{"id":623105,"date":"2025-09-05T12:03:21","date_gmt":"2025-09-05T16:03:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/?p=623105"},"modified":"2025-09-10T10:26:56","modified_gmt":"2025-09-10T14:26:56","slug":"meet-our-fall-cover-star-tessa-thompson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/art-culture\/meet-our-fall-cover-star-tessa-thompson-0905623105","title":{"rendered":"Meet Our Fall Cover Star: Tessa Thompson"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/tessamaethompson\/\">Tessa Thompson<\/a> has one of those faces that mesmerizes, captivates, and communicates even the most imperceptible emotions with razor-sharp subtlety. In <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiff.net\/films\/hedda\"><em>Hedda<\/em><\/a>, the forthcoming film adaptation of Henrik Ibsen\u2019s classic stage play, Hedda Gabler, her co-stars (or rather, the characters they play) fumble around her deftly hidden malice. For audiences, though, watching the simmering rage bubble beneath those magnificently expressive features is part of the fun. The faintest raising of a sharp brow, a slight parting of full lips\u2014the moments that reveal all are communicated only to us.<\/p><div class=\"smagt-in-article-repeating\" style=\"margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;text-align: center;\" id=\"smagt-530652301\"><script async=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/securepubads.g.doubleclick.net\/tag\/js\/gpt.js\"><\/script>\n<script> var googletag = googletag || {}; googletag.cmd = googletag.cmd || [];<\/script>\n<div id=\"gpt-ad-9105475469230-0\">\n  <script>\n\tgoogletag.cmd.push(function() {\n\t\t\t\tgoogletag.defineSlot( '\/1057191\/smagtest_300x250', [300,250], 'gpt-ad-9105475469230-0' )\n\t\t.addService(googletag.pubads()).setCollapseEmptyDiv(true);\n\t\t\t\twindow.advadsGamEmptySlotsTimers = window.advadsGamEmptySlotsTimers || {};\n\t\tconst timers                     = window.advadsGamEmptySlotsTimers;\n\n\t\ttimers['gpt-ad-9105475469230-0'] = setTimeout( function () {\n\t\t\tconst id = 'gpt-ad-9105475469230-0';\n\t\t\tdocument.dispatchEvent( new CustomEvent( 'aagam_empty_slot', {detail: id} ) );\n\t\t\tdelete ( timers[id] );\n\t\t}, 1000 );\n\n\t\tif ( typeof window.advadsGamHasEmptySlotListener === 'undefined' ) {\n\t\t\tgoogletag.pubads().addEventListener( 'slotRequested', function ( ev ) {\n\t\t\t\tconst id = ev.slot.getSlotElementId();\n\t\t\t\tif ( typeof timers[id] === 'undefined' ) {\n\t\t\t\t\treturn;\n\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\tclearTimeout( timers[id] );\n\t\t\t\ttimers[id] = setTimeout( function () {\n\t\t\t\t\tdocument.dispatchEvent( new CustomEvent( 'aagam_empty_slot', {detail: id} ) );\n\t\t\t\t\tdelete ( timers[id] );\n\t\t\t\t}, 2500 );\n\t\t\t} );\n\t\t\tgoogletag.pubads().addEventListener( 'slotResponseReceived', function ( ev ) {\n\t\t\t\tconst id = ev.slot.getSlotElementId();\n\t\t\t\tif ( typeof timers[id] !== 'undefined' ) {\n\t\t\t\t\tclearTimeout( timers[id] );\n\t\t\t\t\tdelete ( timers[id] );\n\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\tif ( ! ev.slot.getResponseInformation() ) {\n\t\t\t\t\tdocument.dispatchEvent( new CustomEvent( 'aagam_empty_slot', {detail: id} ) );\n\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t} );\n\t\t\twindow.advadsGamHasEmptySlotListener = true;\n\t\t}\n\n\t\tgoogletag.enableServices();\n\t\tgoogletag.display( 'gpt-ad-9105475469230-0' );\n\t} );\n  <\/script>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-vimeo wp-block-embed-vimeo\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"jetpack-video-wrapper\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"TESSA THOMPSON FALL 2025 COVER VIDEO\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/1117461515?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"640\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p>The film, by visionary director <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm4804442\/\">Nia DaCosta<\/a>, revisits the 1891 tale of a wilful, complicated woman trapped by society, its expectations, and her own changeable emotions. In this version, the chaos ensues over the course of a single glamorous party inside Gabler\u2019s opulent home circa the 1950s\u2014a grand Victorian mansion her unsuspecting husband has just purchased to please her. Over those hours, she oscillates from scorned lover to the one who scorns when her former flame arrives with a new partner, both of whom she proceeds to psychologically terrorize, along with a slew of others who are drawn toward her like moths to a flame. She does bad things\u2014but is she bad? That\u2019s the question audiences have deliberated for more than a century, with legends like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm0000006\/\">Ingrid Bergman<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm0001749\/\">Maggie Smith<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm0000949\/\">Cate Blanchett<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm0001376\/\">Isabelle Huppert<\/a> taking turns bringing her to life in various productions. Thompson\u2019s version leaves us no closer to finding an answer, which for her, is the point. \u201cMorality is not a lens through which it\u2019s useful, at least for me, to see [her],\u201d she tells me over video chat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-5-683x1024.jpg?wsr\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-623113\" srcset=\"https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-5-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-5-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-5-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-5-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-5-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-5-1920x2880.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-5-scaled.jpg 1707w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Full look by Max Mara; earring by Tiffany &amp; Co.