Margot Robbie Calls Herself a 'Masochist' When It Comes to Acting: 'I Can Always Find a Fifth Gear'

Cass Bird

Margot Robbie craves to be challenged in her work.

In WSJ. Magazine's cover profile for the November Innovator's Issue, the Oscar-nominated actress opens up about her craft, specifically her preference for exhausting roles.

"I'm a masochist, she told the magazine. Adding that no matter how daunting or draining a role — Tonya Harding in 2017's I, Tonya would seem to certainly count — the actress "can always find a fifth gear."

On newsstands Nov. 12, Robbie's profile, written by Lesley M.M. Blume, is one of eight covers representing this year's WSJ. Magazine award recipients. Robbie is the publication's Entertainment Innovator recipient for 2022. The Innovator Issue & Awards honor the year's groundbreaking visionaries and their cultural impact across a variety of entertainment arenas.

Cass Bird

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Among the topics discussed was Robbie teaming with Josey McNamara, Sophia Kerr and now-husband Tom Ackerley to form the LuckyChap Entertainment production company in 2014.

The first project for LuckyChap was the award-winning I, Tonya, which at first, the actress said, was not met with much enthusiasm within the industry, so LuckyChap quickly picked up the option.

"They [were] like, 'You can't make that.... You've got 200-something scenes, several locations, it's period,'" recalled Robbie. "We read it and were like, 'But it's just f—ing great; it's the best script ever, so who cares?'"

Noting that only 1% of the projects now pitched to them are "f— yeses," Robbie enjoyed reminiscing about the company's humble, underdog beginnings.

"[We were] too young and dumb to know how scary [it would] be," she said. "Starting it all off on a kitchen bench in London, everyone was like: 'They're such idiots...it would be a miracle if they did anything.'"

Robbie also talked about the challenges of bankrolling female-led projects.

RELATED: Everything to Know About the Barbie Movie

Cass Bird

"Today, studios and production companies are considering more female directors and writers," she said. "[But] it's easy to put female names on a list. It's a bigger hurdle to get someone to bankroll [a] project. We still have a long way to go in that regard; that ship is going to take so much longer to course-correct."

The actress was happy to spill a little on the highly-anticipated epic Babylon, directed by Damien Chazelle — "I've never worked that hard in my life. [I was] shattered by the end of that job" — but she was far more tight-lipped about her other project: Barbie.

Little is known about the film based on Mattel's iconic fashion doll line, but when there is even a glimpse into the production — such as when official shots dropped of Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken — the internet is set ablaze.

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"That's why I, Tonya intrigued us so much — because people had such an immediate and strong reaction to the name 'Tonya Harding,'" notes Robbie of Barbie, which is also a LuckyChap production. "It's kind of amazing to begin at a place like that."

For exclusive red carpet and insider event access to WSJ. Magazine's annual Innovator Awards on Wednesday, November 2^nd, follow @wsjmag on Instagram.