Nina Hoss enters a conversation about *Hedda* the way her character Eileen Lövborg enters that fateful party: she commands the space, is unapologetically present, and utterly impossible to overlook.
The German actress, who spent six years performing *Hedda Gabler* on stage in Berlin’s demanding repertoire system, now takes on Nia DaCosta’s bold reimagining of the Ibsen classic — playing a character that didn’t exist in the original text. It’s a transformation that reflects Hoss’s artistic fearlessness and the kind of creative risks that make century-old material feel urgent again.
“When I read the script, I thought, why has no one ever thought about that?” Hoss tells *Variety*’s *Awards Circuit* Podcast of DaCosta’s decision to gender-swap the male character Eilert Lövborg into Eileen.
“It makes it so interesting for the other female characters. All of a sudden it becomes this triangle of three very, in their own right, complicated, nuanced, colorful female characters. And that wasn’t in the play.”
For Hoss, the lasting appeal of *Hedda*, both on stage and now on screen, lies in its exploration of internal conflict and social paralysis.
“What is it that we, being male or female, don’t allow ourselves to do? To live the life we really want, to follow the desires or passions we feel inside?” she asks. “We think we can’t do it because society expects something of us, or because we feel we’re queer, and we think, no, I can’t live that life. That is what I find so interesting, and always fascinating.”
In DaCosta’s version, Eileen is no longer a boozy male intellectual but a woman fighting to be taken seriously as a writer, an academic, and a person.
“Her struggle to enter the academic world, to be respected as a writer, as a person even as an openly queer person became so much more front-facing and deep,” Hoss explains.
The gender reversal reshapes not only Eileen but the entire narrative architecture.
Oscar buzz is building for Hoss’s fierce, emotionally expansive performance, with many industry observers positioning her as a formidable contender for Best Supporting Actress — what would be her first Academy Award nomination. The recognition feels long overdue for an actress who has delivered consistently extraordinary work across two decades, yet was overlooked for her haunting turns in *Barbara* (2012), *Phoenix* (2015), and most recently as the calculating partner to an enigmatic musician in *Tár* (2022).
Her work in *Hedda* showcases the full range of her gifts. If the Academy is finally ready to embrace one of international cinema’s most compelling actors, this could be her moment.
Working with DaCosta — who joins Todd Field and Christian Petzold in the roster of visionary directors Hoss has collaborated with — was another transformative experience.
“What they all have in common is that, at the end of the day, they’re deeply curious about what we bring to the table as actors,” she says. “They have this kind of childlike curiosity: ‘What are you going to do with it?’ And that’s the best, because you feel so trusted.”
For Hoss, who describes herself as “very much an interpreter” rather than a producer or director, that trust is essential. Splitting her time between German theater and international films, she approaches each role with a careful mix of instinct and collaboration.
“I’ve done theater. I always go back home and do German films, because I find having that base important,” she says. “I don’t belong to anyone. I’m open to the right material and the collaborators who are fascinating to me.”
In *Hedda*, Hoss embodies a woman who refuses to shrink herself. Her costume — a custom-made dress with a corset and voluminous skirt — reflects a character who, while recovering from addiction, walks boldly into a space designed to undo her.
“She’s unapologetically female,” Hoss says. “She walks into a room full of men in suits and says, ‘Here I am.’ She’s not hiding. She’s not seductive in the conventional sense — she just is.”
“There’s something weirdly joyous about Hedda,” Hoss adds, speaking of a character defined by entrapment. Perhaps that’s because she recognizes the universal truth beneath the period costumes and theatrical origins: we are all, in some way, “these weird creatures that have a free will, but we’re kind of stuck inside ourselves.”
In DaCosta’s pressure-cooker reimagining, that suffocation becomes not just visible but visceral — and through Hoss’s performance, unexpectedly, powerfully alive.
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### On this episode of the *Variety Awards Circuit* Podcast, Nina Hoss discusses her role in DaCosta’s film, reflects on a changing Hollywood, and what we can expect from her future roles. Listen below!
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### Excerpts from Nina Hoss’s interview (edited and condensed for clarity):
**You played Hedda Gabler on stage for six years. What was that experience like, and how did it prepare you for this film?**
Just to explain, that’s possible because of the repertoire system we have in Germany. I might perform *Hedda Gabler* six times a month, or sometimes just twice, depending on what else is running. One night might be *Medea*, the next *Hedda*. At one point, I had six plays in rotation at the same time. So you’re not doing the same play every night for six years.
