Scarlett Johansson opens up about her early experiences in Hollywood after her breakout role in Lost in Translation. Johansson was just 17-years-old when she starred opposite Bill Murray in Sofia Coppola’s poignant comedy-drama. Over 20 years later, it remains one of Johansson’s best movies, and her performance seems even more precocious and impressive in retrospect. Although Lost in Translation introduced Johansson to a bigger audience than ever before, she soon found herself fighting against an industry that wanted to typecast her.

In an interview with Vanity Fair, Johansson states that she was disappointed in the roles that she was offered in the years following Lost in Translation. Although she had proven her acting chops, she only received offers for bland roles that aimed to cash in on her looks.

After Lost in Translation, every role that I was offered for years was ‘the girlfriend,’ ‘the other woman,’ a Sєx object—I couldn’t get out of the cycle. It sort of felt like, ‘Oh, I guess this is my idenтιтy now as an actor.’

She also says that the people around her at the time weren’t particularly sympathetic to her plight. Reflecting on how her representatives saw the situation, she says, “They were reacting to the norm. The industry worked like that forever.” Johansson is candid about her feelings at the time, while she was still maturing and growing into adulthood.

You come into your Sєxuality and your desirability as part of your growth, and it’s exciting to blossom into yourself. You’re wearing the clothes you want, you’re expressing yourself, then you suddenly turn around and you’re like, ‘Wait, I feel like I’m being’—I don’t want to say exploited because it’s such a severe word.

What This Means For Scarlett Johansson

The Actor Managed To Bounce Back

Fortunately, Scarlett Johansson avoided being typecast, and she has since played a variety of interesting and layered characters. Joining the MCU in 2010 helped her break the mold, but she’s also starred in more experimental movies throughout her career, including The Prestige, Her, Under the Skin and Jojo Rabbit. However, the implications of Johansson’s comments shouldn’t be brushed aside. She may have flourished, but her career experiences highlight the way that the film industry tries to commodify young women, no matter how talented they might be.

Our Take On Scarlett Johansson’s Comments

Johansson’s Past Reveals The Problems Rife In The Film Industry

The news of a young woman being frustrated by Hollywood’s atтιтudes is sadly all too familiar, but it’s surprising that this happened to Scarlett Johansson after Lost in Translation. In one of Sofia Coppola’s best movies, Johansson delivers an outstanding performance. It shows that she’s a real actor of substance, and the kind of artist who should have been flooded with movie offers that match her talent. Instead, she was reduced to her appearance and offered paltry roles. There aren’t enough meaty roles for women in Hollywood, and this problem was even worse in 2003.

While Bill Murray is clearly the focus of Lost in Translation, it would be absurd to claim that Coppola’s story has a male perspective. Johansson’s young jaded American is just as fascinating, even if she’s only seen in glimpses through the eyes of a solipsistic middle-aged celebrity. Lost in Translation could be seen as a story of two strangers whose ᴀssumptions break down when they get to know each other. There’s a grim irony to the fact that some people could see Johansson’s performance in such a film and fail to respect her skills.