Tessa Thompson on ‘Sylvie’s Love’, Oprah and being an agent of change

Tessa Thompson wears top The Great Eros, blazer Bottega Veneta, trousers Cushnie and hat Eugenia Kim. Photographed by Shaniqwa Jarvis for PORTER, NET-A-PORTER.COM. All items can be purchased straight from the magazine pages via net-a-porter.com. (Credit: Shaniqwa Jarvis/Porter/NET-A-PORTER.COM)

Actor and producer Tessa Thompson talks to NET-A-PORTER’s digital title, PORTER, about using her platform to raise up the voices of others, the significance of producing and starring in a film that centers on two Black lead characters and how she feels about Oprah following her on Twitter: “I don’t think any artist necessarily has a responsibility to try being an agent of change. But, for me, it’s always been something that feels compelling. And if there’s a risk in speaking up, it’s always felt worth it. I’m just continuing to try to learn how to show up in those spaces and to pass the mic to folks who know a lot more than me.”

When asked whether the risk of losing out on jobs has ever deterred her from taking a stance, Thompson is steadfast: “Anyone who wouldn’t want to work with me because I’m a person at this time fighting [that] the value and dignity of Black lives need to be protected… I really don’t want to work with them. It’s my life and it’s important that my core values line up with my creative ecosystem.”

Her upcoming project, Eugene Ashe’s Sylvie’s Love, not only sees her take center stage, but also work as an executive producer: “When I first heard about ‘Sylvie’s Love’ and had conversations with Nnamdi about making it, it reminded me of ‘The Notebook’. I remember seeing that way back in the day and thinking, ‘I’d love to be in a film like this.’”

The significance of this movie being made now resonates strongly: “To make a film that centers around two Black people falling in love felt really impactful to me. I think even in these moments of peril and pain, it shows we’re still having dinner, we’re still celebrating, we’re still singing songs, we’re still making love and doing all the other things that we do as humans to sustain us.”

Tessa Thompson wears coat Bottega Veneta, swimsuit Dodo Bar Or, shorts Munthe, shoes Gianvito Rossi and necklace Bottega Veneta. Photographed by Shaniqwa Jarvis for PORTER, NET-A-PORTER.COM. All items can be purchased straight from the magazine pages via net-a-porter.com. (Credit: Shaniqwa Jarvis/Porter/NET-A-PORTER.COM)

Thompson’s on-screen career started out with smaller roles in big network shows, such as Grey’s AnatomyHeroes and Private Practice, before her 2010 breakout – in Tyler Perry’s For Colored Girls alongside a superstar cast that included Whoopi Goldberg, Janet Jackson and Thandie Newton.

Fast-forward to 2014 and Thompson was starring in big-budget blockbusters such as Selma and, the following year, Creed, as well as the Sundance-winning comedy Dear White People.  It was with HBO’s sci-fi hit Westworld, however, that she really went global. Her performance as Charlotte Hale garnered rave reviews, as did the show as a whole: “[Charlotte] is a character with many layers; she’s at the front line of a business, but also a mother and partner, struggling to make a relationship work.”

Drawn to movies that make an impact, Thompson has another meaningful project in the works. She has a lead role in Rebecca Hall’s upcoming directorial debut Passing, the movie adaptation of the book by Nella Larsen, starring alongside Ruth Negga.

Thompson describes its message as “something that is not just about the performance of race, but the ways in which so many things as a human are performative. The way gender can feel performative, the way sexuality can feel performative, the way happiness inside of just being a human can sometimes feel like you’re performing happiness… That idea really spoke to me.”

With an ever-accelerating profile, designers have clamored to dress Thompson, and she – along with her stylists Wayman Bannerman and Micah McDonald – effortlessly balances big names, such as Versace, Valentino, Chanel (which she wore to the 2019 Met Gala) and Loewe, with rising talent such as Christopher John Rogers and Pyer Moss: “I think about fashion the same way I think about the industry, in that I get to work in big commercial spaces and also make smaller, independent films. I like to do that with what I wear, too.”

