‘Jackie’ Star Natalie Portman on ‘Daunting’ Task of Playing Mrs Kennedy (Exclusive Video)

“I had never played a role before that was someone that people really knew,” says the actress

“Jackie” star Natalie Portman admits that portraying the legendary Jackie Kennedy in the Pablo Larraín-directed biographical drama was a formidable task.

“It was very daunting,” Portman told TheWrap during the Toronto International Film Festival in September. “I had never played a role before that was someone that people really knew, how they looked and talked and moved so specifically. So of course, it put the pressure on to be quite specific with portraying her and studying her, of course.”

“But,” Portman added, “luckily, Pablo’s approach was so… sort of like, all encompassing and psychological that I felt like I was able to and free to put imagination into it also.”

“Jackie” debuted at the Venice Film Festival to rave reviews, for both Portman’s portrayal of the iconic First Lady and Larraín’s unconventional take on the biopic. It portrays the construction of the mythical Camelot, a nickname for President John F. Kennedy’s administration (1961-1963), through the eyes of Jackie during and after her husband’s assassination.

The independent film company purchased the U.S. distribution rights to the Pablo Larraín drama on the heels of public and industry screenings at the Toronto Film Festival.

“Jackie,” starring Peter Sarsgaard and Greta Gerwig, opens in U.S. theaters on December 2.

Watch the exclusive video above.

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