Written and directed by Marti Noxon, the feature film To the Bone tells the story of Ellen (played magnificently by Lily Collins), a 20-year-old anorexic girl who has gone through a series of various recovery programs, only to continue down the path of her disease, every time. Determined to find a lasting solution, she agrees to go to a group home for youths, led by a non-traditional doctor (Keanu Reeves), where she must discover for herself how to confront her addiction in a way that leads to self-acceptance.
During this 1-on-1 phone interview with Collider, actress Lily Collins talked about why it was important for her to delve into subject matter that’s so personal, confronting her own past with an eating disorder, the need for humor to balance it out, working with a nutritionist to lose weight for the film in a healthy way, and the bonds that she shared with the cast and director. She also talked about her upcoming TV series The Last Tycoon, streaming at Amazon Prime on July 28th, and the type of projects she’d like to do next.
Collider: Was it important to you that, if you were going to delve into something so dark and personal, that it also have a sense of humor to it?
LILY COLLINS: Yeah. It’s interesting, when I read the script, from the first pass at it, I knew that whoever had written it – and I knew that it was Marti [Noxon] – must have experienced it because the sense of humor was so specific to something that I could relate to, in regards to the disorder. There was a sarcastic sense of humor that I felt was so specific to my experience, but that’s a sense of humor that I don’t think people would associate with it, necessarily. I think it’s really important to show that the character is still very much herself, even though she’s going through what she’s going through. She’s still sarcastic and sassy, and she has a spunk and a spark. That light is still there. I think it was important to show the character in that way, and not have it just be this super dark and depressing film, all the time. Those moments of lightness allow you to appreciate the intense moments more, and vice versa. You need that lightness in order to balance out the film. Humor is a great way of doing that, but humor has so many different ways of doing that. Is it to deflect, is it to deny, or is it to just make light of? There are so many different reasons why humor is used, and we use all of those in the movie, which is a very Marti Noxon style of writing. It was very specific to her, and I really responded to that.
I loved how this film doesn’t let you forget that these are human beings with feelings and personalities, and not just their disease.
COLLINS: Yeah, exactly, 100%. You just have a title, like “Girl with a disorder.” Your personality is almost taken out of the equation, but you’re like, “Wait a second, I’m still me. There’s an additional aspect to what I’m going through, but it doesn’t define me.” It does become something that can dictate how you live your everyday, and when it’s that intense, you have to look at what it’s taking away from you. I think Ellen is aware of that, throughout the story, but it’s not until the very end that she realizes that help is actually something she does want to seek. You can be told so many times to get help or to get better, but it won’t be seen as help. You’ll see it as annoying. It takes you finally wanting to accept it, in order for you to see it as what it is.
When you read this script, was it something that you immediately wanted the opportunity to delve into and address, or did you need to take a step back and think about the toll that doing something like this could take on you?
COLLINS: Ironically, I had been writing my book, Unfiltered, before I got this script, and I wrote my chapter on my experience with eating disorders a week before I got this script. That, for me, was one of those moments when I think the world is giving you something, and either you take it or run with it, or you don’t. This was something that I needed to talk about and bring to the attention of more people and go through for myself. When I read it, it struck me as such an important subject matter to bring to the attention of people. It is still considered quite taboo to talk about, and yet it’s becoming more and more prevalent within today’s society, and not just with women. If not now, when? The timing is important to talk about it now. Because I responded so specific to the story and the way that it was told and the way that the script was written, I knew that Marti was going to make it different than other people would. And because she had gone through it, it was going to be told in a way that shared experience and that wasn’t just a movie about eating disorders, but was a movie by someone who had experienced it and had the intention of starting a conversation and spreading a message. So, because the intention was positive, from the get-go, and it was being made by someone who had lived it, that really made a huge impact on why I chose to be a part of it. Marti had no idea of my association with the subject matter when she asked to meet with me. She was just meeting with an actor. They hired me for my acting. But as an actor, it’s amazing when you can emotionally relate to a character or connect with them, on some level, in order to do a better performance. This just happened to be something that I could so deeply relate to, on so many levels, that it just allowed me to breathe life into it in a different way that someone who had never experienced it could.
You’ve said that you worked with a team of professionals, in order to preserve your own recovery and ensure that your weight loss wouldn’t cause you to return to harmful behaviors. Did you set guidelines for yourself, in order to make sure that you didn’t lose yourself, in doing this role?
COLLINS: Well, there was never a set weight goal. There was never a number. None of that existed. It was adamant, and I gladly accepted, that I would have a nutritionist there to support me during the pre-production, production and, most importantly, the post-production of getting back, afterwards. It was very important, from day one, that Marti, the producers, my own mom, everyone on set, and the nutritionist was going to be holding me accountable, throughout the whole experience, to maintain that balance of actor and Lily. And I was adamant, myself, that I tell this story and be able to pay homage to the 16-year-old girl that I was, who would have wanted to see this movie, but at the same time, be an actor portraying a character. As an actor, you gain weight, you lose weight, you change your hair color, and you make changes physically and emotionally to be able to understand the character. This was a job. This was an experience that I could give of myself to a character, as an actor, which just so happened to be something I could relate to. I was shooting in Los Angeles. I was surrounded by my friends and my mom. After work, I would go and meet up with them for dinner. I would socialize and still maintain my lifestyle, and I’d still be Lily. Marti made the set so fun. She wanted it to be a really lively, loving, nurturing experience. It was her first movie. She wanted it to be special and for us to look back on it fondly. I definitely felt like support was there. It was very nurturing, comforting and trustworthy. There really was no worry, once I got on set. I felt like I was going to be good.
