Podcast Summary: The Interview
Episode: Kristen Stewart Wants to Show Us a Different Kind of Sex
Date: December 6, 2025
Host: David Marchese (The New York Times)
Overview
This episode features a candid and exploratory conversation between David Marchese and actor/director Kristen Stewart. The main theme is Stewart’s transition from Hollywood star to indie film director, focusing on her directorial debut, The Chronology of Water—an adaptation of Lidia Yuknavitch’s memoir. The conversation navigates womanhood, vulnerability, the nature of selfhood, sex on screen, the challenges of filmmaking, and personal introspection. Stewart’s reflections are unfiltered, often humorous, and self-examining, with both discussion and banter. The episode is split across two conversations—a main interview and a follow-up after Stewart’s film screening in Poland.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Motivation Behind Adapting The Chronology of Water
[02:27 – 03:44]
- Stewart was drawn not just to the events in Yuknavitch’s memoir, but to how Yuknavitch told her story—its invitation to "excavate your own memories."
- “It was the way that she told it—it was the fact of the telling.” —Kristen Stewart [02:54]
- Stewart emphasizes that diaristic writing by women is often dismissed as "selfish," a theme she wished to celebrate rather than avoid.
2. Universality, Specificity, and the Female Experience
[04:09 – 06:31]
- Stewart resists overly concretizing the film’s themes, focusing instead on how its specificity enables audience identification, especially for women.
- “If you pick this woman apart, you’re not giving her a chance to be as genius as she is.” —Kristen Stewart [06:06]
- She links discomfort with the film’s themes to cultural unease about women speaking openly about their bodily experiences.
3. The Difficulties of Getting the Film Made
[06:52 – 08:19]
- Stewart describes a protracted, nearly 10-year journey to direct the film, noting challenges such as lack of a traditional narrative structure and its unpalatable subject matter.
- “I was lucky to be allowed to make this movie at all. I had to do a lot of kicking and screaming.” —Kristen Stewart [07:10]
- The film’s unfiltered depiction of sexuality and trauma was a barrier for financing.
4. Abandon vs. Control, and Living in the Public Eye
[08:19 – 10:19]
- Stewart claims she does not self-censor, finding authenticity more valuable than calculation, and frames public embarrassment as humbling and freeing.
- “A nice healthy amount of humiliation is really humbling.” —Kristen Stewart [09:52]
5. The Public Persona and Loss of Control
[10:22 – 13:42]
- Stewart discusses becoming a "character" constructed by the media/tabloids, and the futility of controlling public perception.
- “Who you think you are has nothing to do with what other people think you are... No one’s wrong.” —Kristen Stewart [13:07 – 13:31]
- Embracing relinquishment of control is key to her sanity.
6. Hollywood’s Gendered Double Standards
[14:10 – 19:08]
- Via a Marlon Brando anecdote, Stewart criticizes how male actors are praised for artistic idiosyncrasies ("method" bravado), while such behavior in women is dismissed as "crazy."
- “Performance is inherently vulnerable and therefore quite embarrassing and unmasculine... there’s no bravado in suggesting you’re a mouthpiece for someone else’s ideas... Men are aggrandized for retaining self.” —Kristen Stewart [15:39 – 16:23]
- Calling out misogynistic attitudes on film sets, she underscores different cultural expectations for male and female actors.
7. Studio Movies vs. Independent Filmmaking
[19:19 – 24:01]
- Stewart openly rejects the "committee process" of blockbuster filmmaking in favor of creative singularity.
- “A movie comes from someone’s singularity in their perspective and their soul... I don’t feel the need to feed the machine anymore.” —Kristen Stewart [20:40 – 21:13]
- Citing demoralizing test screenings and meddling executives, she describes the studio environment as inhospitable and often misogynistic.
8. The Impact of Early Success and Financial Freedom
[24:01 – 25:43]
- Stewart acknowledges her own financial privilege after Twilight’s success, which allowed her to make riskier creative choices.
- “I know for a fact I would be able to make myself happy artistically without [money]... that’s the setup that’s the most cohesive to a beautiful life.” —Kristen Stewart [24:59]
- She remains conscious of sharing her good fortune and not letting financial comfort dull her artistic drive.
9. The Case for “Breaking the System” in Film
[25:43 – 29:12]
- Stewart advocates for new models in film financing and distribution, decrying the capitalist barriers that silence marginalized voices and experimental work.
- “The system has barred people and made it too, too difficult. To be honest.” —Kristen Stewart [26:15 – 27:26]
- She fantasizes about making a powerful, personal, zero-budget film as a challenge to industry norms.
10. Pop Criticism: Barbie and Cultural Contradictions
[29:21 – 31:29]
- Stewart and Marchese discuss Barbie (2023), with Marchese pointing out that subversive critique can also serve as advertisement for the thing critiqued.
- “At the same time, you see a big poster for that Margot Robbie’s on, and you’re like, oh my God, that is the picture of beauty.” —Kristen Stewart [30:39]
- Stewart admires the subversive success of the film, especially Gerwig’s creative latitude.
11. Reflection and Self-Knowledge
[32:10 – 34:28, 36:44 – 40:13]
- At the close, Marchese asks Stewart, “What is it you don’t want to know about yourself?” (from Adam Phillips’ The Life You Want).
