“Star Wars” star Daisy Ridley not only had to train as a swimmer for her new role, but she also had to handle some heavy-duty vintage suits.
“When you're swimming with them, it's like wearing a weighted vest, I'm not kidding, it's like 10 kilos,” Ridley told Fox News Digital.
In “The Girl and the Sea,” Ridley plays real-life Olympic swimmer Gertrude “Trudy” Ederle, who became the first woman to swim across the English Channel in 1926.
At the beginning of the film, Ridley and her co-star Tilda Cobham-Hervey, who plays Trudy's sister Meg, wear late Victorian and early Edwardian swimsuits for their characters, which included heavy-duty, full-coverage clothing, as well as ” full stockings”. shoes.”
Daisy Ridley said the costumes she wore at the beginning of filming “The Girl and the Sea” were “like wearing a heavy vest.” (Kate Green/Getty Images for Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures UK)
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“The first time we saw Meg and Trudy swimming for real on screen, when they were trying to get on the women's team, she was so exhausted doing dog rowing, which is very difficult anyway, in that costume, it's like someone It's like a treadmill. You wonder, 'Why don't I move?'” Ridley said.
Cobham-Hervey added that the sets were: “Beautiful to look at, very impractical. Dry? Beautiful. Wet? Very difficult.”
Tilda Cobham-Hervey, left, and Daisy Ridley had to swim in suits similar to the 1910 swimsuit, right. (Getty Images)
“I was glad they were quick,” Ridley said.
The 32-year-old trained for three months with Olympic silver medal winner Siobhan O'Connor to prepare for the role.
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“In the first session with her, I swam about 25 meters and I was out of breath,” Ridley said in a press release for the film, “so I knew I had a lot of work to do. I trained for three months before I started. filming, then I continued training during filming. My swimming technique improved a lot. In the last shoot I did, I swam probably about 150 meters in the sea, fighting against the currents, keeping up with the camera boat.
Behind-the-scenes photo of Daisy Ridley swimming in “The Girl and the Sea.” (© 2024 Disney Enterprises Inc.)
In addition to on-screen fitness, Ridley took on another behind-the-scenes role as the film's executive producer.
“They treated me like a partner,” she said of the job. “I initially started out as an actor, and then when it came down to it, we were really going, I had some script notes, I had some ideas, one of them was that I really wanted the sister relationship to be the center of the movie. And honestly, [I] It was treated as a partner form onwards. “I knew who was being chosen, my opinion was always valid and listened to.”
She continued, “Honestly, it was awesome to be given the title, because it was so collaborative… I'm so proud to have my name up there as an EP.”
Daisy Ridley not only starred in “The Girl and the Sea,” but was also an executive producer. (Elena Nenkova. © 2024 Disney Enterprises Inc.)
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Ridley has also had a say in the upcoming “Star Wars” sequel, “Star Wars: New Jedi Order,” centered on her character Rey.
“When I spoke to Kathy [producer Kathleen Kennedy]I asked to be, again, I was always very involved, I was always listened to, I always felt like it was very collaborative, but certainly being there from the beginning, yeah, and it's very exciting to wait for something to officially happen. “.
WATCH: 'Star Wars' Star Daisy Ridley Was 'So Exhausted' by Vintage Costume in 'The Girl and the Sea'
“The Girl and the Sea” executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer praised Ridley's work in front of and behind the camera.
“She's a great actress, and it's great to have her behind the scenes too, because she understands what we all go through. She's a great asset in getting things done. When you have smart people working with you, it makes you look good.”
“The Girl and the Sea” director Joachim Rønning, with Daisy Ridley and Jerry Bruckheimer, right, at a screening of the film. (Monica Schipper/Getty Images for BAFTA)
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He also noted that “The Girl and the Sea” is “the most highly tested movie I've ever made, I've made some really important movies” and is “a movie for everyone, it's a movie for the whole family.”
Ederle's true story is inspiring. Born in 1905 in New York City to German immigrant parents, Ederle overcame a near-fatal case of measles as a child to become a swimmer, joining the United States Olympic team in 1924 in Paris, winning a gold medal in the process. .
Ederle eventually set out to swim across the English Channel, a feat only accomplished by men until she made her successful attempt. She faced discrimination, doubt and a litany of physical challenges before swimming in record time, beating the time of the five men who had completed the feat before her.
The real Trudy Ederle in 1925, and played by Daisy Ridley in “The Girl and the Sea.” (Getty Images/© 2024 Disney Enterprises Inc.)
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Ridley said of the film, “I hope that people go out and give each other a little hug and feel like they're connected to the people around them and that we all have accessibility to try to achieve our dreams, even if they seem impossible.” They don't seem to be ready to be taken right now to strive for it and try to find the people who will help him get to where he wants to go.”
“The Girl and the Sea” is now in theaters.
