Jessica Chastain has been hustling for Molly’s Game for weeks. I kept meaning to do some stand-alone fashion posts for Chastain’s many premiere looks, but honestly, most of the looks weren’t that great. These photos are from the New York premiere and the Amsterdam premiere. In New York, Chastain wore the black-and-white Oscar de la Renta ballgown, the one with “Oscar de la Renta” in scribbled cursive on the skirt. I’m okay with the idea of Chastain in a ballgown – the silhouette suits her figure beautifully – but I just don’t like this particular dress that much. In Amsterdam, Jessica wore a teal Elie Saab which… was beautifully designed, flattering and fine. I’m not 100% into it, but it’s a good gown and a perfect premiere look.
Meanwhile, to promote her contract as the face of the Ralph Lauren perfume Woman, Chastain chatted with Marie Claire. It was basically a series of one-sentence answers, but I found some of the stuff interesting – you can see the full piece here. My favorite answers:
Best career advice I’ve gotten: To not follow the money, but to follow the education of projects.
Worst pitfall of the job: People stop saying no to you—that’s when you start going on a downward spiral.
Change I’d like to see in my industry: Lose its fear of women in powerful positions.
Last thing I binge-watched: The Crown [Netflix], because it’s a story of a woman’s power and trying to navigate a relationship without emasculating her husband.
What every woman should try once in her lifetime: Going to a restaurant and having dinner by herself.
Relationship advice to my younger self: If you think he’s cheating on you, he probably is.
Craziest thing I ever did for love: I’m very shy, so I don’t do public displays of affection. I think love is intimate, and once it becomes a public thing is more about getting attention than being real.
Something I did recently for myself, because, why not: I left my phone at home and went for a walk in the countryside. It’s something I do when I get anxious. It’s important to be without your phone sometimes—it’s the best self-care you can do.
You know what just occurred to me? Jessica married her guy, Gian, earlier this year, but she hasn’t even mentioned him during her promotional tour. Even the most actress-y actresses in the world will often give some details about their weddings or their “husbands” but not Jessica. And I agree with her advice: “If you think he’s cheating on you, he probably is.” I also wish someone had told me this when I was younger: if you think he has a crush on you, he probably does. And if you think a guy is a douchebag the first time you meet him, he probably is. Basically, young women need to be advised to trust their instincts all the time.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
I totally agree with her about if you think the guy is cheating, he probably is.
She said she thinks love is intimant and isn’t real if it’s used for public attention, so maybe that’s why she never mentions him
When I was 17 I worked one summer at a sign company. The owner was from Jordan. He was always kind and respectful to me. When summer was over he gave me a large bonus for college and told me this. “You are a sweet girl & I want you to remain that way so I will let you in on the most truth, dick has no conscience. Don’t forget this” I didn’t and he was right.
Yep, I don’t think she has ever really talked about her husband in much detail. And the cheating comment was in response to a” advice to her younger self” question.
I have been dining out alone a couple of times a week since the early 90s. It was hard at first but then I would see men do it all the time. At the time I traveled for work, it wasn’t a hard decision it was the social stigma. It didn’t take long for me to see that I made good money and I also needed to eat. Never looked back.
I was surprised to read that as her once in a lifetime thing – I do that all the time, don’t even think about it, I just go and sometimes people tag along and sometimes they don’t. Same with cinema. I want to do something so I go do it, not gonna wait around for company.
Same here. Just about to do it now too. My friends all live downtown while I live in the burbs. sometimes, you don’t want to make the trek and just want to cross the street to get something to eat.
Same here. Not putting my life on hold waiting for someone to join me.
Yes.
I’ve been seeing what I want, eating what I want, & doing whatever I have the urge to since I was 16. People that have never done any of the above, completely baffle me.
& she’s right. Women should always always always trust their instincts. That feeling we get is for a (subconscious) reason (via thinking with both sides of the brain).
Never stick around to get validation for your rationalization.
I’ve been a singleton movie-goer for the longest time, never had a problem having breakfast or lunch alone, but dinner? Dinner, no, that’s date night & just felt weird. Remember that Steve Martin movie? He goes out to dinner alone, and a spotlight hits him as the maitre de walks him to his table, then whisks away the extra place setting & extra chair.
