Dakota Johnson opens up on "love-hate relationship" with acting, producing

Jeddah [Saudi Arabia], December 7 : Actor-producer Dakota Johnson has candidly revealed the challenges and rewards of her career, describing a "love-hate relationship" with acting and producing due to the "shady" side of the entertainment industry and the emotional battles she faces as a performer, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Speaking at the Red Sea International Film Festival's "In Conversation With" series on Friday, Johnson reflected on her journey in Hollywood and her push to become a producer through her company TeaTime Pictures. "Financiers are really shady sometimes. It is heartbreaking. As a producer, it can be very heartbreaking. As an actress, it can be heartbreaking," she said, adding that despite the hurdles, both roles are "incredibly fulfilling."

Johnson, the daughter of actors Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson, spoke at length about her difficulties with the darker side of Hollywood, something she has had to deal with more and more since she moved into producing and financing her projects. "Financiers are really shady sometimes. It is heartbreaking. As a producer, it can be very heartbreaking. As an actress, it can be heartbreaking," she said, before adding, "But then both [producing and acting] are so incredibly fulfilling, and I feel very grateful that I'm able to do both," as quoted by the outlet.

She added that she found producing as more of a challenge than acting because "there's something about acting where I feel I'm in a bubble, and with producing you see behind the curtain, and it's really ugly." Adding that she both doesn't like that, but also loves it at the same time, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Her production house TeaTime Pictures, co-run with best friend Ro Donnelly, has backed films including Splitsville (2025), Daddio (2023), Am I OK? (2022), and Sundance-winning Cha Cha Real Smooth (2022). Johnson noted that the company focuses on "mostly female-driven, human experience projects," and is producing her directorial debut, A Tree Is Blue, starring Jessica Alba.

Reflecting on her acting career, Johnson highlighted particularly meaningful projects, such as The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019), working with Luca Guadagnino on A Bigger Splash (2015) and Suspiria (2018), and collaborating with Maggie Gyllenhaal on The Lost Daughter (2021). She described the experiences as deeply inspiring, praising her co-stars and directors for their guidance and emotional intelligence.

Johnson also expressed admiration for the emerging Saudi film scene, calling the festival and its emphasis on female filmmakers from the Middle East, Africa, and Asia "inspiring" and crediting it with renewing her faith in cinema, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The Red Sea International Film Festival continues through December 13.

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