Juliette Lewis Recalls De Niro 'Speaking in Tongues' — SkimNews
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- Juliette Lewis plays Crystal Cady, the perpetually hooded half-sister of Javier Bardem's Max Cady, in Apple TV's 'Cape Fear' series that finished airing this past weekend — three-plus decades after earning a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for playing Dani opposite Robert De Niro in Scorsese's 1991 film, when she was 18.
- Lewis kept her casting secret for months by pitching her voice differently and having her name removed from the credits, drawing on her 'Yellowjackets' spoiler-keeping experience.
- The series finale reveals Crystal killed Max's wife, cut their baby from her body, and raised the child as her own — ending with Max locking Crystal in a houseboat and setting it ablaze — though Lewis hinted she could return 'as a burn victim' to haunt Bardem's character in a potential second season.
- Lewis recalled De Niro being warm and kind to her on the 1991 set — writing her a birthday card — directly contrasting with Scorsese telling her De Niro 'had an organ player and was speaking in tongues' in his trailer as Method preparation.
- Showrunner Nick Antosca first pitched the series idea to Lewis around 2019, arguing the biblical themes of justice, revenge, and evil could be explored more deeply across 10 episodes than in a two-hour film.
- Lewis shot her scenes in Atlanta over several months, reading only one script at a time in series fashion rather than the full script she was accustomed to from film work.
Why it matters: Lewis's dual involvement in both 'Cape Fear' adaptations — bookended across three-plus decades — underscores the unusual longevity of a career-defining turn she made at 18. Her De Niro anecdote, sourced directly from Scorsese's own telling, offers a concrete window into his Method process: an organ player and glossolalia in his trailer while playing warmth and respect toward his teenage co-star on set.
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