I used to feel like that, but no more. I’m older, wiser, & travel a lot for work. I’m no longer hiding out with room service. My most recent dinner alone was on the 36th floor of a Honolulu hotel, I had a window table & great view, great food & service, the piano player was terrific, and dessert was lilikoi creme brule. There are so many good things about getting older, & not caring about what other people think is one of them.
That’s so great! I read an article Abot a woman who chose to eat alone whilevacation in Paris. She spoke of how much she enjoyed herself and the atmosphere and was unapologetic about being alone. She noted after enjoying a good meal she floated out of the restaurant at the end of the evening. it’s so important to be able to enjoy your own company. When I visited San Francisco I was showing pictures of my visit to friends and they kept asking who I went with because there are so many pictures of me I laughed and said I just asked people to take my picture. Going alone didn’t hinder my vacation and this was in the age before selfies
I went to the movies alone once. I saw Amelie, so I was about 22 years old. There was not one other person in the theater, and then after the movie started a creepy older man came in and sat one seat away from me to my side. I was too polite to get up and move to another seat, but I wish I had. Who does that?!
I haven’t been to the movies alone since. (Also I have somewhat crippling social anxieties, so I tend to not leave the house if I’m not working…)
I have been going to movies alone since I was 10 and I am now 65. I am an avid movie fan and never met anyone who enjoyed movies as much as I do. I agree about dining alone. I can do lunch but not dinner. My disappointed with myself about traveling: In my 20’s I could travel the world alone. I no longer feel comfortable doing this and it makes me sad. There is so much of the world I want to see and see again. I am dating a man who doesn’t enjoying going to the movies and isn’t interested in traveling.
I do most things by myself- go to the movies, concerts, museums, etc. When we were in our 20’s, I had mentioned that I saw some movie and my friend asked who did I go with. I told her no one, I went by myself. Her and the other girl thought it was weird that I went by myself and how they could never do it. I told them if you can’t go to a movie by yourself, then frankly I think you got some bigger issue than thinking it’s weird. It’s been a while since I’ve been to a restaurant by myself, I now just order it to go unless I’m on vacation, then I’ll just eat it there.
This would happen to me all of the time. Men would treat me like I was some kind of loser, because I didn’t let not having a partner keep me from enjoying life.
I dined alone often because of traveling, but I have always felt comfortable eating in restaurants alone, having a drink alone, going to the movies, art shows, live music. I like doing it because then I am doing exactly what I want to do at that moment and I am exactly where I want to be.
But I only do it now when my parents have my children, or they visit relatives, or my husband is going to do something fun with them. Travel for work is a given. Otherwise, I feel like an a-hole.
I admire you all. I admit I’m not that comfortable going for dinner by myself. And it’s not that I’m uncomfortable with myself, or don’t like my own company; on the contrary, I go for long walks and hikes by myself all the time, and have been to see a few movies on my own. But there’s something about dinner… I don’t know. I can’t describe it. Meals, for me, are more social. I just like to have someone to chat and laugh with while I’m eating.
I’ve never sat at a bar and had a glass of wine by myself either, and THAT, I’m determined to do soon.
She looks very pretty in both looks. And totally agree about what she said. Trust your gut.
I just saw some stills from (what I assume) is a roundtable with Jessica, Margot, Kate, Jane and there’s a noticeable reaction when Kate starts talking about Woody Allen. Its…priceless
EDIT: found the interview
https://youtu.be/84p7f-Rh-RY
@Nicole Wow….she is tone deaf and desperate for attention. Margot looked like she wanted to shank her hahahaha. KW is an idiot. I used to love her but the more she speaks the more I see she isn’t very smart, reeks of need for validation and is so far up her own bum.
Yep. Me, me, me, me, me….do you notice how she constantly complements herself, whilst trying to be self-deprecating at the same time. She does my head in, she is so pretentious.
She doesn’t talk much about her husband but his gorgeous face pops up ever so often on her IG.
