Bradley Cooper on What Scared Him the Most About ‘Nightmare Alley’ Role

Bradley Cooper and Irina Shayk both appeared at the “Nightmare Alley” premiere in NYC Wednesday night! The exes, who split up two years ago and share daughter Lea, have been spotted together recently. Bradley and Irina, however, walked the red carpet separately.

Cooper spoke with “Extra’s” Cheslie Kryst about his new film, while Shayk told her she was, “grabbing popcorn.”

“Nightmare Alley” is based on the 1947 classic, and Bradley plays a carny who’s out for the ultimate con game with the help of a mysterious psychiatrist played by Cate Blanchett.

Cheslie said, “You've said this role was incredibly difficult and that it terrified you. What terrified you about it?”

Bradley explained, “Well, you're playing somebody who's a master manipulator and who's really lost. And in order to do that in a real way, I kind of had to embrace those aspects of myself. And it's scary to go to those places.”

He added, “It was probably the [most] terrified I've been of a role… I'm at an age where you try to do things that scare you… I think just the nature of the movie, the set, the rain, the snow. It was dark.”

Cheslie went on, “You also said you had to go to a really vulnerable place with this character, especially somebody who doesn't really know who they are. How do you relate to that?”

The actor answered, “I think that's a big part of humanity is sort of a life discovery of who one is and what we're made of. I think that's why I love art and telling stories. It's a real need to communicate with everybody and try to heal.”

The star-studded cast also includes Willem Dafoe and Rooney Mara. Cooper said, “We all worked really hard and everybody did this for the love of the game. It's nice when you feel you're in a community making something.”