Michael Stuhlbarg Credits Julia Roberts, Tomโ Cruise with Inspiring Hisโค Approach to Acting
LOS ANGELES – Acclaimedโ actor Michael Stuhlbarg attributesโ much of his growth as a performer to observing and learningโ from his celebrated co-stars, including Julia Roberts and Tom Cruise. Known for his versatile roles in films like “Hitchcock,” โ”Lincoln,” and “The Post,” Stuhlbarg consistently emphasizes the impact โof working alongside industry icons. โค
Stuhlbarg, โcurrently garnering praise for his latest projects, reflects on decades of invaluable lessons gleaned fromโ fellow actors. He describes a professional habitat whereโ collaboration and mutual respect flourish, noting that these experiences โhaveโค profoundly shaped his own artistic process.โข “if you’re going to go to battle withโข anybody, they are remarkable colleagues and comrades,” he says.
Stuhlbarg fondly recalls โคobserving Julia Roberts’ โคdedicationโค and presenceโข on set,noting her ability to fully inhabit a character while maintaining a supportive atmosphere.โค He also speaks highly of Tom Cruise’s commitmentโ to his craft and his collaborative spirit. “Theseโ are the kinds of artists that have an โขimpression on you and make โคyou โฃwant to be the best version of what youโ have to offer,” Stuhlbarg โexplains. “It made me want โคto emulate them and to โคsteal from them. I carry them with me everywhere I go.”
Throughout his career, Stuhlbarg has consistently sought to absorb โtechniquesโข from his peers. He โขremembers โคbeing inspired by Ed Harris’s unpredictable performancesโ in the 1996 Broadwayโค play “Taking Sides,” where โ”every night, he was never the same twice, in the best way.”
Working with Anthony Hopkins on “Hitchcock,” โStuhlbarg immersed himself in the “joy” Hopkins brought to the role, observing how the veteran actor would “just riff and be wholly free.” A memorable encounter with Daniel day-Lewis during filming of “Lincoln” involved Day-lewisโ offering a metaphorical gestureโข of support, “putting his โarms on my shoulders and justโค providing a kind of metaphor for making sure that he’s going to get my vote.” He also cites theโข “ease” of Meryl Streep โคand the “friendlyโ effortlessness” of Tom Hanks on “Theโค Post” as particularly impactful.
