Kirsten Dunst on the 'surprise' of 'Bring It On': Studio greenlit 'dumb cheerleading movie' and 'look what happened'

Taryn Ryder

Kirsten Dunst knows her career is closely tied to cult-classic films like The Virgin Suicides and Bring It On — and that's just fine with the actress. Dunst stopped by BUILD Series and explained how she looks back at some of her iconic roles fondly. The Fargo star said certain roles "helped" her transition with her career "along the way."

"I feel like Virgin Suicides was a huge deal for me because it was that first, you know, I got to be beautiful, but 'of substance' in a movie," she shared. Dunst also thinks back on the the 1999 film warmly because of its director.

"I was taken care of ‘cause it was Sofia [Coppola], a female filmmaker," Dunst explained. "That was a transition that I think was a very important one for me and my career."

One year later, Dunst starred in the hit film Bring It On, which she called "a great surprise."

Bring it on
Kirsten Dunst in Bring It On. (Photo: Universal)

"We made that movie... Universal was like ‘OK, go make your dumb cheerleading movie’ and look what happened," she revealed. "So, you never know. Those moments I remember with, like, real fondness."

Now that she's later on in her career, Dunst has the luxury of being more picky with which roles she accepts.

"A lot of things that I read just feel very much through the male gaze and, you know, some people around me are like, ‘But this role, it’s this, this and this,’” Dunst said. “I’m like, ‘It literally just functions for him and I can’t stand it and if I do this I’m going to be so angry.'"

Dunst concluded, "I think I just find things that appeal to me and it’s my taste and my intuition and I just follow my gut really and what I want to see as an actress as well."

Dunst is making her way back to the small screen in Showtime's upcoming series On Becoming a God in Central Florida, premiering Sunday, Aug. 25 at 10 p.m. on Showtime.

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