DirectorCameron Croweis looking back at the making ofVanilla SkyandCameron Diaz’s memorable performance in the film.
In a PEOPLE exclusive clip celebrating the 20th anniversary release of the film, Crowe says he lucked out in working with Diaz on theTom Cruise-starring thriller after she took a break from filming 2002’sGangs of New Yorkin Italy.
“I just remember those electric blue eyes that matched the car that she drove and her kinetic energy that she brought from Italy,” Crowe says of the actress. “You couldn’t take your eyes off her. It was the soul of the movie in ways I didn’t realize.”
The movie follows a vain publishing magnate, David Ames (Cruise), whose life turns upside after he’s involved in a car accident with his jaded lover, Julie (Diaz).
Crowe touched on the car crash scene saying, “We didn’t have a lot of time and what happened was something about the exhaustion of not having the time off and having come straight from Italy, something came out.” He adds, “She used all of her skill to both use all of her craft but she also used all of her exhaustion and it’s riveting.”
Vanilla Skyis a remake of the 1997 Spanish filmAbre Los Ojos, which starred Penelope Cruz. Cruz went on to star in the remake opposite Cruise and Diaz.
In August 2021, Diaz opened up about stepping away from acting in an interview with Kevin Hart on his Peacock talk showHart to Heart.
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“Why did Cameron Diaz step away from the world of acting?” Hart asked Diaz. “What is it that motivated you to stop?”
Jen Lowery/Splash News
Diaz said she started to realize around age 40 that there were “so many parts of my life … that I wasn’t touching and that I wasn’t managing.”
After the change, Diaz told Hart, “I feel whole.”
source: people.com
