Nia DaCosta’s latest film, Hedda, starring Tessa Thompson, reinvents Henrik Ibsen’s classic character as a bisexual Black woman in 1950s England, offering a fresh, complex exploration of womanhood, race, and societal constraints. This bold adaptation marks a significant collaboration between the director and star, deepening a widely known character for modern audiences.
For dedicated enthusiasts of classic cinema and theater, the idea of adapting an iconic work like Henrik Ibsen’s 1891 play Hedda Gabler carries a weight of expectation. Some filmmakers simply aim to bring the original to the screen, but for others, the true artistic challenge lies in evolving and transforming the source material. This is precisely what writer-director Nia DaCosta achieves with her new film, Hedda.
Rather than a straightforward adaptation, DaCosta’s vision delves deep into Ibsen’s themes of freedom, sacrifice, and misogyny, then boldly reconfigures the narrative structure. The result is a film that maintains the essence of the original while offering a profoundly new perspective, earning praise for its daring approach and a captivating performance from its lead.
Reimagining a Classic: Hedda’s Bold New Vision
In DaCosta’s Hedda, Tessa Thompson, a recent Gotham Awards nominee, takes on the titular role. The film still follows a conniving woman’s relentless pursuit of a luxurious life, but DaCosta has ingeniously turned the story on its head. The action is transported to 1950s England, set against the backdrop of a lavish party at Hedda’s opulent new estate. More significantly, Hedda herself is reimagined as a bisexual Black woman, caught between her struggling husband, George (Tom Bateman), and her former flame, Eileen (Nina Hoss), who happens to be George’s rival for a prestigious university position.
This adaptation is a deliberate act of transformation, aiming to explore Black womanhood with unparalleled depth. As DaCosta eloquently states, “I just really wanted to present a really dynamic, complex Black woman.” This choice deepens the character, making the story resonate with contemporary discussions about identity and societal pressures.
A Powerful Partnership: Thompson and DaCosta’s Collaborative Journey
The collaboration between Nia DaCosta and Tessa Thompson is a cornerstone of Hedda’s success. Their working relationship dates back to 2018, when Thompson starred in DaCosta’s feature directorial debut, Little Woods. They reunited five years later for Marvel’s The Marvels, where Thompson reprised her role as Valkyrie. However, it is in Hedda, with its nuanced exploration of Black womanhood, that their collaborative spirit truly culminates.
Thompson’s performance as Hedda is widely considered the best of her career, lauded for its ability to excavate the opaque underbelly of a character previously confined to narrower interpretations. The evolving nature of their partnership is evident, with Thompson also taking on a more significant producing role and even pitching new projects for DaCosta to direct, showcasing a deep mutual respect and understanding developed over years of shared creative endeavors.
Deconstructing Hedda: Race, Queerness, and Human Nature
One of the most profound aspects of DaCosta’s adaptation is her intentional casting of a Black actress and weaving race into the fabric of Hedda’s story. DaCosta’s approach was not to ask “what if she was Black?”, but rather to declare “she’s going to be Black… now what?” This allowed her to explore how Blackness influences Hedda’s actions, relationships, and motivations, presenting a multi-faceted portrayal that defies monolithic stereotypes.
Similarly, DaCosta approached Hedda’s queerness with an organic sensibility, transforming a male character into a woman and then exploring the ramifications. Her interest lies in portraying “what it’s actually like to live in the skin” without a didactic focus on struggles, instead aiming to capture the universal human experience within a specific body. Thompson noted that historically, “there just haven’t been Heddas of color,” even on stage, making DaCosta’s vision all the more groundbreaking.
The film also delves into the conditional nature of power, particularly for women. DaCosta emphasizes that any power dependent on someone else “has an expiration date and that it’s incomplete.” This theme is powerfully illustrated through Eileen’s character, who momentarily wields influence over misogynistic colleagues by tapping into her lesbian identity, only to lose control later. Hedda’s own manipulations, while effective in the short term, are similarly shown to be fragile and conditional.
Crafting the Cinematic Tension
The film masterfully ratchets up tension throughout a single, unsettling night, mirroring the gradual descent into chaos at a lavish party. DaCosta admits that the production faced unexpected challenges, including a significant COVID outbreak that forced early filming of a late-stage scene. Despite this, she guided her cast and crew through, treating each department and actor as a “dial” to be tuned for a cohesive narrative.
Thompson highlights the “communal storytelling” involved, from DaCosta’s use of different lenses to the unraveling of Hedda and the evening itself, conveyed powerfully through costume and hair. This meticulous attention to detail allows the tension to build organically, immersing the audience in Hedda’s increasingly calculating world.
A particularly riveting scene depicts Hedda’s shellshocked reaction to Eileen shooting herself with the gun Hedda provided. This moment peels back Hedda’s calculated surface, revealing her vulnerability and the unexpected weight of her actions. DaCosta stressed the importance of this scene for audiences to empathize with Hedda, realizing she’s “as vulnerable as Eileen is,” and that the consequences of her actions were not what she intended.
Exploring the “Animals Within”: What Audiences Can Expect
Both DaCosta and Thompson hope that Hedda encourages audiences to look beyond superficial interpretations of classic characters. Thompson argues against boxing Hedda into labels like “victim or villain,” suggesting the film aims to upset these notions, portraying her as “neither or maybe she’s a little bit of both.”
Central to their message is the idea that “Hedda is someone who wants everyone’s animals to come out.” Thompson elaborates on the importance of acknowledging the “darkness stored inside of us,” the “rage that we don’t get to express.” While not advocating for unfettered, damaging behavior, she believes it is crucial to recognize these parts of ourselves. Suppressing them, she warns, can lead to festering emotions that harm not only ourselves but also those around us.
For those new to Ibsen or who view older stories as antiquated, the film serves as an invitation. It demonstrates that even within familiar narratives, there is always more to investigate, offering a fresh, relevant entry point into classic texts.
DaCosta’s Genre-Defying Path and Uncompromising Vision
Nia DaCosta‘s career is marked by a deliberate pursuit of diverse genres, refusing to be typecast. From the indie drama Little Woods to the horror blockbuster Candyman and the superhero epic The Marvels, she continuously challenges conventional expectations. As she shared with NPR, part of her motivation is to “not get typecast,” allowing her to explore the genres she genuinely loves.
Her work on Hedda, which she wrote years ago as a personal project, reflects this same uncompromising vision. She views horror, for instance, as a genre where filmmakers “can really push people out of their comfort zones” because audiences are “signing for an extreme experience.” DaCosta’s experiences as a production assistant for legendary directors like Steven Soderbergh, Steve McQueen, and Martin Scorsese shaped her understanding of leadership and vision on set, reinforcing the idea that “everything comes from the top.” This foundation has empowered her to remain steadfast in her artistic choices, particularly as a Black woman navigating a predominantly white industry. She prioritizes the work above all, embodying a quiet strength that demands her vision be seen.
Nia DaCosta’s Hedda, with Tessa Thompson’s captivating performance, is more than just an adaptation; it is a profound reinterpretation that speaks to contemporary audiences while honoring its classic roots. By presenting a “dynamic, complex Black woman” at its heart, the film challenges perceptions, invites introspection into our own suppressed natures, and reaffirms the enduring power of storytelling to evolve and transform.
