Margaret Qualley, known for her dynamic roles, faced a unique set of challenges while filming the satirical body horror film, The Substance. The actress donned prosthetic acne to portray Sue, a party animal and the "more perfect" version of her co-star Demi Moore's character, Elizabeth Sparkle. However, the heavy use of prosthetics left Qualley with acne and cuts, taking her far out of her comfort zone. To cope with the demands of the film's intense scenes, she relied on a mix of marijuana and tequila, which provided her with the Dutch courage needed to navigate the raunchy moments.
The filming experience took a toll on Qualley's skin, requiring nearly a year for her to recover from the effects of the prosthetics. She candidly shared her struggles, revealing that by the end of the shoot, her face was in such poor condition that directors opted for creative camera angles to avoid filming her directly.
"Like, at the end, when they're shooting up my skirt for the beginning credits, and it's like the palm trees all around and they have all these long lenses from the bottom, that's just because my face was so f***** up by that time that they couldn't shoot my face anymore." – Margaret Qualley
Despite these challenges, Qualley embraced the role's demands as a necessary part of bringing Sue to life. She expressed a sense of excitement about diving into such a transformative journey.
"It's a road you have to go down in order to bring this to life. And I was excited about that challenge." – Margaret Qualley
After completing The Substance, Qualley began working on her next project, Kinds of Kindness, still bearing blemishes from her previous role. In this new film, she takes on the ambitious task of playing four distinct characters. During rehearsals for a particularly provocative dance scene, Qualley admitted to feeling "so deeply ashamed" and even cried in the bathroom. Nevertheless, she saw an opportunity to incorporate her residual prosthetic acne into one of her new characters.
"And I was like, 'Oh this is kind of perfect. I'm playing all these different characters — for one of them we'll use all my crazy prosthetic acne.'" – Margaret Qualley
Margaret Qualley’s journey through these roles highlights her dedication to her craft and her ability to overcome personal and professional hurdles. Her experience with prosthetics and the emotional demands of her roles underscores the lengths to which actors often go to authentically portray their characters.
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