I really like the black and white dress but it seems a little much for a premier. I don’t follow Jessica’s interviews closely but she barely talked about her relationship before so I don’t see that changing just because she’s married.
also, if he accuses you of cheating, he probably is just projecting his guilt and is the cheater.
Wouldnt that make Jessica the cheater in this?
Maria F.
I’m familiar with this maxim but have not found it to be necessarily true or reliable. My ex was one of those obsessive/insecure types and he ALways thought I was flirting and/or about to cheat with other men. He himself, however, was not the cheating type and I never had any reason to suspect him of it. So he didn’t think I was cheating because he was doing it himself. He thought so because he was jealous and insecure with major trust issues.
@Maria F. and Enough Already and I had a girlfriend who accused me when she was the one cheating and I have never done so.
Some people have good instincts and some don’t, some people are paranoid and some aren’t, some project and some don’t.
What bothers me about these blanket statements that may reassure those with good instincts is that it also affirms the paranoid (and those who project).
Jay
Completely agree and this is why such statements just aren’t true.
@Jay exactly! I had a very jealous ex boyfriend who even went through the trash (!) once when I’d been home alone for a weekend to see if I had had any company! Never cheated on him once, never gave him any reason to doubt me, and I don’t think he ever cheated either, he was just paranoid and controlling. Now I couldn’t imagine being in a relationship like that (we were young lol) but I know of women who behave just as crazily with their boyfriends so… I like Jessica but that statement is nonsense.
She’s absolutely gorgeous in that blue dress! And I generally like what she has to say in this and other interviews.
I love going to the cinema on my own and having dinner or lunch alone with a good book, a good podcast etc. We’re a family of 8 (my parents live with us) and I am an only child who decided to have an army of children. I NEED alone time and I love the feeling of noise and activity around me that does not concern me in any way, other than taking my order and my money. Luckily I also get to travel for work so I also get to have that alone time without having to plan for it – bc sometimes it is hard to just decide to do it.
I also love that J Chastain has a beautiful non HW body.
I used to love to do the same thing on Saturdays…I’d take the bus downtown to the movie theater and then slowly walk home the roughly six miles afterwards, checking out the neighborhoods along the way. It was such a lovely, solitary way to spend the day. And a much better way to get to know my city than via car. This was before marriage and kids, though. I’m glad you’ve found your perfect getaway!
Yes! I’d say you get to know the city, or your environment… and yourself. Liberating. I hope you get there at some point again.
There were a few moments in my life when that was impossible for me too – heck I didn’t even listen to music when my first 2 were little for a few years, let alone go to the movies or even binge watch a series on dvd!
That sounds lovely, Esmom. Slowsnow, I do the same, and thoroughly enjoy my time and myself.
I like Jess. She’s honest and real and I could not agree more with her comments about PDA.
Wonder who she was thinking of. 😉
She may fuck up a few times, but we’re all entitled to that. I really like her and think her heart is always in the right place. One of the few honest people in Hollywood.
Love it that she talks very little about her husband, Why should she? Male actors talk very little about their non-famous wives when promoting a project.
I love that Oscar de la R dress! The squiggles are great – I could deal without the signature tho…
Not crazy about the teal one – looks a little plain or something up top.
Beautiful woman.
She is lovely. Love the dresses but I don’t like clothing that included signatures. I’m not a billboard. You’ll never see me wearing anything that says “Bebe” across the chest or the like. I work from home a lot and get lonely so I eat out or do work in coffee shops all the time by myself just to hear the chatter around me and feel less isolated.
I just thought about this. Sitting alone in a restaurant is kind of weird. Sitting on your luggage and messily shoveling food into your face hole is seen as normal. Kind of weird.
I sit by myself in restaurants frequently, and don’t see it as weird at all. And at the end of a long day, especially in a city not my own, I enjoy having a nice dinner out. Your sitting on luggage and stuffing food in mouth scenario though – that would seem odd to me.
We’ve been taught to not listen to our gut, that female intuition is emotional hen clucking.
The truth is that we’ve often been fired in the crucible of trauma and gaslighting. Even beyond the cultural push towards docility and agreeableness. It benefits predatory men actively, and ‘nice men passively, for women to disbelieve themselves. We’ve been trained to disbelieve our strengths.
