The 'Electric Lady' singer heaps praises on 'Knives Out' director Rian Johnson while talking about what it was like joining the second installment to the hit movie.
- November 27, 2022
AceShowbiz - Janelle Monae is not easily starstruck by big names on film sets. Appearing alongside the likes of Daniel Craig, Edward Norton, Kathryn Hahn, Kate Hudson, andDave Bautista in Rian Johnson's whodunnit sequel, the "Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery" actress wasn't fazed by working with so many famous faces.
"Listen, we all had a job to do. Obviously I'm a fan of everybody on this film, but I think once I got to really know them and see them, they became friends to me," she told the "Smallzy's Surgery" podcast when asked if she ever found herself in awe of her cast mates.
"I felt safe and I felt excited to try different things. You just trust each other more, and you just kind of go for it. You have a great time making a movie with great people who just happen to be celebrities - actors, artists."
The 36-year-old singer - who has transitioned into acting with roles in the likes of "Homecoming", "Antebellum", and Disney's remake of "Lady and the Tramp" - also insisted there is no real difference between people working in different branches of the entertainment world.
She explained, "People are people, you know what I mean? As someone who does music and acts, just tells stories in different ways - people are people. You catch people in a good moment in their lives, sometimes you catch them in a bad time."
"You just give people grace, and you just allow them to be people, and don't give them any special treatment because of what they've done, or who they are. Meet them where they need you."
When it comes to her role in the "Knives Out" sequel, Janelle admitted, while she enjoys "problem solving" and even hosts murder mysteries at her home, she isn't one for puzzles. She said, "I like problem solving - I'm not a puzzle person though. If you put a thousand piece puzzle in front of me, I'm just gonna be like, what is going on?"
"But I love the genre, I love the murder mystery genre, I love the whodunnit genre. I love what Rian Johnson has done in this genre. I think he's innovating, I think he's modernising. He's looking to the past, but so focused on the present with modernising his characters. My character, honestly, is a dream role."
