Florence Pugh: Next Generation Leaders

To me, movie stardom is respect of profession, respect of other people. People are drawn to people, stars, when we see that it goes beyond just them being good in a role or looking great on a carpet. For me, whenever I'm working with people, the first thing that I appreciate is how they talk to other people, and if they are respectful of the set, of their castmates, of the crew, that is a star to me. That is why they shine, and it's because there is no difference. It's always a joy when you meet one, because you're like, oh, the hype is true, and the hype is real, because you are real, and you are true. I've always loved having a voice, and I think I've always loved finding the voice in characters that I play. You're thinking about moving, but you're going to wait until the interest rates go down. I remember a few years ago, everybody kept on asking me why I keep on playing such pissed-off, annoyed women that have to have their way and change the storyline so that she comes out on top. I didn't realise that I was choosing those roles. Through hell and high water, I will follow you. I think I love someone standing up to a problem, and especially a woman standing up to a problem, and it doesn't mean it always ends out great for them in the end. Most of the characters that I play end up being accidental villains, but I've always defended them and believed in them from the beginning. When I was growing up, I was always so alarmed about the fact that we would so easily build up all of these stars and starlets, and they would go on red carpets, and we'd appreciate their glamour moments, and then the public would kind of relish, and the gossip sites would kind of relish in when they saw them looking normal and looking hungover or walking their dog down the street or looking after their kid, and just this weirdness of everybody loving that they I hated how it was almost your fault that you looked like that, and I think when I started out, I wanted to be in control of that I get people to see me, not someone's trying to dupe me or trick me or how she looks like that, you know, 10am after she partied at the BAFTAs, which happened last week. And I think part of me being online and part of me trying to be as and not on carpets is to kind of have control over that. There's no misunderstanding of what I look like in those settings. And I think actually, it's quite freeing. I've continued to grow with every single character that I play and I defend. And with that, you know, it's meant that I've now had more and more of a voice personally to other people as well, and to my social media, which I'm never, never afraid of going to when I need to set things straight. There are 1000s of meetings, I'll find another one. And with every role, I think I'm probably learning a bit more about myself. The further and further I go, it's just meaning that I'm more and more secure and more and more confident in what it is that I am and who it is that I want to be. But it's ever changing.