On a particularly gloomy afternoon in Los Angeles, Demi Moore walks into the room, her presence instantly brightening the space. Dressed in a chic yet relaxed ensemble, she carries her designer handbag, —but her adorable, tiny, wide-eyed puppy is not with her.
Moore is no stranger to reinvention. From the breakout success of “Ghost” (1990) to the cultural phenomenon of “Indecent Proposal” (1993), and now to her critically acclaimed turn in “The Substance,” she has had a career that defies Hollywood’s conventional wisdom. But this time, something feels different.
“This whole journey has just been a shock and awe,” she says with humility and amusement. “I had no expectations, so everything has been a surprise, and honestly, that’s a really beautiful place to be sitting in.”
At 62, Moore has just earned her first Academy Award nomination for best actress, a recognition that was both unexpected and long overdue. Her performance in Coralie Fargeat’s body horror thriller “The Substance” is raw, fearless and, at times, deeply unsettling. The film, which satirizes Hollywood’s obsession with youth and beauty, sees Moore’s character undergo a grotesque transformation after consuming a mysterious product. I call it “Death Becomes Her” meets “The Fly” — with a heavy dose of uncomfortable chuckles and social commentary.
Demi Moore, “The Substance” (MUBI / Courtesy Everett Collection)
Courtesy Everett Collection
But it’s a moment in front of the mirror where she methodically smears lipstick across her face in a moment of profound self-destruction that is her most haunting moment. “It was really tough,” she admits. “Coralie likes to do a lot of takes—we didn’t do fewer than 15 in each segment. But I knew that this was such a pivotal moment in the film. It’s the beginning of the real violence against oneself.” She pauses. “It’s also the ‘Fuck it!’ moment. You want her to be happy, and she’s so close.”
The role required Moore to go deep — deeper than ever before. “I realized I didn’t have the benefit of feeding off other actors in many of these scenes,” she explains. “So I had to create a dialogue with myself. I went through every beat, every moment so that when I got there, I could just let it go.”
If there were doubts about her ability to carry a film of this magnitude, Moore never let them in. “I knew the movie was ambitious, but I also knew that Coralie had something to say—and she wasn’t just taking cheap shots at Hollywood. The story had substance,” she says, relishing the unintentional pun.
If she wins, Moore will become only the third-best actress winner to be helmed by a woman who is nominated for best director (after Frances McDormand from “Nomadland” and Holly Hunter for “The Piano”) and the sixth oldest woman to take home the award. “Wow,” she says, genuinely taken aback when the numbers are read to her. “That’s incredible.”
But what’s more remarkable is the shift that Moore is witnessing and leading in Hollywood. “We’ve all heard the narrative — women of a certain age in Hollywood are discarded, overlooked,” she says. “But look at what’s happening now. There’s interest in our stories. There’s room for us. And that’s exciting.”
She reflects on the moment she felt her career might have reached its natural end. “I had hit a low point where I didn’t feel like I was expanding like I wasn’t being challenged,” she admits. “And I thought, maybe the universe is telling me I need to do something else. But then ‘The Substance’ came along, and I thought, ‘Okay, this I can dive into. This is something I can bring all of myself to.’”
Of course, any conversation with Moore wouldn’t be complete without a mention of her famously blended family, including her ex-husband, Bruce Willis, who was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia in 2022. While their marriage ended decades ago, Moore has remained a constant presence in his life.
“We will always be a family, just in a different form,” she says simply. “For me, there was never a question. I show up because that’s what you do for the people you love.”
She visits him weekly, ensuring their daughters and his wife and children feel supported. “I hope it’s encouraging for others to see that there’s a different way to do things. There is life after divorce. There is a way to co-parent with love.”
With the serious topics covered, we had to play a game: “Demi Moore, Give Us More” — A segment where she fills in the blanks on what happened after some of her most iconic films ended.
“Ghost” (1990): What did Molly Jensen say to the cops when they arrived to find Carl Bruner impaled on shattered glass?
Moore laughs and delivers her answer: “We didn’t have to explain anything! His dead body said it all. But if we had to, I imagine Oda Mae would’ve handled it. Probably talked them into believing they had a long-lost relative in the afterlife.”
“Indecent Proposal” (1993): Diana and David give away their million-dollar windfall and reunite, but how do they survive financially?
Moore leans in conspiratorially. “Okay, here’s my dark version. The real joke is on Gage (played by Robert Redford) because Diana drugged him on the night in question. He doesn’t remember that nothing actually happened. And that million? It’s back in their bank account. They just had to lay low for a while. Boom! They win.”
That’s her “Usual Suspects” twist on it.
As for the future? Fresh off “The Substance,” Moore has no plans of slowing down. She’s wrapped a small but “juicy” role in Boots Riley’s upcoming project “I Love Boosters,” which she describes as “totally out of the box” and “completely narcissistic, in the best way.” And she’ll soon be gearing up for another season of Paramount’s “Landman,” the Taylor Sheridan series about the Texas oil industry.
But beyond that? She’s keeping the door open. “This feels like a new beginning for me,” she says with the twinkle in her eye that we’ve loved and admired for decades. “I don’t know where it’s going, but I’m excited.”
Her next (and best) chapter is only just beginning.
Also, on this episode, “Emilia Pérez” star Zoe Saldana while the Roundtable discusses the film’s controversy and how it affects the Oscar race.
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Variety Awards Circuit Podcast
Variety’s “Awards Circuit” podcast, hosted by Clayton Davis, Jazz Tangcay, Emily Longeretta, Jenelle Riley and Michael Schneider, who also produces, is your one-stop source for lively conversations about the best in film and television. Each episode, “Awards Circuit” features interviews with top film and TV talent and creatives, discussions and debates about awards races and industry headlines, and much more. Subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify or anywhere you download podcasts.
