Phoebe Waller-Bridge Says Her Indiana Jones 5 Character Inspired by Barbara Stanwyck: 'It's a Curse'

Phoebe Waller-Bridge is making her debut in the Indiana Jones franchise with Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. The film, directed by James Mangold, the film has Phoebe starring alongside Harrison Ford and Mads Mikkelsen. While her character has been teased in trailers and teasers, Phoebe opened up about her character Helena Shaw during the recent global press conference and said that her character has been inspired by yesteryear Hollywood icon Barbara Stanwyck.

Speaking about the inspiration, the Fleabag actress confessed that it is both, blessing and a curse. “Well, (James) said to me quite early on that Barbara Stanwyck came to mind for him in the writing of the character. And that (laugh), as I said before, is a blessing and curse. But she’s also an idol of mine. And there is something. She has such a light touch in her performances, particularly in The Lady Eve where she has a moral ambiguity as well,” she said.

“There’s something so fresh and charming about her even though she’s morally questionable around the time. But also, there was something very modern about the way that she communicated and performed. And I think that was something that really inspired me in this because she did have to feel like a modern woman in terms of where she, you know, like, the time that we were coming into, she is a breath of fresh air. Helena, she isn’t someone that we’ve seen before with this kind of fierce independence,” she added.

“She’s carved this place out in the world for herself, and she refuses to need anybody else. And that essence seems to be captured in every single performance that Barbara Stanwyck ever gave. And so, I sort of clung sto that throughout,” the actress concluded.

Besides speaking about her character, Phoebe also opened up about how her character impact her bond with Indiana and the growth the character undergoes in the film. Read about it here:

Indiana Jones 5: Harrison Ford Reveals He Returned To Franchise After 15 Years Due To This Reason

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is releasing on June 29 in India.