Zoe Kravitz, the queen of effortlessly cool vibes and enviable cheekbones, has peeled back the curtain on her directorial debut, Blink Twice. In this artsy thriller, Zoe not only wrote and directed but also recruited Channing Tatum to star as the leading man. Because, obviously, if you’re making a movie and Channing Tatum is available, you say yes. It’s practically a law.
Speaking in the Variety Directors on Directors interview with her The Batman director Matt Reeves (a.k.a. the guy who helped her transform into Catwoman), Zoe got candid about why she handpicked Channing and Naomi Ackie for their roles.
“Channing was the first person I thought of for Slater King,” Zoe confessed, adding, “I don’t know where that came from.” (Translation: She saw Magic Mike and thought, This guy could totally play a mysterious, maybe-slightly-shady dude with a secret. Because, same.) She explained that Slater had to be the kind of guy you’d trust enough to board a sketchy plane with, and let’s be real—Channing’s the kind of man who could sell you a timeshare and make you think it was your idea.
“I wanted to weaponize his charisma,” Zoe added. (Yes, girl! We love a strategic queen.) Apparently, this was a whole new vibe for Channing, whose usual roles lean more toward charming goofball than potentially nefarious airline enthusiast.
When it came to Naomi Ackie, Zoe was equally calculated. She needed an actress whose face could do all the things. “So much about that character is about her face saying one thing and her eyes saying another,” Zoe explained. (Basically, Naomi needed to serve full drama with a side of subtlety, and she nailed it.) After a meeting and a quick work-check, Zoe knew Naomi was her gal. “She understood on a fundamental level what the movie was,” Zoe said. Translation: Naomi got the assignment.
Of course, the Channing-Zoe collaboration didn’t stop at the script. Sparks flew on set, and the two started dating, eventually getting engaged. But, alas, their love story ended after three years. Hollywood relationships, am I right? It’s like mixing work and romance is some kind of rom-com-level risk.
Moral of the story: Zoe Kravitz knows how to cast a movie, and she knows how to keep us all intrigued with her effortlessly cool life choices. We’re already wondering what she’ll do next (besides probably inspiring us all to rethink our wardrobes).