The beauty of that system, despite its challenges, is that you grow older with the characters. You understand them differently each time. I never got bored, not once. She’s trapped, but there’s also an invitation to explore that entrapment. Those questions make *Hedda* endlessly fascinating to me.
**How did the gender reversal in the film affect your character and the overall story?**
In the original play, Eilert Lövborg is a man — Hedda’s former lover. There’s tension between them, but it’s never fully realized. He’s an alcoholic who tells her wild stories, always returning to her with tales of his debauchery.
But Nia reimagined it completely. Instead of talking about the party, we’re all in it — this one-night pressure cooker. And Eilert becomes Eileen, which changes everything.
Now she’s a female writer, openly queer, trying to survive in an academic world that still doesn’t take her seriously. Her battle to be seen, to be heard, to be respected is more immediate, more layered.
It also makes the dynamic between the women electrifying. Suddenly, you have this triangle of three complex, nuanced, and deeply human female characters. That wasn’t there in the original, and I thought it was a brilliant decision.
**You’ve worked with incredible directors like Nia DaCosta, Todd Field, and Christian Petzold. What draws you to these collaborations?**
It always begins with the material. That’s the foundation.
If something excites me on the page, and I meet the director and we can talk for hours — that’s the sign. We’re aligned in how we see the world, how we want to tell stories. If we connect in conversation, I know we can work well together.
What’s remarkable about Todd, Christian, and Nia is that they trust actors. They have a strong vision, yes, but they’re also curious. They want to see what you’ll bring. That sense of trust opens you up. You want to give everything.
With *Hedda*, playing Eileen was a journey through every emotion imaginable. At first, she seems to have it all under control, but then it unravels. There’s something heartbreaking in that, but also something very alive.
And being supported by an ensemble like Tessa Thompson, Imogen Poots, and Tom Bateman — it was a joy, honestly.
**The costumes in the film are visually striking. What was your involvement in shaping Eileen’s look?**
Oh, they were essential. Lindsay, our costume designer, was brilliant.
We could have gone the expected route — suits, masculine tailoring, a Katharine Hepburn type. But I felt Eileen should be intellectual, yes, but not hiding her body.
She doesn’t lead with her sexuality, but she also doesn’t minimize it. There’s a key scene where her dress becomes translucent when wet, so the fabric had to be carefully chosen.
I also thought she needed a corset — she’s a recovering addict stepping back into temptation. The corset helps her hold it together. And the skirt takes up space.
When she walks into a room full of men in suits, she claims that space.
Even the imperfections in the costume — the slightly off-shoulder veil, the asymmetry — hint at the cracks in her composure.
When a costume does that for you, you don’t have to act it. It’s already speaking.
**You split your time between theater and film. How do you choose your projects?**
I’ve never made lists of dream roles. Maybe that’s a bit naive, but I believe the right things find you.
I’m not Reese Witherspoon or Nicole Kidman, producing my own work, though I admire them deeply. But I trust that if I stay open and committed, the right projects come.
For example, I always dreamed of doing something like *Wild* — a road movie on foot. And this May, I shot *The Other Side* with Mariko Minoguchi, a half-German, half-Japanese director. It’s a dystopian story set in the Alps. I could never have imagined that script, but when it came to me, I grabbed it.
**Are you hopeful about the roles available to women, especially those over a “certain age”?**
Yes.
I really believe it’s our time now — women in our 40s and 50s. There are more of us telling stories, more of us wanting to see our full selves on screen.
And I think we’re finding each other. As collaborators, as creators, we’re building space for that representation.
With *Hedda*, there was some hesitation. It’s three women at the helm, and that made some people nervous. But it premiered in Toronto and people wanted to talk about it. The studio stood behind us.
Sometimes it takes a moment, but those experiences make me hopeful.
I’ve realized I’m not the one who pushes things into the world — that’s a particular skill set. I help develop and shape the work, and I hang in there.
If nothing comes for a while, I trust something will. And that trust, that faith in the work — that’s what keeps me going.
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*Variety*’s *Awards Circuit* podcast, hosted by Clayton Davis, Jazz Tangcay, Emily Longeretta, Jenelle Riley, and Michael Schneider (who also produces), is your one-stop source for lively conversations about the best in film and television.
Each episode features interviews with top film and TV talent and creatives, discussions and debates about awards races and industry headlines, and much more.
https://variety.com/2025/film/podcasts/nina-hoss-hedda-queer-icon-women-over-50-1236571655/
