This year alone, Margaret Qualley has played a free-spirit lesbian being chased by mobsters; identical twins who both meet violent ends; and the host of a fitness show who turns everyone she meets into the Tex Avery wolf before she, herself, turns into something unexpected. Those films — crime comedy Drive-Away Dolls, absurdist anthology Kinds Of Kindness, and body horror satire The Substance — share little in common, other than fearless performances from Qualley, Hollywood’s most adventurous young star.
When did you first became aware of Margaret Qualley? Was it on Netflix’s Maid, which earned her Emmy and Golden Globe nominations? Or was it earlier than that? Maybe in FX’s Fosse/Verdon as acclaimed dancer Ann Reinking, or missing Amelia (she of the striking yellow dress) in The Nice Guys, or Manson Family member “Pussycat” in Once Upon A Time In Hollywood?
For me, it was The Leftovers. Her character, disillusioned daughter Jill Garvey, had the most screen time in season 1, which is notoriously the show’s weakest season. Yet, even before The Leftovers made a miraculous turn into one of the great HBO dramas, Qualley made enough of an impression that if you could invest in the careers of young actors and actresses, I would have put all my money on her becoming a movie star.
That investment would have paid off: Qualley has quickly gone from standing out in ensembles to a top-of-the-call sheet lead (and the rare good nepo baby). She has an on-screen presence that’s entirely of the moment, but there’s also an old-school grace; as Qualley’s Huntington co-star Glen Powell gushed to The New York Times, “She reminds you of one of those actresses of the golden era of Hollywood. She’s able to crack herself open in a way that’s just magnetic.” Poor Things and Kinds of Kindness director Yorgos Lanthimos was equally effusive in his praise of Qualley. “She’s willing to try things without questioning anything,” he told Harper’s Bazaar, “and she loves to explore.”
Qualley’s up-for-anything approach is all over her filmography. She’s a dominatrix in Sanctuary; an ethically-murky journalist in Stars At Noon; a half-child, half-adult walking corpse in Poor Things; four distinct characters in Kinds Of Kindness; and in the upcoming Honey Don’t, a private investigator alongside Chris Evans and Aubrey Plaza. Her audaciousness extends to TV shows (The Leftovers, Fosse/Verdon, Maid), video games (Hideo Kojima’s Death Stranding), music videos, and even choreographed commercials.
But The Substance is Qualley’s most brave — and arguably best — role to date. She plays Sue, the “younger, more beautiful” version of Demi Moore’s TV fitness host Elisabeth Sparkle. She’s born, so to speak, after Elisabeth injects herself with a mysterious drug known as “The Substance” after being fired from her job on her 50th birthday. The green goo is free, but there is one big side effect: Elisabeth and Sue have to switch bodies every seven days, or else. I’m leaving the “or else” vague because I don’t want to spoil the wild third act of director Coralie Fargeat’s body-horror masterpiece, but even if you leave The Substance disgusted by what you’ve just witnessed, it’s impossible to not be impressed by Qualley’s (and Moore’s) commitment to the bit.
In less than a decade, Qualley has worked with many of the best directors in the game, including Fargeat, Quentin Tarantino, Yorgos Lanthimos, Claire Denis, Shane Black, and soon, Richard Linklater. It’s a mutually beneficial relationship: the filmmaker gets an actress who is adept at goofball comedy, high-stakes drama, twisted sexuality, and anything else thrown at her; and Qualley feels comfortable working with someone who gives her the space to play “f*cking freaks.”
Margaret Qualley once described acting as “scary and fun,” and that’s why she “fell in love with it.” And we fell in love with her as an actress for taking scary and adventurous roles, and making it look so fun.