just a take on a changing body, a changing mentality. All of it.

Amy Adams Says Jenna Ortega Is “Wonderful” in ‘Klara and the Sun’
Image via Paramount+

Before I run out of time with you, I’m a fan of Taika, and you’re doing, or did, Klara and The Sun .

ADAMS: Yeah, I already did it.

What can you tease about that project? What drew you to that material?

ADAMS: To be fair, I’d heard of it, but I had not read it. It was fast and furious. I got a call that said, “How do you feel about leaving for New Zealand in two weeks to work with Taika?” Of course, my ears perked up because I’ve wanted to work with him for a long time. I love his sensibility. Had one conversation with him, read the script, and jumped on a plane to New Zealand. I was really excited to work with him. Jenna [Ortega] is absolutely wonderful and so perfect as Klara.

Nightbitch is now playing in theaters.

A woman pauses her career to be a stay-at-home mom, but soon her domesticity takes a surreal turn.Runtime 98 Minutes Distributor(s) Searchlight Pictures

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