
“I’m not a showwoman,” said Elizabeth Berkley (Mich., 51) when she was a 22-year-old young actress — known only for youth soap operas. Saved by the bell-and He just played the lead role in Showgirlsthe film by Dutch director Paul Verhoeven was released in Spain in January 1996. Perhaps at that time, Berkeley only guessed that a certain scandal would arise by playing Noomi Malone, a dancer who goes to Las Vegas and wants to conquer the world and who stars in the scenes. com. pornosoft And complete nudity, which the actress performs very professionally. But what she was not prepared for was the harsh criticism the film received, a box office failure that, although over the years it became a cult film, by the end of the 1990s was an embarrassment to his entire team.
Now, 30 years after the film’s premiere Showgirlsthe actress spoke with Hollywood Reporter (THR) For that reason and for some professional projects, including a role in Ryan Murphy’s new legal drama, All the law. In her interview with the specialized American media, she revealed how difficult it was for her to get out of the hole she fell into after the film, in which she had, by the way, to continue defending her professional obligations before the press, while the rest of her colleagues had already turned the page. Specifically, Berkley stated of that time: “It wasn’t a fun experience, but I’m proud that I did it. I don’t give up easily. I wanted to speak up. I wanted to be heard. I didn’t have any other platform.”
According to the account in THRTo prepare for difficult promotional interviews Showgirls It was in front of her, and the publicist showed her scraps of criticism that toyed with her body and her abilities: “Many unimaginable things have happened now; no one could withstand such an attack,” said the translator, who also emphasized: “I did not understand how people could be so cruel, but I am strong. I had to separate what they said from what I thought was true.”
But perhaps the hardest of all was when the industry doors were closed to Berkeley: “For two years, they wouldn’t let me audition,” he explains in the interview. “The hardest thing was literally being excluded from something I was passionate about.” Determined to pursue acting, she continued teaching acting and dance classes and kept an eye on professional opportunities, even sending her auditions on tape, which was unusual at the time.
She worked on the film with the team behind it Basic instinctthe film that raised Sharon Stone’s profile, did not go well. Finally, he was getting supporting roles, which is ironic considering that today he is a movie star, ShowgirlsWhich is actually considered a cult. She is currently immersed in a tour to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the film that nearly ended her career, with dates scheduled in at least 10 US cities that include screenings, additional material and the presence of the protagonist. In one of them, in Austin (Texas), on October 9, she recounted the negative feedback she received after the premiere: “I was beaten up guys. It wasn’t fun at all for a while. I’m not going to lie. It was painful. I was isolated. I felt like I had been abandoned by the same people I collaborated with.”
In EL PAÍS report on the Spanish premiere of the film showgirls, In 1996, Berkeley was described as “22 years old, tall, very short and with blond American hair”, and also mentioned her “admiration for Luis Buñuel, her studies in English literature, her interest in Goya’s paintings or her cinematic preferences for his works”. mailmanthe film about the poet Neruda.” Now, the once-cursed star appears to be doing well. In addition to her role in the series “Murphy” – in which she plays a client in need of urgent help – and as she tells THRHe has a role in coincidenceIt is his first appearance in a feature film in 15 years, alongside Kate Hudson and Elisabeth Moss.