Berenice Bejo Of 'The Artist' Is 'Very Happy' For Her Winning Costar, Jean Dujardin

by UInterviewFebruary 27, 2012, 12:00 amNews >

The female star of the Oscar-winning The Artist, Berenice Bejo, 35, may have lost out to Octavia Spencer, 42, for Best Supporting Actress last night but, to hear her tell it, she's been more excited for costar Jean Dujardin and director / husband Michel Hazanavicius throughout the entire awards season, anyway.

Even back when Bejo, Dujardin, and Hazanavicius were all nominated for Golden Globes, Bejo gushed about her pride in being honored with such a talented team. "I was very happy and proud for Michel and Jean and very surprised," she said in an exclusive with Uinterview. "I was not expecting it for me," she added, "so I was really, you know, I felt part of the group."

There was a brief time behind the scenes when the Argentine-French actress, who also played Christiana in 2001's A Knight's Tale with Heath Ledger, didn't feel so relaxed being directed by her husband of five years, with whom she has two children. "You just put more pressure on yourself the first few days," she said. "Then Michel came to me and he said, 'OK, you know you deserve this part, you're good enough to be here, you don't have to prove anything to anybody, just relax and just trust me and trust yourself.'"

The direction tactic from Hazanavicius worked. "After three or four days I actually let it go and just focused on the work," Bejo said. It paid off too. The project earned Bejo both Oscar and Golden Globe nominations, and last night Hazanavicius and Dujardin walked away with the Oscars for Best Actor and Best Director, respectively. The Artist also won Best Picture of the year.

Read Uinterview's exclusive with Bejo here.