Margot Robbie Babylon

Margot Robbie has made a career out of playing characters who, shall we say, make a mark. The Australian actor caused a whirlwind when she first stepped on the scene as Naomi Lapaglia in

, directed by Damien Chazelle, follows several characters as they navigate the film industry of the 1920s — a place of excess, debauchery, fun, extravagance, injustice, and so much more. When we meet Nellie, she’s a struggling actress with big dreams. After she seemingly gets the opportunity of a lifetime, her meteoric rise in Hollywood is complicated by her upbringing, social class, and struggles with substances and gambling.

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On paper, Robbie and Nellie don’t seem to have much in common. Robbie is a two-time Academy Award-nominated actor with an impeccable reputation and sunny demeanor that have made her beloved by millions. But the actor says she became so “entwined” with Nellie during filming that she was left “in pieces” once production wrapped.

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“I was really, really sad finishing this [film], ” Robbie explains during a recent interview with . “I’m sad finishing every job. I always get attached to everyone in the film, and I sometimes get attached to certain characters. But this one ... I think Nellie … I don’t know … I think I poured so much of myself and my body and everything into this character that it kind of left me in pieces at the end of it. I didn’t want it to end. I felt like I was really tapping into a part of myself that I’ve never found before as an actor, as a performer. I think that’s because Damien was expecting so much and had written such an incredible character, and I thought maybe I’ll never get to do something like this again.”

Robbie’s connection with Nellie is evident both on- and off-screen. In one scene in the film, Nellie is struggling with her lines and hitting her mark at a moment when, in the film industry of the time, the introduction of sound to films is changing the way movies are made. Nellie is forced to repeat the scene several times, leading to an intense, hilarious sequence of events that leaves an undeniable mark on the audience. Robbie says that while she never struggles to remember her lines, she definitely has experienced extreme nerves on set.

“Lines aren’t something that I’ve ever been particularly worried about, ” Robbie says. “But for Nellie, the rules of the game have completely changed. She’s gone from being able to be totally instinctual and kind of perform as a silent movie star, and then to being in talkies and suddenly have to be in such a controlled environment, and be told what to do and where to stand just does not suit Nellie at all. I think we all as actors have those scenes that we’re like, ‘Oh, God, how are we going to pull this off?’ I had a bunch of those scenes in this movie. Like, I fight a rattlesnake, and I have to projectile vomit on a bunch of people in nice clothes. There are a lot of scenes where I was like, ‘I don’t know what I’m gonna do!’ But honestly, that happens to me on every job. Two weeks before starting every job, I have this absolute crisis of faith where I’m like, ‘I can’t do it. I don’t know this character. I’m not a good actor.’ I still — after all these years — have that freak-out for every job.”

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Star who could relate to their character’s journey. Diego Calva’s Manny Torres is a young man with ambition who finds success as a studio executive and producer almost overnight. In real life, Calva is in the midst of his own Hollywood rise, receiving Oscars buzz for his role in

— his first-ever performance in a Hollywood production. The Mexican actor describes his rise to fame as “weird” but says that he is enjoying every moment and learning from those around him, including Robbie.

“I think in movies, you tell stories, right? For example, with Manny, I have the job of telling the story about moviemaking and love for movies. And I have that [in real life], ” Calva says. “I like to play characters when I can relate, and sometimes when I don’t. With these actors, every day is different. With Margot, with Brad Pitt [who plays silent-film star Jack Conrad], it’s a lot of improvisation, and you have to be ready.”

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’s Jovan Adepo connected deeply with his character, Sidney Palmer, who is a Black trumpet player trying to find his place in Hollywood. Sidney is passionate, talented, ready for his big break, but limited by Hollywood’s racism — a powerful storyline in the film that includes a painful depiction of blackface. Adepo says shooting that scene was “definitely more challenging than I imagined it to be.”

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Adepo tells , “When I actually started filming it, I had done my own mental preparation. But it was interesting to be able to sit onstage and understand that my character was on a movie set and having to do [blackface] in front of all of these crew members and directors. I was doing the same thing as he was doing. So, it was a bit meta. I felt a bit of shame because it was embarrassing. It was a thing that Sidney had to do on the fly, and he was asked to do this by somebody that he considered an ally and a friend, as they came up in the industry together.”

Luckily, this discriminatory aspect of Sidney’s journey is one Adepo hasn’t experienced in his own career. “I’ve been really fortunate that I’ve enjoyed my experience. I’ve been able to work with some really brilliant artists, directors, actors who I admire. I always felt protected in my artistry, whether it was how I was spoken to or dealt with on set, or how my contracts were done. I know that’s not always the case for everyone, so it’s something that you’re aware of, but personally, I think I’ve just been really blessed to have a career that has been really solid.”

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Is an intoxicating, mesmerizing, chaotic love letter to cinema past and present. The movie touches on all aspects of Hollywood, from the up-and-coming actress to the musician fighting prejudice to the producer torn between success and his principles.

Even makes room for more unexpected industry insights, including wealth disparities and a particularly eccentric side plot involving a psychopathic gangster (played by none other than Tobey Maguire). As an audience member, you experience a range of emotions while watching the film: excitement, happiness, bewilderment, sadness, humor. Ultimately, however,

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Lyn Paolo and the Bridgerton Bridal Collection ‘Barbie’ Cast on Filmmaking and Perfection Molly Gordon Embraces Her Crazy Side ‘Born Free’ Takes on Maternal Mortality in America— both possess the inherent drive, ambition and undeniable acting talent needed to make it to the big screen. But the chaotic energy and head-spinningly fast pace of the film about Hollywood's 1920s silent movie era lands Robbie in different territory as she portrays Nellie LaRoy, an aspiring actor who scores her big break in silent movies, but later struggles to transition to talkies (movies with sound).

LaRoy's energy is as chaotic as the film itself from the first moment she appears on screen, gatecrashing a wild Hollywood party that's filled with drugs, alcohol, orgies, dancers, snakes and even an elephant. She tells Manny Torres (Diego Calva) — a young Mexican who dreams of working in the film industry — that she's not merely someone who hopes to be a star, but that she already is one. She just needs to land on a movie set to truly shine.

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As she dances up a storm free of inhibitions at the mayhem-filled soiree, it doesn't take long for her to capture the attention of the right people in biz, leading to her foray into silent films — a glamorous world in Los Angeles that presents as a stark contrast to her troubled upbringing in New Jersey.

, Robbie says the character of LaRoy was so fun to play, especially given her vivacious nature in what was just such a wildly different time in Hollywood.

She is a very present and immediate kind of character. It's all happening in that second, she's not looking to the future, says the 32-year-old Australian actor.