Bradley Cooper had a very special vision when it came to telling the story of Leonard Bernstein and Felicia Montealegra in the Maestro.
During a panel in Los Angeles on Friday with producers nominated for the 2024 Oscar for Best Picture, Cooper, 49, elaborated on some of the challenges he faced while working on Maestrowhich earned seven nominations this year.
He not only played the role of the legendary conductor, but also directed and produced the film. Of juggling his various responsibilities, he joked, “The biggest challenge by far was being the freaking director.”
“He had these crazy demands like shoot in black and white, 35mm stock and a 1:3:3 aspect ratio, and half the film was black and white, and he was shooting it live and he wanted to be on location.” , he continued. of his own outrageous “demands” while leading the project.
“And we were losing our minds. But we all band[ed] together and we tried to give him what he wanted,” he said of the cast, which included Carey Mulligan, Matt Bomer, Maya Hawke and Sarah Silverman.
Bradley Cooper the moment he took Carey Mulligan to the emergency room on a ‘dramatic’ first date
arey Mulligan as Felicia Montealegre and Bradley Cooper as Leonard Bernstein in ‘The Maestro’.
Jason McDonald/Netflix
“It’s true – I’ll just give you the highlights – but this movie was not easy to make by any stretch of the imagination. And I produced American sniper at Warner Brothers and A star is born at Warner Brothers and Joker at Warner Brothers, and that was hard to pass. It just gives you an idea.”
However, Cooper added that he has “one superpower” that has helped him push this passion project through, despite years of delays. “I don’t take anything personally. This is what you must learn right away. It’s just — it’s a job, man.”
Maestro won best picture at this year’s Oscars, but Cooper himself is also in the running for best actor, and Mulligan won best actress for her portrayal of the conductor’s wife.
“When my name was mentioned, everyone was screaming and my baby started crying because she was so scared,” Mulligan, who has three children with husband Marcus Mumford, told PEOPLE of her reaction to her first nomination.
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Cooper said: “I was taking my daughter to school so I missed the start. And then I came home, put it in the kitchen, and mom and I watched.”
On how he felt amid the buzz of a handful of nominations, he added: “I feel like I’m there for all of it. This is just a pleasure — the fact that this film is recognized.”
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Bradley Cooper speaks onstage during the 30th Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall on February 24, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.
Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty
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A large part of the making of the film involved the conductor’s children, Jamie (71), Alexander (68) and Nina (61), with whom he was in constant contact during filming.
“The way he embraced us going into this project — he was so open-hearted,” Jamie told PEOPLE of Cooper. “We ended up feeling like we could trust him.”
She added of his performance: “We had no idea that Bradley had such a level of intensity and commitment to the cause when he got hold of her. There are even certain moments in the film, when he’s in motion, where he looks so exactly like our father, it makes us on breath.”
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