As Oscar Contender ‘Sentimental Value’ Picks up Steam, Its Director Asks “What Is Hollywood?”

As Oscar Contender ‘Sentimental Value’ Picks up Steam, Its Director Asks “What Is Hollywood?” By  Tamera Jones  &  Steven Weintraub Published 44 minutes ago Sign in to your Collider account Summary Generate a summary of this story follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap

Summary

• Collider's Steve Weintraub talks with Joachim Trier for Sentimental Value.
• The writer-director discusses making his films with complete creative control and highlighting and utilizing the beauty of Norway.
• He also shares a fun story from the Telluride Film Festival, where Alexander Skarsgård saw the film for the very first time.

After the wild success of 2021’s Worst Person in the World and already a nearly-perfect critical response to Sentimental Value, Academy Award-nominated writer-director Joachim Trier discusses the merits and the meaning of making a “Hollywood movie” with Collider’s Steve Weintraub. Having built his career on tackling challenging emotions and the exploration of how we, as humans, navigate them, is a massive budget in exchange for creative freedom a deal worth making as the cinematic tides shift?

To that, the director poses a question of his own. "What is Hollywood?" He continues, "It's not what it used to be. It's something different." Now, with so many blockbusters and franchises and canceled series after canceled series at our fingertips, audiences are expanding their viewing horizons. Without disparaging superhero movies or fun, popcorn action movies, it seems there's a growing demand for story-driven, character-driven dramas, and Trier is proud to keep highlighting Norway.

“[Hollywood's] still making amazing films, not to diminish the quality of work, but I'm making films in a part of the world where it seems like suddenly people are interested in what used to be called ‘foreign language,’ or now ‘international movies.’ I'm able to work with wonderful actors. Elle Fanning came to Norway for this. We did a bit of it in English, a bit of it in Norwegian. It felt very free, and I didn't speculate. It was just like a personal story I could tell at home. So, my question is, why would I go somewhere else? Unless there was a specific story I could tell, and then that would come into play. But I'm pretty happy making the films I am, so far.”

Two People in a Park

"I guess that's the cliché."

DO NOT USEImage via Mubi

His latest drama, Sentimental Value, starring Renate Reinsve, Stellan Skarsgård, Elle Fanning, and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, explores the tense relationship between a celebrated director (Skarsgård) and his two daughters, Nora (Reinsve) and Agnes (Ibsdotter Lilleaas). Old grievances are dredged back up when filmmaker Gustav Borg offers his daughter a part in his new film, and, without reading the script, Nora refuses.

In this conversation, Trier talks about condensing his original three-hour cut of the film, sacrificing character moments for the story, his trademark sequences that highlight the beauty of Oslo ("two people walk into a park"), and how he’s going to decide what to do next. You can check out the full interview in the video above, with time stamps below.

• 00:10 - Showing Alexander Skarsgård How It’s Done
• 01:50 - Celebrating at Cannes
• 02:27 - “What Is Hollywood?”
• 04:18 - Making Sacrifices in the Edit
• 06:12 - Two People in a Park
• 07:06 - Ideas for the Future

7 10

Sentimental Value

Like Follow Followed Drama Comedy Release Date November 7, 2025 Runtime 132 Minutes Director Joachim Trier Writers Eskil Vogt, Joachim Trier Producers Nathanaël Karmitz, Maria Ekerhovd, Elisha Karmitz, Andrea Berentsen Ottmar

Cast

See All

• Renate Reinsve Nora
• Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas Agnes

Genres Drama, Comedy Powered by Expand Collapse

• Interviews
• Movie
• Sentimental Value

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