Tilda Swinton talks about Almodóvar’s The Room Next Door

Pedro Almodóvar is back with his English-language debut, “The Room Next Door,” which just won top prize at the Venice Film Festival and is now making the rounds at the Toronto International Film Festival, where TheWrap caught up with star Tilda Swinton.

Based on Sigrid Nunez’s 2020 novel “What Are You Going Through,” the film stars Swinton as Martha, a war correspondent and imperfect mother nearing the end of her life as she attempts to reconcile with her daughter and Martha’s friend, author Ingrid (Julianne Moore).

At TIFF, Swinton (who also appears in Joshua Oppenheimer’s “The End,” which is also making the festival rounds) told TheWrap’s editor-in-chief Sharon Waxman that it wasn’t a stretch to play Martha, drawing on her own personal experiences.

“It’s really delightful to be in a story that’s part of our lives. I mean, it’s not an effort, in a way, to be honest. I’m blessed to be able to say that, I’ve been in Julianne’s character’s position quite a few times in my life,” Swinton explained. “I’ve been in Ingrid’s position quite a few times, and from a very young age, my friend Derek Jarman, I would say, was my Martha. He was the first person I saw at that point in her life.” Jarman was a British filmmaker and artist who worked with Swinton. In 1986, he was diagnosed with HIV and died in 1994 at the age of 53.

The actress said the connection with Jarman only emerged recently. “It only occurred to me a few days ago. I didn’t realise when I was making the film that I was particularly inspired by my friend Derek Jarman, who, as I said, was the first person to ask me to be his Ingrid.”

Swinton added: “But it’s a special story, because Martha is someone who knows very well that she doesn’t have a lot of time and that she’s going to be heading into something very, very scary, and she decides to be independent all the way. She knows she doesn’t want to do it alone. She asks her old friend to be in the next room, to be her best man.”

Watch the full interview above.

“The Room Next Door” will be released on December 20 in New York and Los Angeles, followed by a limited release in more cities on Christmas Day and a wide release in January 2025.