The director of a movie Jennifer Lawrence admitted to not understanding, despite the fact she was sleeping with him at the time, has spoken about what the film was really about in a new interview.

In hindsight, Lawrence’s honesty about not being ready is a sobering reminder of how young she was when thrust into the highest levels of Hollywood. By the time she filmed Mother!, she was barely in her mid-20s, already navigating pressures that few could imagine. The combination of physical strain, emotional manipulation, and blurred personal boundaries created a perfect storm that left her reeling. “I wasn’t ready,” she admitted — a heartbreaking acknowledgment from someone who had already achieved so much yet felt unprepared for the storm she was caught in.

The public response to her revelations has been a mixture of shock and empathy. Fans have praised Lawrence for speaking out, noting how rare it is for A-list stars to openly discuss toxic professional and romantic entanglements, especially when those involve powerful men in the industry. Her courage in labeling her experience “unhealthy” resonates at a time when Hollywood has been forced to confront its darker realities.

Despite the pain, Lawrence has emerged stronger. In the years since Mother!, she has stepped back from the limelight, prioritized her personal life, and returned with a renewed sense of purpose. Her marriage to Cooke Maroney and the birth of her child mark a new chapter that stands in stark contrast to the chaos of her relationship with Aronofsky. And professionally, she continues to thrive, with new projects that remind the world why she is one of the most talented actresses of her generation.

Lawrence has been very frank in the past about the fact that she had a relationship with legendary filmmaker Darren Aronofksy whilst they filmed a movie together. Aronofsky spoke about the previous film while discussing the newest entry to his filmography Caught Stealing, starring Austin Butler, Zoe Kravitz, Matt Smith, and Bad Bunny.

Arguably his most controversial movie though stars Lawrence, who was very open for a celebrity about the fact that she was in a relationship with the director at the time and still did not understand it.

Called Mother!, the movie is a psychological horror so intense that Jennifer Lawrence suffered a torn diaphragm and dislocated rib from hyperventilation brought on by filming.

The film stars Lawrence alongside Javier Bardem, Michelle Pfeiffer, Ed Harris, and Kristen Wiig.

It starred Lawrence as ‘mother’ alongside Bardem as ‘Him’, a couple whose tranquil life is turned upside down when unexpected guests barge into their home.

Full of symbolism and metaphor, many viewers came out of Mother! confued about what it was about, and Lawrence was actually one of them.

Speaking about the movie in the past with Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live, she was asked on a scale of ‘one to totally confused’ whether she understood the movie

She responded, saying: “I’m going to be honest. Well, I was sleeping with the director, so I had CliffsNotes. So… five? Or a four.

“But if anybody needs any tips on understanding their films, you know what to do!”

Lawrence and Aronofsky dated for a year, breaking up in 2017, and Lawrence has spoken in the past about how it was ‘hard to relax’ because Mother! was the only thing he wanted to talk about.

Jennifer Lawrence and Aronofsky dated for a year (Cindy Ord via Getty Images)

Whilst many have remained confused about what Mother! is supposed to be about, Aronofsky has spoken about it in a new interview which gives vital context useful to understand it.

Aronofsky was speaking to Josh Horowitz on Happy Sad Confused ahead of the release of Caught Stealing, with Horowitz pointing out that the director had been ‘a bit of a provocateur’ throughout his career.

The film itself mirrored her turmoil. Mother! is a nightmarish allegory, filled with chaotic symbolism that many audiences and critics struggled to interpret. Lawrence’s character is subjected to emotional torment, invasion of her home, and ultimately destruction — a role that required her to tap into the deepest reserves of anguish. For her, the physical and emotional demands of the part bled into real life. She has spoken about dislocating a rib and tearing her diaphragm from hyperventilating during the intense filming. Yet the true damage was far more psychological.

“It was manipulative, unhealthy,” she later confessed. Aronofsky reportedly obsessed over the film’s critical reception, even reading out negative reviews to Lawrence, leaving her feeling overwhelmed and crushed. What was supposed to be a collaboration quickly became, in her words, “not healthy.” Instead of feeling supported, she found herself absorbing the pressure, criticism, and artistic obsession of a director she was also romantically entangled with.

