MILLIE TEELS SHOW
Stranger Things actress on all-action Netflix movie in which she plays kickass character forced to take on dragons
AS ELEVEN in the hit series Stranger Things, she used her supernatural powers to escape a mad scientist and a plethora of monsters from the Upside Down World.
Now Millie Bobby Brown has turned the fairy-tale trope of a damsel in distress who relies on a knight in shining armour entirely on its head.
In netflix movie Damsel, her noblewoman character Elodie is swept off her feet by a handsome prince, only to discover it has been a ruse to serve her up as a human sacrifice.
Unlike Sleeping Beauty, there isn’t a passionate kiss to wake her up from her nightmare.
Instead, Elodie has to use all her own guile, guts and determination to stay alive in a fire-breathing dragon’s lair.
The British actress, who was born in Marbella, says her character’s independent spirit attracted her to the role.
“I think typical fairytales are completely fine and being saved by the prince might be nice,” Brown said.
“Growing up, those are the stories I was told, that the princess was in distress, and then the prince comes down and saves her and they live happily ever after.
“Those are great stories to tell, because when you’re younger it helps you escape.
“But I just want to know that it’s an option that you’re capable of saving yourself. I think that’s what Damsel does, in a very real and gritty way.
“In this one, I just wanted to show the possibility of it. I just don’t think those stories have been put out there.
“The option of it, I think, is nice for young girls to know.”
Brown, now 20, was 12 when she was catapulted to fame in the Duffer Brothers’ blockbuster Tv series Stranger Things.
She also made guest appearances in US Tv series such as NCIS, Modern Family and Grey’s Anatomy, and went on to play the lead in Enola Holmes and its 2022 sequel.
No stranger to monster films, she co-starred in Godzilla: King of the Monsters and Godzilla vs Kong.
Described as a “subversive fairytale”, Damsel co-stars Ray Winstone, Angela Bassett and Robin Wright. And while Brown’s lead character Elodie is a damsel in a wedding dress, she doesn’t intend to be a damsel in distress for long, using her multi-layered gown as a Swiss army knife of sorts, tearing it apart and using components to get out of various tight spots.
Brown claims the latest role pushed her to levels of acting she didn’t realise she was capable of. “I had never thrown myself into a role, theoretically and physically, quite like this before,” she said.
“I’d done work like this before in Stranger Things and even Enola but there’s something different because Eleven and Enola were always fighting.
“But there’s something about playing a victim – hiding from a dragon for a very long period of time was quite challenging.
“You can’t really prepare for that because you can’t prepare to be hurt. You have to be able to feel it in the moment, just kind of go on instinct.
“So it was quite challenging. It really
pushed me to new levels I didn’t really think I was capable of.
Millie, who is deaf in her left ear, added: “I really wanted to make it because I’ve never done a role like this. I was really excited to do something a bit grittier and mature.
“I made it to not only challenge myself but to have the young girls and boys look up to someone that starts as a victim and turns into a warrior.”
Though not fighting dragons in real life, Brown found parallels between Elodie’s coming-of-age story and her own. “I loved playing her,” she said. “I feel that the beginning of the film in comparison to the end, they are just two completely different versions of her and I truly feel that probably resembles me in the acting world.
“I started off doing Modern Family and Grey’s Anatomy, very, very timid, and being rejected a lot by the industry.
“Right now, I feel the best version of myself. I feel the strongest version of myself and I hope to only become stronger. I think it is in parallel to the performance I played in Damsel.”
The actor, who is also executive producer on Damsel, added: “I also love being behind the scenes.
“That started when I started Stranger Things because the directors, the Duffer Brothers, were so inclusive and collaborative on my journey and always pushed me to be expressive of what I thought was right. It only pushed me to think I was capable.”
Looking ahead to the final season of Stranger Things, she said: “We’re filming right now and it feels good.
“It’s our last season so we’re really excited to be back together for one last hurrah.
“But it does feel sad. We’re definitely embracing it all and it’s really nice to be back with everyone and the story is unbelievable.” Meanwhile, she is betrothed to her own handsome prince, fiance Jake Bongiovi, 21. The couple, who announced their engagement in April 2023 after two years of dating, turned up at last week’s world premiere of the film at New York’s Paris Theater with Bongiovi’s parents, rock legend Jon Bon Jovi and his wife Dorothea Hurley.
On being engaged, Brown said: “It’s a huge part of my life and I’m very lucky to be with him and to be experiencing life with him. It’s great.
“I feel like we’re always going to have each other’s back, and if anyone drops the ball, we got it.”
● Damsel is on Netflix from today.
I has thrown myself into a role quite like this before MILLIE BOBBY BROWN ON NEW MOVIE