Florence Pugh has written a moving message to a fan who revealed that watching her new film We Live In Time captured her own lived experience after her mom died of lung cancer when she was just six.
The A24 release follows the ‘unconventional’ love story of a recent divorcée (Andrew Garfield) and an on-the-rise chef (Florence), who is diagnosed with stage three ovarian cancer.
After seeing it on the big screen, Sophie, 24, reached out to thank Midsommar actress Florence, 28, for her ‘gift’ of a performance, adding that she ‘captured every emotion my mom felt so beautifully.’
She also described the film as one of the ‘most beautiful, moving, exceptional movies I’ve ever seen’.
Taking to Instagram, Sophie wrote: ‘My mom was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer when I was two, given six months to live,’ Sophie’s comment began.
Florence Pugh has written a moving message to a fan who shared her emotional response to watching her new film We Live In Time
We Live In Time, starring Florence and Andrew Garfield, follows the ‘unconventional’ love story of a recent divorcée ( Andrew Garfield ) and an on-the-rise chef
‘She stuck it out thru four years of chemo and drugs and treatment to give me a chance at remembering her, and she passed when I was six.
‘You and Andrew are two of my favorite actors ever, point blank.
‘I saw lots of promo for the film bc I love you both, but I wasn’t sure I’d be able to watch due to the direct parallels to my own trauma – I went on my day off on Friday, watched it in a fully empty theater with my mom’s stuffed animal and a box of tissues, and god I’m so glad I did.
‘It is seriously one of the most beautiful, moving, exceptional movies I’ve ever seen. You captured every emotion my mom felt so beautifully.
‘I only have a couple journal entries left of her, so God, Florence, your performance is such a gift.
‘I was so little, so sheltered, I didn’t understand what she was experiencing.
‘Getting to witness it thru this film – I just can’t express my gratitude enough.
‘Thank you, thank you all, for bringing my experience to life. I can’t express how much this film means to me. I will be holding it close the rest of my life. so much love.’
Sophie, 24, reached out to thank Florence in an emotional Instagram comment
Florence replied to Sophie’s message, thanking her for sharing her story
Responding to the comment, Florence thanked Sophie for sharing her story, while revealing such messages gives her the ‘energy needed to tackle these honest stories again and again’.
She wrote: ‘Hello Sophie. Florence here. Just wanted to say thank you for taking the time to write your heart here in the comments.
‘It goes without saying that I am incredibly sorry for your loss, especially at such a young age.
‘I can’t imagine the ways that it affects one’s life and the processing that inevitably comes for years after.’
She continued: ‘It’s always the wish that my work speaks to someone, somewhere, feeling the same thing.
‘To read just how much it meant to you is not only a privilege to hear, but feels like a gift knowing that it’s helped in some way.
‘Thank you for sharing your story. I appreciate your time both in watching the movie and in writing me here.’
Florence’s character is diagnosed with stage three ovarian cancer in the film
The film, directed by John Crowley, premiered at Toronto Film Festival and before hitting cinemas on October 11
Concluding her response, Florence said: ‘To hear that the work we made matters, genuinely gives me the energy needed to tackle these honest stories again and again. So, thank you.’
Florence signed off her message with her initials.
We Live In Time was released in the United States on October 11.
The first trailer sees Almut and Tobias brought together in a surprise meeting that changes their lives forever.
Through snapshots of their life together – including falling for each other, creating a home and building a family – a difficult truth is uncovered that rocks the relationship’s foundation to the core.
As they embark on a 10-year romance that is challenged by time limits, they learn to treasure every moment of their unconventional love story.
Andrew posed with a cardboard cutout of Florence at the We Live In Time screening at London Film Festival
Last week, Florence’s costar Andrew posed with a life-size cutout of her at the screening at the BFI London Film Festival.
The actor, 41, was in good spirits as he joked and played around on the red carpet, moving the cardboard cutout and striking silly poses.
The hilarious stunt comes after the pair revealed they went ‘further than they were meant to’ while filming sex scenes.
Speaking ahead of its release on October 11, Andrew told of how the pair got a little carried away during a ‘very intimate, passionate sex scene’ because they didn’t hear a call of ‘cut’ from the crew.
During an appearance on the 92nd Street Y in New York City, he told the crowd: ‘The scene becomes passionate, as we choreographed it.
‘And we get into it as it were, and we go a little bit further than we were meant to because we didn’t hear “cut” and it’s feeling safe. And we’re just kinda like, “Ok, we’ll just go into the next thing, we’ll let this progress, and we’ll just carry on.”‘