Diane Kruger Says She 'Felt Like Meat' During 'Uncomfortable' Screen Test for Troy

Jen Juneau
·3 min read
2
Diane Kruger attends the American Ballet Theatre's Fall Gala at David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center on October 26, 2021 in New York City.
Diane Kruger attends the American Ballet Theatre's Fall Gala at David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center on October 26, 2021 in New York City.

Jamie McCarthy/Getty Diane Kruger

Diane Kruger is reflecting on an "uncomfortable" moment from the early days of her film career.

In a recent conversation at the Variety SXSW Studio, the Swimming with Sharks actress said she has "definitely come across the Weinsteins of this world from the get-go."

Of testing for 2004's Troy, in which she starred as Helen of Troy opposite Brad Pitt, Kruger, 45, said she had "to go to the studio head in costume," not specifying who.

"And I felt like meat, being looked up and down and was asked, 'Why do you think you should be playing this?' " she alleged.

A rep for Warner Bros. Pictures has not responded to PEOPLE's request for comment.

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diane kruger
diane kruger

Moviestore/Shutterstock Diane Kruger in Troy (2004)

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Kruger went on to say that she has "been put in situations that were so inappropriate and so uncomfortable" during her career, and initially thought that was just how it was supposed to be.

"I think when I first started out, it just felt like, 'This is what it's like. This is what Hollywood is like,' " she said. "Also, I come from modeling and believe me, they have their moments."

In her new thriller Swimming with Sharks, Kruger had to film a scene in which her character is sexually exploited. As she told Variety, "Shooting that scene was just a reminder of how disgusting and acceptable bad behavior was at a certain time in our society, not just Hollywood."

"What really drew me to this part is that it is the Hollywood of 2022. So women have careers, they put their families or their desires on the back burner. What does that mean once you are in a position of power? How do you complete your life?" Kruger said. "The vulnerability of this character, combined with this excessive abusive of power, was really intriguing to me."

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Kruger's comments come two months after she said she had to jump through "hoops" to get cast in 2009's Inglourious Basterds because director Quentin Tarantino was skeptical about her abilities.

"He auditioned everyone. He didn't want to audition me because he saw a movie that I was in he didn't like. So he didn't believe in me from the get-go," said the German-American actress. "Literally, the only reason he auditioned me is because there was no one left to audition."

"I had to pay for my own flight from New York to go to Germany because he wouldn't, even though, obviously, he's American, but he wouldn't see me in the U.S.," Kruger alleged. "So I had to jump through all these hoops that definitely put my nose out of joint, but I was like, 'You know what? F--- him! I'm just gonna do that and prove to him that I can do it.' And thankfully it all worked out."

A rep for Tarantino, 58, did not respond to PEOPLE's request for comment at the time.