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>When I reach the 41-year-old actor, she\u2019s in a space that could easily double as a stand-in for the film\u2019s lavish setting: a seductively lit London hotel she moves through with the same catlike ease as her character (though for an inherently 2025 reason: the phone she\u2019s using to chat with me is about to die and she needs to plug in). She\u2019s bundled up for an unseasonably cold July day\u2014boxy blazer layered overtop a vintage grey sweater, with a rogue retractable pencil haphazardly thrust into her ponytail. (\u201cI found it, and I love it so much that I\u2019m so afraid of losing it,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s been a day-and-a-half love affair with this thing.\u201d)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-3-683x1024.jpg?wsr\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-623109\" srcset=\"https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-3-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-3-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-3-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-3-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-3-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-3-1920x2880.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-3-scaled.jpg 1707w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Shirt by Dior; hat by Noel Stewart; necklaces by Van Cleef &amp; Arpels.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Fresh off a vacation in Greece, she\u2019s in full Hedda mode, eager to discuss the making of the film, which she also serves as a producer on through her production company, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/vivamaude\/\">Viva Maude<\/a>, and the many ways it subverts our expectations of women. \u201cOne of the reasons [Hedda Gabler] was revolutionary in its time\u2014and continues to be\u2014is because so often, when women do challenging things in stories, audiences want to justify, excuse, or to understand the choices they make,\u201d she says. \u201cThat standard isn\u2019t applied to male characters in the same way.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-4-1024x683.jpg?wsr\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-623110\" srcset=\"https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-4-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-4-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-4-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-4.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Full look by by Louis Vuitton.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">\u201c\u2026there are many ways to be audacious\u2014by upending expectations, or simply by making something optimistic in a cynical world.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Another twist is DaCosta\u2019s choice to turn the character of Eilert L\u00f6vborg, Gabler\u2019s former lover, into Eileen (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm0396125\/\">Nina Hoss<\/a>), an openly gay woman who shows up with her new partner (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm1782299\/\">Imogen Poots<\/a>) to reclaim her academic reputation after a bout with alcoholism. \u201cBy changing the gender of one character, she not only deepened Hedda\u2019s interiority, but also created portraits of three very different women in relation to their time,\u201d says Thompson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The film, set to premiere at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiff.net\/\">Toronto International Film Festival<\/a> in September before landing on Amazon Prime Video in October, marks the pair\u2019s second collaboration\u2014DaCosta previously directed Thompson in her directorial debut, <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt6418918\/\">Little Woods<\/a><\/em> (2018), before going on to be the first Black woman to direct a Marvel film (2023\u2019s <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt10676048\/\">The Marvels<\/a><\/em>). When DaCosta described this new project as one that would be centred around female rage, Thompson was all in. \u201cThere\u2019s still a dearth of stories that do that,\u201d she says. \u201cSo, if there\u2019s a way to also make it entertaining and fun, then that sounds great.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thompson\u2019s criteria\u2014whether to provoke, to humanize, or to entertain\u2014has guided her across a two-decade career that\u2019s spanned indie films like <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt2235108\/\">Dear White People<\/a><\/em> (2014) and <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt5688932\">Sorry to Bother You<\/a><\/em> (2018), Oscar-nominated work such as <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt1020072\/\">Selma<\/a><\/em> (2014), and blockbuster franchises including <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0800369\/\">Thor<\/a><\/em>, <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt3076658\">Creed<\/a><\/em>, and <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0848228\/\">Avengers<\/a><\/em>. \u201cIn the industry, some people say, \u2018one for you, one for them,\u2019\u201d she notes, alluding to the delicate dance between art and commerce in Hollywood. \u201cTo me though, all are for me, and all are for them. In everything I do, I\u2019m trying to make someone feel seen through the work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-1-683x1024.jpg?wsr\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-623106\" srcset=\"https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-1-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-1-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-1-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-1.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Full look by CHANEL.