- Stewart’s first instinct is to interrogate her own selfishness and capacity for care.
- “I hope I’m not just like an egomaniac monster... do I actually care?” —Kristen Stewart [33:49 – 34:18]
- A follow-up segment includes both interviewer and Stewart sharing their own insecurities (Marchese: artistic courage and self-image; Stewart: wishing she didn’t sometimes make people feel awkward).
12. Queer Sexuality and Honest Sex Scenes
[40:23 – 44:32]
- Stewart recommends Barbara Hammer’s Multiple Orgasm and discusses sexual honesty in art.
- “I love watching things that don’t feel performative, that do feel inhabited and kind of instinctive... I never really again want to stand in a room and watch two people fucking, I’m just, like, my whole life, you know, that’s just our whole lives.” —Kristen Stewart [43:05 – 44:15]
- Stewart critiques the external, often performative and male-gaze oriented depiction of sex, expressing a desire for more truthful, embodied, and less “titillating” portrayals.
13. Creativity, Drugs, and Self-Soothing
[45:13 – 47:33]
- Stewart comments on the romanticization of drugs/alcohol and artistic inspiration.
- “I work best in the morning, completely clear headed. I romanticize so much like Bukowski sitting there with a big old bottle of wine and like writing his best poems. I do not have that.” —Kristen Stewart [46:11]
- For her, substance use is social rather than creative; she values clarity for artistic work.
14. Final Reflections & Takeaway
[47:44 – 49:07]
- Stewart demurs from offering a neat encapsulation or life lesson, instead urging listeners to engage with her work directly:
- “If you want to know anything about me, if you want to have a continued conversation, you have to watch my movie first... it would be like a gift for anyone to actually spend two hours watching my film.” —Kristen Stewart [47:52]
- Both Stewart and Marchese affirm the open, risky, rewarding nature of their conversation.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
-
On Selfhood:
“Anytime you start talking about yourself, it becomes kind of this tired, pathetic, messy thing. And I wanted to make something tired, pathetic and messy that felt exuberant...” —Kristen Stewart [03:09] -
On Public Perception:
“Who you think you are has nothing to do with what other people think you are. And so, like, no one's wrong, you know?” —Kristen Stewart [13:07] -
On Gender and Performance:
“Performance is inherently vulnerable and therefore... unmasculine. There's no bravado in suggesting that you're a mouthpiece now for someone else's ideas.” —Kristen Stewart [15:39] -
On Hollywood Studio Films:
“I don't feel the need to feed the machine anymore... I was kind of jealous, you know, I was kind of greedy. I was like, maybe I could make that work. Maybe that'll be fun. But it just wasn't. Like, I want to play... then you go to the party, and you're like, this party sucks.” —Kristen Stewart [20:49–21:43] -
On Artistic Systems:
“The system has barred people and made it too, too difficult. To be honest.” —Kristen Stewart [27:26] -
On Sex Scenes:
“I never really again want to stand in a room and watch two people fuck. I'm just like, my whole life, you know, that's just our whole lives. And it's nice to get an odd angle of it.” —Kristen Stewart [44:15] -
On Artistic Honesty:
“Make art about the things you don't want to know about yourself. You know what I mean? That's how you meet your actual person inside.” —Kristen Stewart [47:12] -
On Watching Her Movie:
“If you want to know anything about me, if you want to have a continued conversation, you have to watch my movie first. This isn't about selling my film... it would be, like, a gift for anyone to actually spend two hours watching my film.” —Kristen Stewart [47:52]
Important Timestamps (MM:SS)
- 02:54 – Stewart on the “fact of the telling” in Yuknavitch’s memoir
- 07:10 – Long process getting the film made
- 09:52 – On embracing public embarrassment
- 13:07 – Stewart on persona and relinquishing control
- 15:39–17:21 – Discussion on method acting, performance, and gender
- 20:40 – Disillusionment with blockbuster committee culture
- 27:26 – “System has barred people...”
- 30:39 – Barbie as both critique and advertisement
- 33:49 – Stewart’s answer to “what is it you don’t want to know about yourself?”
- 43:05–44:15 – The future of sex scenes and sexual honesty on screen
- 47:52 – Stewart’s final takeaway: “watch my movie first!”
- 49:10 – Shared reflection on risk in conversation
Tone & Style
Stewart responds with humor, candor, and reflection—often challenging received wisdom and disrupting interviewer expectations. The conversation is loose, direct, and engaging, skipping over superficial platitudes in favor of vulnerability and mutual curiosity.
For Listeners Who Haven’t Heard the Episode
- The episode offers rare insight not just into Kristen Stewart’s directorial ambitions, but her worldview—a frank, sometimes irreverent take on Hollywood, art-making, self-doubt, queerness, and womanhood.
- Listeners are treated to unfiltered thoughts on the difficulties and rewards of forging an authentic artistic path and the continual challenge of shaking off both industry and social expectations.
- The conversation is rewarding for anyone interested in creative process, gender dynamics in film, or what it means to risk vulnerability both onscreen and off.
- Ultimately, Stewart leaves the listener with an invitation: the real conversation is in her film itself.