So we end up with the instincts to identify things, but because it’s not theory, we are left without the words. Gut instinct is all your accumulated memories lining up and your brain telling you something, even when you lack the words.
Trust yourselves, ladies.
Beautifully said! This makes me feel better for all the times men have given me a fishy look when I’ve said “I don’t know, I just know.” The worst of them think it’s my attempt to dodge having to use rationale or logic to explain myself, and this even with the longstanding family joke being that I’m a psychic in denial lol. On the contrary, other women tend to nod their heads reassuringly/knowingly and absolutely give me the benefit of the doubt.
Yellow Belly, I couldn’t agree more. If you think he’s cheating, he probably is. If you think he’s lying, he probably is. If you’re gut is telling you the situation you are in is unsafe, it probably is.
Over the years, I’ve gotten somewhat better at listening to my instincts, but there is a great deal of social conditioning both explicit and subconscious that needs to be unpacked and overcome which is obviously a long process of growth.
But even as a grown ass woman I have difficulty setting those social norms aside and looking out for my own interests even if it means looking like a bitch. It’s so worth it, though. I can honestly say that my gut has never been wrong. Trust yourself always.
Yesssss! To all of this! It took me years to see this. I beat myself up by wanting proof and not trusting what I felt. Only to find out what I felt was all true.
The blue dress!! Beautiful on Jessica
I highly recommend for every woman to read The Gift of Fear by Gavin de Becker and Why Does He Do That? by Lundy Bancroft.
Dish! Are they about relationships or self-esteem or maybe both? I always get amazing book recs from CBers 🙂
The first one has a lot to do with female socialization and how it makes us women the perfect victims and how to work around that. Basically build up our self esteem, trust that we aren’t just imagining things/blowing them out of proportion, read the room better and strategies for getting out when in a situation that can potentially escalate into violence.
The second one is about abusive relationships (emotionally and/or physically) but can also apply to family dynamic. It’s about subtle manipulation, control, gas lighting and how to recognize it and avoid falling for it. It has lots of examples of specific behaviours that gets analyzed and explained step by step both in what effect it has on you as a person, what women usually do as a reaction, what the intention behind that behaviour is and in what ways men go around hiding it.
Basically both of them are about both topics, the first one is more stranger oriented and the second is more partner oriented. They are easy to read and very eye opening – I found a lot of situations where I felt uneasy around somebody without being able to pinpoint why exactly and these books really go into it.
Thank you! I am going to get both of these and pass them along to my daughter. After not knowing the signs myself I want to equip and empower her now while she is a teen.
I don’t agree that if you think he’s cheating he probably is…some people have been burned in the past and then their insecurities get the best of them in future relationships..to say that he probably is cheating is inaccurate. You should always take a step back and assess the situation to determine if it’s your own paranoia and old demons coming out or if there may be valid evidence behind your fears..speaking from experience..
Have been dining out alone and watching movie alone like forever. If I wait for my friends to come with me to watch a movie, I will have to wait forever.
Its Really fun and refreshing to not depend on anyone else.
How difficult is it to leave a cell phone at home for awhile?
She doesn’t look 40 at all.
I love both gowns on her.
I never suspected my ex-husband of cheating simply because it would never enter my mind to cheat on him. So I didn’t even think about it. And I’m glad I was mature enough to remain proud of my being an honest person as opposed to feel like a fool, the way women tend to feel.
Ladies, it’s not you, it’s him.
My husband cheated and I had to argue with a friend that I shouldn’t feel like a fool for trusting my husband and that he abused that trust. That it was not on me that was him! It was exhausting.
I love the bit about following the education of projects instead of the money. That’s something you could apply to a lot of things (although of course it is a privilege thing too– nice if you can forget about the money, few can– but I do like it if you can manage it). In general I like her answers! She is spot on about trusting your instincts. She looks great in those gowns too. I would love to wear that first one to a Spider-Man premiere!
Ooh, she looks so pretty in the green/teal dress! Yeah, never mind that Oscar-autograph dress.