Bradley Cooper sparks Christopher Nolan comparison over preference for apple boxes to chairs on film set

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Bradley Cooper opened up about his no-chair philosophy on set as a director, and the fans aren’t too happy about his statement. However, while he is not too welcoming about chairs, Cooper is not against sitting as he prefers sitting on apple boxes than to chairs.

During a recent interview with Spike Lee for Variety, Cooper, 48, said that he does not allow chairs on the sets of the films that are directed by him.

Cooper, who recently directed, acted, and served as the co-writer of the film ‘Maestro’, stated, "When I direct, I don’t watch playback. There’s no chairs.”

He went on to elaborate, "There are no chairs on sets. I've always hated chairs, and I feel like your energy dips the minute you sit down in the chair."

He added, however, that he “executed” his exact vision for the film despite not allowing his staff to sit on chairs.

Cooper explained, "And that was the result of just having so much time to think and write and prepare to act in this movie.”

Cooper’s directorial film ‘Maestro’ showcases the romance between Leonard Bernstein (played by Cooper) and his wife Felicia Montealegre (played by Carey Mulligan).

Bradley Cooper shares the real reason for not allowing chairs on set

While Cooper doesn't allow chairs on his sets, he is not completely against sitting as he later joked in the interview about sitting on apple boxes, while stressing on the fact that they give a communal feeling. 

He explained in the interview, "So an apple box is a very nice way to sit, and everybody's together. There's no video village, I hate that."

Video village is the set up where crew members gather surrounding the director and view what is being shot. The actor-director, who is bears an antipathy towards it, added, "When I direct, I don't watch playback."

As Lee asked him, “So if me and you do a film, there’s no video village?” Cooper replied affirmingly, “When I ask you to come act in my movie, yeah.”

As Lee continued to clarify, “No, I’m asking when I’m the director and you’re an actor,” Cooper replied, “I’ll do whatever you say. I’m your actor,” per BuzzFeed.News.

Cooper not allowing chairs on set owing to decrease in productivity makes him join the ranks on Christopher Nolan who is also known for not allowing chairs on his sets. 

Anne Hathaway once shared in 2012 about Nolan, “He has these incredible movies in terms of scope and ambition and technical prowess and emotion,” before adding,  “It always arrives at the end under schedule and under budget. I think he's onto something with the chair thing."

However, Nolan's representative later disputed the comment and revealed in a statement to Indiewire, “For the record, the only things banned from [Nolan's] sets are cell phones (not always successfully) and smoking (very successfully).”

They further added, “The chairs Anne was referring to are the directors' chairs clustered around the video monitor, allocated on the basis of hierarchy not physical need. Chris chooses not to use his but has never banned chairs from the set. Cast and crew can sit wherever and whenever they need, and frequently do."

'You are simply not good at leading'

Nevertheless, the fans were not too happy about Bradley Cooper not allowing 'chairs' on set and taking care of the crew's comfort. Some even called  many users calling the comment 'ableist'.

One of the social media users fumed, saying, "For Bradley Cooper and everyone else who needs to to hear it, you get the best work out of folks when they feel safe, included, and their needs are met. If you have to create harsh conditions to get people to work, you are simply not good at leading. It's a skill issue."

Another user added, "It's infuriating that these "leaders" keep getting nominated for awards. we're not going to get an inclusive and ableist-free hollywood until these individuals face consequences."

Someone else clapped back at him saying, "He decides no one gets a chair because HIS energy dips when he sits down. Does he make the camera operator stand on the dolly?"

Another fan criticized the statement saying, "I can’t understand why he thought this was a good thing to say out loud. If YOU don’t like to sit down as the director, don’t have a chair. Everyone else who doesn’t need to be on their feet should have the choice."

"Yeah. Everything I read about Bradley Cooper gives me the vibe that he can't admit to himself that every problem he's "solving" in direction is solely about his own desperate insecurity and lack of confidence. Not the story, not the collective work," commented another user.

"Hey, that Bradley Cooper thing about not having chairs on set? It's hella ableist," said someone else.

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