Aimee Lou Wood revealed she had Angelina Jolie’s support on set when she stood up for her mental health.
The White Lotus star, 31, recalled how when she advocated for herself during a chaotic moment on set of their upcoming film, Anxious People, the Hollywood icon, 50, stood in solidarity with her.
At the time, Wood and Jolie were filming an emotional scene for the comedy movie, the actress shared in a new interview with Harper’s Bazaar.
Wood — who’s been diagnosed with ADHD — said that she struggled with panic as multiple crew members were shouting at her at the same time.
The actress stood up for herself, telling them that in order to focus she needed one voice, one direction, and no hand movements in her line of sight.
‘All I could see was Angelina giving me a thumbs up,’ Wood shared.
Aimee Lou Wood, 31, revealed she had Angelina Jolie’s, 50, support on set when she stood up for her mental health; (L) Wood pictured in October, (R) Jolie seen in January
‘She’s possibly the most famous woman ever, but she’s so normal. I’m fairly certain she drives herself to set each day,’ the actress added.
Wood then explained that after years of not being able to speak up for herself, she has found her voice.
‘I’ve spent years feeling unable to say anything like that for fear of seeming argumentative — but now I feel like I can take ownership of what I need to thrive, and tell people what won’t work for me.’
Just earlier in May, Wood expressed how she really feels about working with Jolie in an Instagram post.
Celebrating the new role, thrilled Wood shared a snap of Jolie portraying diagnosed sociopath in 1999 thriller Girl, Interrupted, which won her an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, to her Story as she called the star a ‘goddess’.
She wrote: ‘This performance rocked my whole world when I first saw it and now I get to act with my goddessssss’.
In September, Wood was barely recognizable while filming scenes of Anxious People in east London.
Wood said that she struggled with panic as multiple crew members were shouting at her at the same time on set of their upcoming film, Anxious People; Seen in November in London
The actress stood up for herself, telling them that in order to focus she needed one voice, one direction and no hand movements in her line of sight; Pictured in September in LA
‘All I could see was Angelina giving me a thumbs up,’ Wood shared, adding that though Jolie is ‘possibly the most famous woman ever’ she’s also ‘so normal’; Jolie seen in October
Earlier in May, Aimee revealed she thinks Hollywood legend Angeline Jolie (pictured) is a ‘goddess’ after watching her in Girl, Interrupted
The star was a far cry from her iconic character Chelsea – instead sporting a black beanie as well as an oversized jacket and trousers.
Before getting started on an action-packed chase scene, the Sex Education actress was snapped looking concerned and anxious.
She plays Grace, ‘a reluctant bank robber’ in the new project directed by World War Z’s Mark Foster, from the 2019 novel of the same name by Fredrik Backman (A Man Called Ove).
The new film is set the day before Christmas Eve, when and investment banker named Zara (Angelina), ‘begrudgingly finds herself mingling with a group of strangers at an open house.’
Aimee inadvertently takes the strangers hostage as chaos ensues.
Elsewhere in the interview, Wood revealed she battled body dysmorphia while filming bikini scenes as Chelsea in the third season of Emmy-nominated HBO series The White Lotus.
The actress said: ‘I shook myself out of it by thinking, “It’s not about whether Aimee wants to show her body or not – Chelsea does.”’
Chelsea was known for her optimistic and spiritual outlook on life and the actress said she used this to feel emboldened by her character’s confidence.
‘The line between me and her [her character Chelsea] started to blur,’ Aimee said.
Aimee has a long history of struggles with her body image – which she has bravely opened up about on various occasions.
At her worst, she suffered with eating disorder bulimia, which eventually resulted in a ‘harsh but necessary’ intervention from staff at prestigious drama school, RADA.
Elsewhere in the interview, Wood revealed she battled body dysmorphia while filming bikini scenes as Chelsea in the third season of Emmy-nominated HBO series The White Lotus
In a 2023 interview, she spoke of drama school feeling like a ‘tirade on your body’, which led to feelings of ‘I have to make myself sick’ in order to ‘people please’.
‘I hated my body and didn’t want to be in it – that’s not the case any more, thank God.
‘But then, going to drama school, it can get even worse. I have scoliosis [curvature of the spine], so neutral for me is not neutral for everyone else.’
‘You go to drama school and everyone’s being straightened out. It’s not easy being told you’re moving wrong – it’s basically a tirade on your body.’
