Dakota Johnson recalls the time she filmed The Social Network and met the film’s cast members including Jesse Eisenberg and Andrew Garfield. Johnson is best known for her role in the Fifty Shades of Grey film trilogy. The daughter of Hollywood legends Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson, the 32-year-old star made her film debut in 2010 with a minor role in The Social Network. The biographical film explored the legal drama that ensued during the founding of Facebook in the early 2000s.
Eisenberg played the role of 19-year-old Mark Zuckerberg who was then in his sophomore year at Harvard. Garfield portrayed his friend-turned-business partner Eduardo Saverin. Justin Timberlake joined the cast and played Napster co-founder Sean Parker. Johnson only had a bit role in The Social Network as a young Stanford student who had casually told Parker about Facebook’s rise after one romantic night together.
Johnson recently reunited with Garfield 12 years since The Social Network was released. The former co-stars sat down together for Vanity Fair and reminisced about their experience filming the movie. While the two didn’t have any scenes together, Johnson had good memories of their first meeting on the set of the 2010 film. However, the same couldn’t be said about her encounter with Eisenberg. Johnson recalled that she sat with Garfield and Eisenberg for lunch one time and the lead star ignored her. Read her comments below:
No, and you and Jesse [Eisenberg] were so busy on that movie, and I was obviously in it for four seconds, but I spent a few days on set just watching. I remember sitting down with you guys when you were having lunch one day, and you asked me loads of questions. You were really nice—and Jesse didn’t acknowledge me. He was probably in character.
Dakota Johnson in Social Network
Johnson was quick to imply that it’s all water under the bridge and even had a good-natured laugh about the past, joking that Eisenberg must have been “overwhelmed” by her beauty. In hindsight, she attributed the actor’s coldness to method acting. If this was the case, Eisenberg’s strategy definitely worked as The Social Network went on to become a box office hit, grossing $224 million against a $40 million budget. It was also hailed as one of the best films in 2010 and received eight Oscar nominations including Best Actor for Eisenberg.
Johnson may not get major credit for The Social Network’s success, but the movie must have provided a strong foundation for her own acting career. After playing minor and supporting roles, Johnson became an overnight sensation in 2014 with Fifty Shades of Grey. Her latest movie, The Lost Daughter, is a psychological drama written and directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal. The movie received critical acclaim and Johnson was praised for her performance. Her recent comments about The Social Network prove that she’s definitely come a long way and she could fondly look back on her early acting days and have a good laugh.
