You Will Never Understand This Woman

Summary

Collider’s Perri Nemiroff chats with the team behind Nia DaCosta’s Hedda at TIFF 2025.
DaCosta reboots Henrik Ibsen’s play into a modern 1950s tale of female fury, starring Tessa Thompson, Nina Hoss, Tom Bateman, Imogen Poots, and Nicholas Pinnock.
In this interview, the cast discusses how this modern spin changes the original power dynamics, Thompson talks about inhabiting her version of the character, and DaCosta pinpoints Hedda’s secret truth.

This October, don’t resist temptation. In fact, join Tessa Thompson‘s unbridled revelry in Prime Video’s Hedda. For the film adaptation, writer-director Nia DaCosta (Candyman) breathes new life into Henrik Ibsen‘s tragically exhilarating 1891 play, giving its narrative a powerful spin that will no doubt resonate with audiences today in a profound way.

At the heart of this twisted tale is the newly married Hedda (Thompson), who convinces her timid husband George (Tom Bateman) to throw a lavish party outside their means. Set in the post-war 1950s, and all in one pressure-cooker evening, Hedda is a woman shoving back at the societal confines of what’s expected of her as a woman, taking a recklessly ruthless approach to reclaiming her agency. In addition to Hedda, the film centers around Bateman’s George, Hedda’s past love, author Eileen Lövborg, played by Nina Hoss (Tár), the brave Thea, played by Imogen Poots (Vivarium), and the callous Judge Brack, played by Nicholas Pinnock (Heavyweight).

Of Hedda’s tumultuous and unpredictable nature, Thompson says:

“I think sometimes the things that she does are a mystery to herself, this idea of saying, ‘Sometimes I can’t help myself.’ The truth is, I think she acts on base instincts that many of us have and would never dare to… The sort of paradox of Hedda, in some ways, is she has a kind of bravery to do that, but the sort of most fundamental thing she’s too cowardly to do, which is to really live in her honest truth, and I think that paradox is endlessly fascinating.”

Hedda premiered at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, where Perri Nemiroff had the opportunity to sit down with the filmmaker and cast at Collider’s Media Studio at the Cinema Center to dig into this timely reimagining. During their conversation, which you can watch in the video above, with a time index below, DaCosta expands on why this is a version of Hedda you’ve never seen before, Thompson shares her personal truth she discovered for the explosive character, and the cast discusses how their take on each role makes this a fresh, contemporary spin on a classic.

00:19 – What makes this take on the classic play something audiences haven’t seen before?
01:22 – Why was a film adaptation the right way to go for DaCosta?
02:10 – Tessa Thompson on what she discovered as Hedda’s truth.
03:47 – What is the importance of casting the play’s role of Eilert Lövborg as a woman for the film?
05:40 – Which adaptation of Hedda most influenced Thompson’s turn as the controversial character?
07:43 – How does Imogen Poots capture the quiet power of Thea?
09:30 – Tom Bateman shares how this version of George Tesman exists in DaCosta’s take on the world.
11:08 – Nicholas Pinnock touches on how the power play between Hedda and Brack affects the characters.
13:06 – The Hedda team plays Passing Notes!

Hedda will release in theaters on October 22 before streaming on Prime Video beginning October 29. Be sure to check out Collider for more from TIFF 2025!

Special thanks to the partners Roxstar Entertainment and its Campari Cinema Center and Campari, who featured their signature festival red-carpet drinks, including the Campari Negroni and Campari Spritz. Also host venue, Discreta Toronto, and Oscar-winning visual effects (VFX) company, Rodeo FX as well as Lavazza Coffee, Vellamo mineral water, Santa Carolina’s Reserva Chilean Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon wines, La Vieille Ferme Rosé and La Vieille Ferme Reserve Brut Sparkling, Peroni beer, and food catering by Miss Ivy Toronto @Cinemactr.