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6. Pattinson's Dry Runs
In filmmaking, it's common for actors to rehearse their lines as well as creating marks for blocking actors. Pattinson, however, feels very differently about the process. Eggers and Dafoe approached pre-production in this traditional method of preparation, but met resistance from Pattinson.
For Pattinson, acting was allowing it to unfold spontaneously and learned this approach from working alongside director David Cronenberg. Despite having a background in theatre, Pattinson wanted to preserve his energy and performance before camera rather than running through lines.
In contrast, Dafoe rehearsed constantly and was adamant about it just as much as Eggers. Pattinson hated rehearsing so much, he would recite the lines monotone and not fully realize the performance during their line readings. He would storm out and slam the door out of frustration. This quickly caused some problems for the trio and left Eggers feeling uneasy and infuriated at Pattinson.
After a grueling week of rehearsal, faith was restored on set when Pattinson proved he had the chops to realize the role alongside Willem Dafoe.