The 2018 movie director thrilled at being told to “fuck off” by Judi Dench: “It’s quite nice”
In almost every case, a director would be furious if one of their actors overstepped the mark, crossed professional boundaries, and told them to fuck off. However, what if that actor is Judi Dench?
As it turns out, they’d be thrilled, because having an F-bomb lobbed your way by one of the greatest actors of all time is something to be worn as a badge of honour. Then again, it’s not the rarest accolade, since Dench has developed a habit for turning the air blue on many a set over the years.
The circumstances were slightly different this time around, though, since it was a documentary, where the subjects are supposed to let their guard down. Not too much, obviously, as prying for more information on a certain topic was what caused the legend of stage and screen to add some coins to the swear jar.
Even though he was an experienced hand as a theatre and film director, Roger Michell never worked with the Academy Award-winning veteran in either medium. The Notting Hill, Changing Lanes, and Venus director did get the chance to see her in action opposite some of her oldest and closest friends, and his attempts at being more than a fly on the wall didn’t go down too well.
The 2018 documentary Nothing Like a Dame became a viral sensation in its own right, with something as simple as Dench, Maggie Smith, Eileen Atkins, and Joan Plowright sitting around and shooting the shit, which they sometimes couldn’t pick up on without their hearing aids, providing almost 90 minutes of quaint hilarity.
Filmed over two days at the home the late Plowright shared with her husband, Laurence Olivier, Michell’s approach was straightforward: he set up the camera, pointed it at the quartet of decorated thespians, sat back, and let them natter away. Until he tried to nudge them in a certain direction, at least.
“Occasionally, I’d shout, ‘Let’s talk about that,'” the director admitted. “And, usually, I got told to fuck off. But it’s quite nice, being told to fuck off by Judi Dench.” He was far from the first or last industry professional who’d get a foul-mouthed tongue-lashing from the diminutive icon, and daring to interrupt their conversation was what pushed her over the edge.
In all honesty, why would you need to give those four a nudge? Dench, Smith, Atkins, and Plowright had all been friends and frequent collaborators for decades, having all broken through at around the same time, and looking at what they’d achieved in their careers, they’d have chatted for weeks if they had the time.
When you’re dealing with a quartet boasting a combined haul of three Oscars from 15 nominations, seven Golden Globes from 27 nods, 15 Baftas from 49 nominations, 12 Olivier Awards from being shortlisted 33 times, and three Tony wins, with Atkins being the only one who didn’t claim the latter prize, it’s not as if they’d be running out of career topics to cover.