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Growing up in Los Angeles as the daughter of an Afro-Panamanian father and a mother of Mexican descent, Thompson has always gravitated toward telling stories that reflect a wide range of lived experience. She resists the notion that diversity is an agenda, describing it instead as a necessary part of honest storytelling: \u201cWe want to really examine what it is to be human in the times that we live in, and I think for that reason, you have to have a kind of diversity of characters reflected\u2014that\u2019s where our world is,\u201d she says. For Thompson, that ethos made DaCosta\u2019s decision to recontextualize Ibsen\u2019s text through the lens of a different sexual identity one that felt authentic and smart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Later this year, Thompson will star opposite <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm1256532\/\">Jon Bernthal<\/a> in<em> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt33035373\/\">His &amp; Hers<\/a><\/em>, a Netflix whodunit that unfolds across a series of conflicting perspectives. Audiences are likely to flip-flop over who they believe, a framework she says was fascinating to construct (she serves as producer alongside <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm1567113\/\">Jessica Chastain<\/a>). \u201cWe all have our side of a story, the version we tell ourselves,\u201d she tells me. \u201cAsk someone else, and they\u2019ll have their side, which may be entirely different. The truth probably lives somewhere in the middle, and I just love that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">\u201cIn everything I do, I\u2019m trying to make someone feel seen through the work.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Duelling narratives have, of course, become a big part of our ever-changing world. As has the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence, something that Hollywood continues to grapple with. And while many are feeling fearful, Thompson describes herself as a futurist. \u201cI\u2019m trying to be a techno-optimist,\u201d she says. AI could solve many of the world\u2019s problems, she reasons. \u201cThe thing that should remain most important is humans, or being humane,\u201d she adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-2-1-683x1024.jpg?wsr\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-623108\" srcset=\"https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-2-1-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-2-1-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-2-1-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-2-1-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-2-1-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-2-1-1920x2880.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/smagazineofficial.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Tessa-2-1-scaled.jpg 1707w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Full look by Prada.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>That same lens is what draws her to fashion, where the current upheaval among designers across the industry\u2019s top houses feels like a cultural mirror for the times. \u201cI always think that fashion is such an interesting indicator of not just where we\u2019re going, but where we\u2019ve been,\u201d she says, citing the industry\u2019s shifts\u2014like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/jonathan.anderson?igsh=MXF0dHV4bnIwNzk4aA==\">Jonathan Anderson<\/a>\u2019s new tenure at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dior.com\/en_ca?msockid=3a9e8e283a6f6edf0dd6987d3be86f28\">Dior<\/a>\u2014as signs of a creative future she\u2019s eager to watch unfold. As a producer, she\u2019s developed a new-found appreciation for the craft, and at fashion shows, where she\u2019s a frequent attendee, she now notices things she once overlooked, from the grandeur of the settings, to the way house codes are woven into new collections, to the details within the garments themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For her part in what comes next, she says, \u201cthere are many ways to be audacious\u2014by upending expectations, or simply by making something optimistic in a cynical world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">Photography: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/amardaved?igsh=d2gxNDA3ajJuNmxr\">Amar David<\/a><br>Video: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/rebecca.munroe?igsh=MWZvYjJuYXgwazk0ag==\">Rebecca Munroe<\/a><br>Styling: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/georgmedley?igsh=eWV1MDFpamp3NnJz\">Georgia Medley<\/a><br>Makeup: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/babskymakeup?igsh=ZWd2ZTgzN3ExN2xv\">Alex Babsky<\/a> (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/thevisionariesagency?igsh=MW5jaW02MTM3NXl3YQ==\">The Visionaries Agency<\/a>)<br>Hair: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/issacvpoleon?igsh=ZzR6M2xydjV3N2lq\">Issac Poleon<\/a> (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/issacvpoleon?igsh=ZzR6M2xydjV3N2lq\">The Wall Group<\/a>)<br>Photo Assistants: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/thedanclarke?igsh=MWNybmp6c2VndDJjMw==\">Dan Clarke<\/a>, Chris Watson<br>Stylist Assistant: Annie Royapen<br>Production: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/anastasiavm.film?igsh=NmRwanVrdHRrcHUw\">Anastasia Marshall<\/a><br>Editorial and Creative Director: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/saharxnooraei\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Sahar Nooraei<\/a><br>Art Director: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/j.essica.hui\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Jessica Hui<\/a> <br>Fashion Directorr: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/j.essica.hui\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/bananahales\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Haley Dach<\/a><\/a><br>Entertainment Editor: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/elyciarubin\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Elycia Rubin<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><br><\/p>\n<div class=\"smagt-article-ad\" id=\"smagt-3687215130\"><script async=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/securepubads.g.doubleclick.net\/tag\/js\/gpt.js\"><\/script>\n<script> var googletag = googletag || {}; googletag.cmd = googletag.cmd || [];<\/script>\n<div id=\"gpt-ad-4489473960660-0\">\n  <script>\n\tgoogletag.cmd.push(function() {\n\t\t\t\tgoogletag.defineSlot( '\/1057191\/smagtest_320x50\/smagtest_320x50_article_desktop', [[300,250],[320,100],[320,50]], 'gpt-ad-4489473960660-0' 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