Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan were in New York City Monday night for two screenings of their film, Maestro.

After a screening and Q&A session at the Museum of Modern Arts, they went to the Whitby Hotel for another screening and Q&A session.

In one of the Q&As, Cooper reflected on what it was like playing two roles in the film.

“People often say it’s so hard to act and direct but I think it almost feels like cheating with how easy it is because you’re on the field, it’s like the quarterback being able to call the plays himself,” Cooper said. “It was about spending time with each person and downloading them on what I wanted cinematically and then inviting them in to inhabit that space.”

The upcoming film is a biopic of Jewish composer Leonard Bernstein and will focus on his marriage with Costa Rican actress Felicia Montealegre. Cooper plays Bernstein, while Mulligan plays Montealegre.

Mulligan shared that she felt that Montealegre “was the coolest” and “wanted to be her.”

“When I stopped getting to play her, I felt really mournful. I felt like I was in a really good theater run, and I didn’t want it to stop,” she said.

Others featured in the film include Matt Bomer, Maya Hawke and Sarah Silverman.

Maestro will be released on November 22 in select theaters and is scheduled to begin streaming on Netflix on December 20.

In August, Cooper was criticized for using a prosthetic nose, fueling arguments over Jewish representation.

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