Asked if the film's director Cory Finley did anything in particular that made the actor trust him, he said: "Yeah. I'm taking a pause because I don't think I've told anyone, but I'm going to tell you -- I don't mind telling people -- I went up to him just before we started filming. I said, 'I've spent most of my career thinking that my job, if I'm No. 1 on the call sheet, is to kind of be like the quarterback. Like, give me the ball, coach. I got this'."

He continued: "Because of who Cory was, I could tell who he was as an artist. I made the choice to be honest with him. I would say to him, 'I feel really self-conscious today'. Or I'd stop the take and go, 'This is really bad. Can we just stop for a sec? I just feel nervous'. I would pull him aside and say, 'I know this is one of the three really important scenes. I just feel that pressure." I've always felt it. I've never said it because I thought I'm (A) a bit embarrassed and (B) that's not going to help anyone.

"He said, 'I will not let you go home unless you feel great'. He said, 'If we don't have it, we'll come back and shoot it tomorrow, so don't worry about that. We've got that time'. I think as I've got older, I've got more brave in being honest about my fears and my insecurities," he added.

Visit news.dtnext.in to explore our interactive epaper!