Andra Day has taken method acting to a whole new level.
The actress revealed that she lost 39 pounds and started drinking and smoking to prepare for the titular role in the upcoming biopic directed by Lee Daniels, “The United States Vs. Billie Holiday.”
“I put my family through it; I put myself through it,” 36-year-old Day, who had never starred in a movie before, recently told Variety. “I went from 163 pounds to 124 pounds. I would talk like her and I don’t drink or smoke, but I started smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol. Not that I recommend people do this; I just was desperate because this is my first role.”
She added, “I just asked God to give me all of the pain and trauma. I asked him to give me her pain and give me her trauma.”
During her turbulent life, Holiday was the victim of rape and domestic abuse. She also struggled with addiction to alcohol and drugs. She died of cirrhosis in 1959 at age 44.
Day explained that she obsessively researched the jazz singer.
“I basically abused my body for a long time. I’m joking and not really joking. I got the role at the very top of 2018. Reading everything I could get my hands on. Listening to every interview,” she said. “Apparently, I exhausted the internet of Billie Holiday photos. Apparently, the internet will tell you that you’ve reached the end.”
Day, who also sings in the movie as Holiday, opened up about changing her singing voice in order to better exemplify the music legend’s pain.
“That was an early decision that we made right away to do the singing,” Day said. “Every time I would sing a song I’d go, ‘OK, Lee’s going to hear this and he’s going to fire me.’ But I wouldn’t have done it if they’d been, ‘Do it in your voice.’ That for me would have probably been a no. There’s victory and there is pain in her voice. So to me it was just like we’ve got to get it, we have to get it, you know what I mean? It’ll have to be my interpretation of it, but it has to be there.”
The biopic will be released by Hulu in February.