However, while Thompson says she loves dressing up, she is conscious of being thought of for her work first: “There’s this thing in Hollywood, particularly if you’re a woman, that puts so much emphasis on how you look. It’s problematic, as you’ll be asked who you’re wearing before you’re asked about your work.”

For PORTER’s shoot, Thompson was photographed by Shaniqwa Jarvis and styled by Shibon Kennedy, wearing Christopher John Rogers, Cushnie, Bottega Veneta, Dodo Bar Or and more. All items can be purchased straight from the shoot via the NET-A-PORTER app, available on Android as well as iPhone and iPad, and through net-a-porter.com.

Tessa Thompson wears blouse and trousers Christopher John Rogers and shoes By Far. Photographed by Shaniqwa Jarvis for PORTER, NET-A-PORTER.COM. All items can be purchased straight from the magazine pages via net-a-porter.com. (Credit: Shaniqwa Jarvis/Porter/NET-A-PORTER.COM)

Interview highlights:

Tessa Thompson on using her platform to raise the voices of others: “I don’t think any artist necessarily has a responsibility to try being an agent of change. But, for me, it’s always been something that feels compelling. And if there’s a risk in speaking up, it’s always felt worth it. I’m just continuing to try to learn how to show up in those spaces and to pass the mic to folks who know a lot more than me.”

Tessa Thompson on whether the risk of losing out on jobs has ever deterred her from taking a stance: Anyone who wouldn’t want to work with me because I’m a person at this time fighting [that] the value and dignity of Black lives need to be protected… I really don’t want to work with them. It’s my life and it’s important that my core values line up with my creative ecosystem.”

Tessa Thompson on her upcoming project, Eugene Ashe’s Sylvie’s Love, which not only sees her take center stage, but also work as an executive producer: “When I first heard about ‘Sylvie’s Love’ and had conversations with Nnamdi about making it, it reminded me of ‘The Notebook’. I remember seeing that way back in the day and thinking, ‘I’d love to be in a film like this.’”

Tessa Thompson on why the significance of this movie being made now resonates strongly: “To make a film that centers around two Black people falling in love felt really impactful to me. I think even in these moments of peril and pain, it shows we’re still having dinner, we’re still celebrating, we’re still singing songs, we’re still making love and doing all the other things that we do as humans to sustain us.” 

Tessa Thompson on RuPaul’s Drag Race most recent winner, Shea Couleé: She’s so beautiful. I squealed when I saw that Shea Couleé follows me on Instagram and knows that I exist.” 

Tessa Thompson on how she felt about when Oprah started to follow her on Twitter:“It reminded me [of] many years ago, when I realized that Oprah followed me on Twitter. I then became really conscious of Oprah reading a tweet of mine, like I thought, ‘Are my tweets Oprah-approved?’”

Tessa Thompson on HBO’s sci-fi hit Westworld, where she played Charlotte Hale and garnered rave reviews: “She is a character with many layers; she’s at the front line of a business, but also a mother and partner, struggling to make a relationship work.”

Tessa Thompson on her lead role in Rebecca Hall’s upcoming directorial debut Passing, describing the message of the film as: “something that is not just about the performance of race, but the ways in which so many things as a human are performative. The way gender can feel performative, the way sexuality can feel performative, the way happiness inside of just being a human can sometimes feel like you’re performing happiness… That idea really spoke to me.”

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Tessa Thompson on her style: “I think about fashion the same way I think about the industry, in that I get to work in big commercial spaces and also make smaller, independent films. I like to do that with what I wear, too.”

Tessa Thompson on how she is conscious of being thought of for her work first: “There’s this thing in Hollywood, particularly if you’re a woman, that puts so much emphasis on how you look. It’s problematic, as you’ll be asked who you’re wearing before you’re asked about your work.”

To read the full interview with Tessa Thompson, head to PORTER or download the NET-A-PORTER app for iPhone, iPad and Android.

See also: Laura Harrier on Hollywood, social media and turning 30 under lockdown

In this Story: #culture / #entertainment