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Denis Villeneuve’s critically acclaimed sci-fi drama Arrival, released in 2016, treated viewers with an emotionally resonant yet challenging story of humanity’s first encounter with extraterrestrial life. Starring Amy Adams as linguist Louise Banks and Jeremy Renner as physicist Ian Donnelly, Arrival became a landmark achievement in the genre and marked a turning point in the Dune director’s career.
Ironically, the central conflict observed in Arrival — linguistic barriers to communicating with a diverse species — wasn’t limited to the movie’s script but found its way to the production, albeit not so much as emotionally but humorously. During the promotional tour of Arrival, Adams and Renner appeared on The Graham Norton Show, where they delighted the audience with hilarious behind-the-scenes anecdotes about working with Villeneuve.
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Host Graham Norton introduced Villeneuve’s French-Canadian background, wondering that since his first language is French, it may occasionally have led to unintended linguistic mishaps. Renner recounted how the Enemy director’s attempts to assemble the most straightforward English sentence sometimes yielded amusingly dirty phrases. “Not understanding French made things a little complicated,” The Hurt Locker star quipped, calling Villeneuve an “emotionally intelligent guy” who would often sound “really very inappropriate.”
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Adams followed by painting a lively picture of one such incident. “He said, ‘I loved that very much, and I will now take you from behind,’” she recounted, perfectly mimicking Villeneuve’s delivery. The American Hustle actress explained that Villeneuve tried to clarify his statement. “Then he’d say, ‘I think you mistook me — I mean, I will take you from behind, but use a camera.’ And I’m like, no, that’s not getting any better!” inducing laughter in the panel and audience.
Renner chimed in with another story, recalling Villeneuve saying, “Amy, I’m going to come very close here and f**c us,” clarifying Villeneuve’s pronunciation of “focus” could feel like the most explicit execution of the f-word. “Jeremy,” The Avengers actor resumed his imitation, “I’m going to take the camera and now come on your face.”
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Despite the occasional verbal missteps, Arrival remains one of the most celebrated films of 2016, praised for its thematic depth and groundbreaking imagery. With eight Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director, and a lasting legacy, it rendered Villeneuve’s stature as one of Hollywood’s most visionary filmmakers. With a box office haul exceeding $203 million on a modest budget, Arrival also marked the director’s last project with a budget under $100 million before he shifted toward large-scale tentpoles like Blade Runner 2049 and the Dune franchise.
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