She has been nominated for two Oscars and won legions of fans, so Keira Knightley must have been stunned to have her acting publicly criticised by one of her own directors.
John Carney, the Irish director and writer of musical comedy-drama Begin Again, was quoted as saying one of Britain’s biggest stars was a mere “supermodel”.
He also claimed Knightley, 31, had an “entourage” and said he had become “disenchanted” working with her.
“I don’t want to rubbish Keira,” the director said in a recent interview, before going on to do just that.
He said: “It’s hard being a film actor and it requires a certain level of honesty and self-analysis that I don’t think she’s ready for yet and I certainly don’t think she was ready for on that film.
“Keira’s thing is to hide who you are and I don’t think you can be an actor and do that. It’s not like I hate the Hollywood thing but I like to work with curious, proper film actors as opposed to movie stars."
Asked if he had learned anything from the experience, he added: “I learned I’ll never make a film with supermodels again.”
Knightley has been lavishly praised by other directors she has worked with.
Carney’s comments, in an interview with The Independent, were all the more remarkable as disagreements between actors and directors in Hollywood, which are common, are usually kept private at all costs.
Begin Again was filmed in 2012 and released two years later. Knightley starred as a singer-songwriter who is discovered in New York.
Carney said: “I think the real problem was that Keira wasn’t a singer and wasn’t a guitar player and it’s very hard to make music seem real if it’s not with musicians.”
The film was made for $8 million (£5 million) and grossed $63 million at the box office, receiving positive reviews.
Knightley was nominated for an Academy Award for best actress for Pride & Prejudice in 2006, and for best supporting actress for The Imitation Game in 2015.
Her representatives were last night yet to comment.
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