What was it like to work with this cast and explore who your character was, through the relationships with the different people in her life, whether it was her family, her doctor, or her peers?
COLLINS: I’ve known Liana Liberato for a number of years now. We did a film together, called Stuck in Love, ages ago. She’s very much like a little sister to me, and when they cast her, not knowing that I knew her, that was a magic moment. I truly love, adore and care for her. All those moments of her with me, as my step-sister, were so genuine and pure. And Carrie Preston just makes me laugh. She’s so wonderful, and she’s neurotic, in the best ways, as the character. She knows how to be just that level of crazy, but crazy in terms of loving crazy, so she brings a different side out of Ellen. And Lili Taylor is so beyond talented. Her dedication to specific scenes, like the feeding scene, she just was so adamant that it be genuine and real, but also very detached, as a mother. There were so many different nuances to her performance as my mom. And Alex Sharp was so adoringly charming, witty and annoyingly goofy. Ellen is able to finally get schooled by him. She’s met her match in him. It’s someone who’s not going to take her B.S., can see through her, and won’t allow her to exist within what she’s used to justify her experiences. He’s like, “Look, I get you. You can’t get away with this. I’m here for you.” Through him, she finally experiences the idea that seeking help is not a weakness, it’s a strength. You can only accept help once you finally realize that’s what you need, and he helps her with that. And then, with Keanu [Reeves], he was just like his character, in that he’s so zen and nurturing and protective. On set, he always wanted to make sure that we were okay. He loves being surrounded by these powerful women. He was so respectful of the storyline and he wanted to be right there with us. It really felt like it was a protected zone for us to be in. I got to experience a lot of things as Ellen in the story, and as Lily learning about a lot of things to do with the subject matter. It was a really fun environment.
Aside from The Last Tycoon being beautiful to look at, it really feels like both you and Matt Bomer are so at home in that time period that you just belong there. What have you enjoyed about being a part of that show and telling that story, in that time period?
COLLINS: Oh, my god, that’s such a different conversation! I grew up being obsessed with old Hollywood and loving the history, what’s behind the scenes, and what people don’t know. My mom’s a part of many different organizations in Los Angeles that have to do with Hollywood history, and I just love everything from the hair and make-up, wardrobe and production design of the show to the actual stories behind the stories that no one ever gets to hear or talk about. The situations that my character finds herself in, people have been saying, “Oh, my god, I didn’t know that that happened!” And yes, it did, and I get to go through it all. I just love being a part of something that shows a young woman at the forefront of feminism, and at the forefront of stepping out and doing her own thing and holding her own with the guys in an industry that was so male-driven, back then. I love getting to see someone want to step out of her dad’s shadow and start from the ground up and be a part of this, in such an exciting way. She’s a go-getter, and she’s passionate, compassionate, feisty, naive, and all of those things rolled into one. I’m excited to see where she gets to go. I really hope we get to come back and do another season.
Matt Bomer has spoken very highly of you and of his experience working with you. How have you found the experience of working with him, and with the rest of the cast?
COLLINS: Matt is just a dream. He’s the most amazing person to have as number one on the call sheet because he’s the most kind-hearted, even-keeled, compassionate, zen person that I know. He’s just so dedicated and talented and charming. And to get to work with Kelsey Grammer and Rosemarie DeWitt, and all of the amazing co-stars that I have, and Billy Ray, as a showrunner, is so amazing.
You’ve written a memoir and you’re doing some pretty tremendous acting work, in TV and film. Where do you go from here? Do you have any idea what you want to do next?
COLLINS: Apart from hoping to do Season 2 of [The Last Tycoon], which would be awesome, I’m reading a lot of things. It’s very rare that you shoot three things back-to-back and they all come out back-to-back, so that’s been an interesting process, being in the thick of all of the press for it all and being very excited to share it with everyone. But, I have lots of different types of projects that I’d love to do. I’d love to dive into a comedy. I’d still love to do that British period drama. There are a lot of things that I’d love to touch upon. That being said, I never would have thought that I’d have gotten to be a part of a Bong Joon Ho project (with Okja), and that came up. So, I’m open to just seeing what happens. It’s an exciting time to be a part of all these different types of projects. I did a film last year, called Halo of Stars, that I shot in the Republic of Georgia, about an Eastern European traveling circus, and that was very quirky, interesting and amazing. I hope experiences like that, that keep me guessing and keep me on my toes, keep happening. It would be wonderful if To The Bone could continue the conversations about this subject matter and continue to be in the middle of what should be a very prevalent conversation. If the conversation continues, I would be very happy.
To The Bone is available to stream at Netflix on July 14th.
