CIVIL WAR Star Kirsten Dunst Covers MARIE CLAIRE Magazine, The Makers Issue

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After a two-year hiatus, actress Kirsten Dunst is back where she wants to be: the big screen as she exclusively sits down with MARIE  CLAIRE. The Civil War actress opens up about not surrendering to sad motherhood, the lack of roles in Hollywood for women her age, working with her husband Jesse Plemons and her secret to surviving being a child star.

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On not working the past two years: “To be honest, that’s been hard for me…because I need to feed myself. The hardest thing is being a mom and…not feeling like, I have nothing for myself. That’s every mother—not just me. There’s definitely less good roles for women my age.”

On working with husband Jesse Plemons on Civil War: “Because we fell in love on a set, we fell in love creatively first. I think we’ll always come back to that, in a very not-involving-our-real-life way. And also, listen, we don’t talk to each other on set. I left him alone, he left me alone.”

“I love working with him. What’s nice is that we trust each other so much. He sent me a scene last night of this miniseries he’s working on to get my opinion. If I’m having a hard time deciding on something, I’ll have him read it. I trust his opinion more than anyone, and he cares about me more than anyone… we hate the same things.”

On award shows and not winning: “There are too many award shows. I think it’s good to be an underdog. If you [win] Academy Awards, sometimes it’s not always good for your career.”

On not always being so comfortable in the industry and being minimized: Looking back, Dunst didn’t always feel that level of comfort. “I mean…It was a joke, but on Spider-Man, they would call me ‘girly-girl’ sometimes on the walkie-talkie. ‘We need girly-girl'”—she imitates the cloying tone—”but I never said anything.” The memory fires her up a little bit—”like, don’t call me that”—but she quickly recovers. It took time to realize her self-worth, especially as a young woman in pre-MeToo Hollywood. “You didn’t say anything. You just took it.”

On her decision to work with female filmmakers and not wanting to feel like she was being used by men: “I saw the power in women very young. I think that’s helped with…not needing male attention in my career. I think that’s probably why I migrated to so many female directors at a younger age…because I didn’t want to feel that way.”

On hints of ageism in the roles being presented to her: “I’ve been offered a lot of roles like that. Honestly, it’s slightly offensive.” Still, she’s determined to gracefully grow older in an industry that makes it feel impossible. “I feel insecure like a normal woman, but I also have a good head on my shoulders.”

On not wanting to relocate her family for a film role: “I don’t want to take my kid out of school for a role unless I cannot say no and it’s that incredible. I just don’t want to do that to him.” Shooting Civil War was logistically manageable. Her sons, then still in preschool, joined her in Georgia, where a “tribe” including Plemons and both grandmas helped take care of them.

On doing another superhero movie: Her current dream is landing a great TV show that films in L.A. Would she ever do another superhero movie? “Yes,” Dunst says with refreshing honesty, “because you get paid a lot of money, and I have two children, and I support my mother.”

On her lack of lack of ego or controversy after a lifetime in Hollywood: “I just have really good people around me. I have good girlfriends and my mom’s fun and comes over every day. I’m very connected to my family and I have a great husband. Two of my friends in this industry are Dakota and Elle Fanning, but they’re like me. They’re very normal, real girls.”

Marie Claire’s, The Makers Issue, on stands March 12. 

[Photo Credit: Jonny Marlow for Marie Claire Magazine]

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