‘Hedda’ featurette: Tessa Thompson invites us into the rich and twisted world of Nia DaCosta’s sexy thriller

Tessa Thompson receives enthusiastic praise for her steamy role in Nia DaCosta Heddaa sexy and sapphic version of Henrik Ibsen’s film Hedda Gabler. But don’t worry. Their daring film is not only aimed at theater youth familiar with the classic play. This exclusive Prime Video featurette welcomes audiences into the rich and scandalous world of Hedda in less than four minutes.

Thompson, who titles and produces Hedda, shares insight into the anti-heroine epic. “One of the things that makes Hedda a character that has captivated audiences for centuries,” says Thompson, “is that Hedda’s motivations and why she does what she does is quite changeable. She has a ferocious appetite.”

For what? Oh, the wealth, the love and the carnage.

Da Costa Hedda takes Ibsen’s story of a beautiful, wicked socialite who turns her discontent into everyone’s problem and places it in a new setting: 1950s England, with a queer twist. DaCosta swapped Eilert, Hedda Gabler’s old flame, for Eileen, played here by Nina Hoss, who had previously played the title role on stage. “It reinvents the whole story,” Hoss says in the report.

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In Mashable’s interview with DaCosta, the writer/director talked about making this traditionally white and straight protagonist black and queer. “I always knew I wanted Hedda to be black, but more than anything, I wanted Tessa to play Hedda,” she said in the Mashable interview. “And then I thought about Eilert and I was like, ‘Hmm. What if Eilert was a woman? What if the difficulties he is going through are due to the fact that he is a woman? You know, he’s brilliant but misunderstood, not listened to… If it’s a woman, not only does it have more meaning for me but it also fits into the structure, into the themes that we deal with in any case, with Hedda.‘ And then I was like, ‘Oh, everyone’s gay!'”

This featurette explains how DaCosta’s reinvention of the story required unique music, costumes, and production design. Icelandic composer Hildur Guðnadóttir brings a carnal intensity to her score by infusing it with panting human breathing. The video at the top reveals that she created this by bringing Hedda’The cast and crew travel to the location to record these sounds where Hedda is lurking.

Costume designer Lindsay Pugh explains how she designed the defining dresses in the lesbian love triangle of Hedda, Eileen and Eileen’s current lover Thea (Imogen Poots). Next, production designer Cara Brower reveals her thought process for finding the perfect home for Hedda, while DaCosta explains how her decor alludes to the conflict in Hedda’s head and heart.

In short, this featurette teases plenty of reasons to fall in love Hedda. What is yours?

Hedda is now streaming on Prime Video.