Popular Hollywood director Robert Townsend has said that Beyoncé was jittery when she auditioned for the lead role in the movie titled “Carmen: A Hip Hopera.” He recently revealed that the singer was obviously nervous the moment she got on stage to audition.
Speaking to Lena Waithe on Legacy Talk, Robert shared that even though he was already sure that Beyoncé had what it took to play the lead role, the studio still wanted an audition.
According to him, because it was her first acting audition, nerves got the best of Beyoncé straight away, but it did not prevent him from seeing her special talent.
To make her more comfortable, Townsend stated that he decided to include Beyoncé’s bodyguard and a label executive in the scene.
“I could tell she was really nervous. I have an arsenal when it comes to getting performance or making somebody comfortable.
I didn’t know Beyoncé […] I knew of her and I was like, ‘Wow, she has a striking look.’ You know, she’s a beautiful, young girl, but I could see that she had something special. ’Cause [with] my director eyes, I go, ‘Something’s going on with her. She’s got something,’
I told her bodyguard and the label executive who accompanied Bey to be part of the scene as well. They started to sweat and really get nervous and then she was watching them get nervous and she got stronger. I said, ‘Oh, there it is,” he recalled.
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Townsend noted that acting with people she was familiar with instantly increased Beyoncé’s confidence, and her acting skills began to show.
Looking back more than 20 years later, Townsend stressed that he knew he was watching the making of a global superstar during that audition.
“She was so excited and asked to repeat the scene a few more times and even requested to do the ‘death scene,’
Watching her blossom into the superstar that she has become, I saw it in that room because there’s certain actors/actresses’ first audition, they wouldn’t go all the way there. She went all the way there,” he added.
