Chloë Sevigny reflects on being intimidated by Christian Bale’s method acting in ‘American Psycho’

While filming the cult classic 'American Psycho,' Chloë Sevigny encountered a challenging dynamic with co-star Christian Bale, known for his immersive Method acting techniques. 

In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, Sevigny shared her struggles to adapt to Bale's intense approach to the role of Patrick Bateman.

"I was trying to respect his process, which I found challenging because I’m very gregarious and silly and goofy, unbeknownst to the general public," Sevigny revealed. 

"When people take themselves so seriously, I kind of shut down, even though I take my work very seriously and I love acting and whatnot."

Sevigny's discomfort was compounded by her lack of formal training, which made Bale's Method acting seem even more alien. 

"I was really intimidated by his process and intimidated by him," she continued. "And I wanted a little more generosity to make myself feel more at ease, which is my own ego. It was a really challenging dynamic for me, but I don’t think that I thought he was bad. I was just kind of confused, like, 'Why aren’t you being social?' I wasn’t even that aware of what the Method thing was."

Josh Lucas, who played one of Bateman's colleagues, also reflected on his initial perceptions of Bale's performance.

"I don’t know if you felt this way, but I actually truly remember thinking that Christian Bale was terrible," he commented with a laugh.

"I remember the first scene I did with him, I watched him and he seemed so false — and I now realize that it was this just f--ing brilliant choice that he was making."

The conversation also touched on the broader implications of Method acting. 

Lucas highlighted the difference between actors who use the technique as an excuse for bad behavior and those like Bale who are deeply committed to their roles. 

"Here’s a really weird bridge, as you know, between bad Method actors — who I find really, really terrible to work with — and the ones like Christian," Lucas noted. 

"[Christian's] not paying attention to f---ing anything else but what he’s doing. I have nothing but admiration for that."