Lawrence’s willingness to call the situation manipulative is a striking act of vulnerability. She has always been celebrated for her down-to-earth personality and relatability, but this revelation adds a new dimension to her public persona. It shows a young woman at the height of her fame struggling to maintain control while caught in an unhealthy relationship dynamic. Fame, talent, and even an Oscar couldn’t protect her from being swept into a situation where her personal well-being was compromised.

The director stated this had not been ‘on purpose’ except for on one occasion.

When asked about Mother! he said: “Mother! was a total provocation, I mean I was running and howling with my two middle fingers up into the fire because I was just totally pissed off with what was going on right then.”

Darren Aronofsky spoke about Mother! in a new interview (Happy Sad Confused/YouTube)

He went on to say it was ‘fine’ that it was often misunderstood, saying it could have been sold better or ‘more gradually’ in the marketing.

The movie bombed at the box office, making just $44.5 million from a $30 million production budget.

Speaking in the past about the meaning behind it, Aronofsky had stated that Lawrence’s character was intended to represent the Mother Earth and the way the world treats ‘her’.

The movie was booed at Venice, leading the director to say in an interview with NME: “I don’t care if they cheer or they freaking boo, as long as they react.

“This film is like tossing a hand grenade into pop culture. We’re taking the biggest movie stars on the planet and seeing what they do in a surreal chamber piece.”

Jennifer Lawrence is no stranger to headlines, but her latest revelation has sent shockwaves through Hollywood. The Oscar-winning actress, known for her candor and fearless honesty, has peeled back the curtain on one of the darkest, most complicated chapters of her life. In her own words, she admitted: “I was sleeping with the director… I didn’t even understand what was happening. It was manipulative, unhealthy — I wasn’t ready.”

The confession refers to her work on Mother!, the controversial 2017 psychological horror film directed by Darren Aronofsky. The two were romantically involved during the filming, and while Lawrence delivered one of the most intense and physically demanding performances of her career, she has since revealed the emotional toll it took on her, both personally and professionally. What was sold to the world as a daring collaboration between one of Hollywood’s boldest directors and its brightest star was, behind the scenes, a nightmare Lawrence has only now begun to unpack.

From the outside, their relationship seemed like an artistic match made in heaven. Aronofsky was hailed as one of the most visionary directors of his generation, and Lawrence, fresh off The Hunger Games and an Academy Award win, was already cemented as a bankable star. But according to Lawrence, what unfolded during the production of Mother! was far from a dream partnership. Instead, it became a toxic dynamic that blurred personal and professional boundaries in ways she was unprepared to handle.

Lawrence has admitted that she never truly understood the film itself. In a now infamous interview, she quipped that she needed “CliffsNotes” from Aronofsky just to make sense of the script. But what sounded like a lighthearted joke revealed something darker beneath the surface: she was in a project so abstract and so demanding that she had no footing, and the only person she could rely on was also the one pulling the strings. “I didn’t even understand what was happening,” she admitted — a chilling acknowledgment that she was caught in something she couldn’t fully grasp.

The irony is that Mother! was supposed to be a triumph — a daring, artistic gamble that would cement Lawrence as a fearless performer willing to take risks. Instead, it became a lightning rod for controversy. The movie divided critics and audiences, with some praising its ambition while others dismissed it as pretentious. For Lawrence, however, the stakes were far more personal. The poor reception not only damaged the film’s legacy but also exposed the cracks in her relationship with Aronofsky, leading to their eventual breakup.

Still, her haunting words linger: “I was sleeping with the director… I didn’t even understand what was happening. It was manipulative, unhealthy — I wasn’t ready.” They serve as a reminder that behind the Hollywood gloss lies a reality far messier and more painful than fans often imagine. Even icons can be vulnerable, and even the brightest careers can be shadowed by darkness.

Jennifer Lawrence’s confession doesn’t just expose a shocking secret — it sheds light on the unseen cost of fame, the dangers of power imbalances, and the toll of pushing oneself to the brink in the name of art. Her resilience in sharing her story transforms what was once a private nightmare into a cautionary tale, one that fans and industry insiders alike will not forget.