The Black Swan cast and director recently recalled how Darren Aronofsky attempted to start a feud between the lead stars, Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis, during filming. The 2010 horror-thriller follows ballet dancer Nina (Portman) as she competes with Lily (Kunis) for the lead role in a production of Swan Lake.

The movie received five Academy Awards nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director for Aronofsky. Portman also won the Oscar for Best Actress for her performance as Nina.

As Black Swan turns 15 in December, Portman, Kunis, and Aronofsky reunited and talked to Vogue about the making of the movie, recalling Aronofsky’s sneaky attempt to pit Portman and Kunis against each other behind the scenes. The director revealed that he tried to “make them argue,” but both stars recognized what he was trying to do, and it turned into a joke. Read what he said below:

Aronofsky: My take is that I was trying to be a sneaky director and make them argue. Mila and Natalie both realized very quickly what I was doing and made fun of me, so it quickly became a joke that we all understood. They’re both very clever and were instantly privy to whatever trick I was playing. Do you guys remember it differently?

Portman described her experience working with Aronofsky as having a “mind meld.” She shared that the filmmaker separated the two and made comments early about Mila’s being an excellent dancer, to which she responded with admiration. Kunis added that Aronofsky told her Portman wasn’t taking the weekends off, which she found out wasn’t true. Read their comments below:

Portman: I remember being separated from Mila and that we weren’t in the same space a lot when we weren’t shooting. Darren made some comment early on, like, “Ya know, Nat, Mila’s dancing so well.” And I was like, “Of course she is! She’s so f*cking talented, and I love her so much, and I’m happy she’s doing a great job!”

Kunis: Darren would tell me, “Nat is working really, really hard. She’s not even taking Saturdays and Sundays off.” Then I would text Nat and she’d be like, “…No, I’m not?” I think that’s how we figured out what Darren was up to, but it was all in good fun.

Portman: Black Swan was the first time I felt like I had a mind meld with a director, where each of us always knew exactly what to say. Every time we talked it felt like he gave me a little key that unlocked a scene for me.

What This Means For Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan

Portman and Kunis have been friends for years, which explains why Aronofsky’s sneaky attempt failed. In the same interview, Portman recalled recommending Kunis to play Lily after learning about her past experience with pointe shoes. Kunis clarified that she only “danced once,” but the Star Wars actor exaggerated when talking to the filmmaker.

Interestingly, Aronofksy originally envisioned Portman to play both Lily and Nina, but after talking to Kunis, he changed his mind. Portman and Kunis’ friendship was crucial to how Black Swan turned out the way it was. In the same interview, the Leon star also talked about a particular challenge working with Kunis, where she learned that “it’s fun to work with your friend until you have to film a Sєx scene with them.”

A remastered version of Black Swan is coming to IMAX on August 21 and 24. A limited-edition, double-sided poster will also be made available exclusively for the re-release. A limited-edition capsule collection from costume designer Rodart will launch in December.

Our Take On Natalie Portman And Mila Kunis’s Performances In Black Swan

Lily and Nina’s compeтιтion on-screen is very convincing. Despite tackling female compeтιтion as its theme, the mind-blowing psychological horror didn’t bleed into production. Aronofsky, who sH๏τ most of the movie with a handheld camera, is dedicated and very committed to his work.

His attempt to pit the stars against each other to build genuine tension is a little unconventional. Despite the failed attempt, this also says a lot about the director’s commitment to making Black Swan as genuine and mind-bending as possible.