Jessica Chastain feared Tammy Faye Bakker make-up would 'permanently damage' her skin
Jessica Chastain was concerned the heavy make-up for her role as Tammy Faye Bakker in new film The Eyes of Tammy Faye would ruin her skin.
In an interview for the Los Angeles Times, the star described the difficulty she had while transforming into the infamous televangelist, who was known for her excessive use of cosmetics.
In deciding to take on the role, Chastain also took on hours in the make-up chair, with the longest session exceeding seven and a half hours.
"I started to have hot flashes because it's so heavy and hot. I was afraid. It was like going on a long-distance flight every day. Because if it takes seven and a half hours to put on, it's going to take at least two hours to get off," she shared. "That's the most prosthetics I've worn. Even the bronzer and the foundation are so much darker, the lashes are thicker. The make-up gets heavier as she gets older."
When asked about how she was able to keep her skin from breaking out after taking the make-up off every day, Chastain joked, "I think for sure I've done some permanent damage to my skin on this. Listen, I eat very pure and I take very good care of my skin and I stay out of the sun and all that stuff. But it's heavy. And when you're wearing it all day every day - the weight of it on your body, it stretches your skin out. I finally took it off and I was like, 'I look 50 years old!' No, I'm kidding. But it's fine. It's for my art."
Bakker, who died in 2007 from a long battle with cancer, co-founded the televangelist programming The PLT club with her husband Jim in 1974. Chastain was inspired to remake the 2000 documentary on the controversial figure, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, after stumbling up on it during the Zero Dark Thirty press tour.
"The very first test I did was difficult, honestly... I was like, 'I don't know how to act like this.' People think it's easier, but it's not. You have to reach through the make-up - you can't let the make-up be the performance," the 44-year-old explained. "She was so emotional, and I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to get emotional with all this stuff all over me."
