Lovelace may be a film about the porn industry and the country's first mainstream porn star, but don't get it twisted: This isn't supposed to be a sexy movie.
So says star Amanda Seyfried, who is still doing press rounds for Lovelace even though it received limited release in the US on Aug. 9. According to the actress in a new interview with British Grazia, the movie isn't porn — and she's tired of people calling the real Linda Lovelace "crazy."
"This is not a movie about a porn star — it's about a deeply twisted relationship," Seyfried explained to the magazine. "I fully believe Linda's viewpoint and that's of a woman who was physically abused...a lot of people don't believe the story she had to tell. It's strange. I keep getting asked, 'What was it like to play this crazy porn star?' But she's not that woman to me at all. She was in this crazy, unhealthy, twisted relationship and, quite honestly, it's the darkest place I've ever gone to with a role."
Linda Lovelace was widely considered the first mainstream porn star, and the film that made her famous, Deep Throat, was released in 1972 to wide success. Linda later left the pornography industry and denounced its existence, claiming that she was forced to appear in pornography at gunpoint by ex-husband and Deep Throat production manager Chuck Traynor.
"It was the violence I found very hard to deal with. You're talking about a woman who was forced to even ask to go to the bathroom. I found it very hard to watch Deep Throat and we only just skimmed the surface of it," Seyfriend continued. "Linda played a huge part in America's sexual awakening. She opened up a lot of people to be comfortable with their bodies and sexuality, which is something we take for granted now. She wanted her story told. But she also needed the money."
