How Diane Kruger’s ‘355’ Co-Stars Helped Her Overcome ‘Separation Anxiety’ After Welcoming First Child

Jessica Chastain, Penelope Cruz, Diane Kruger, Lupita Nyong’o, and Fan Bingbing are the sexy, butt-kicking international girl squad in “The 355.”

“Extra’s” Special Correspondent Jenny Taft spoke with Diane about her role and her role at home as a mom to her 3-year-old daughter with Norman Reedus.

Kruger noted that it was her first film since giving birth. She shared, “It felt like a very warm and welcoming set, a set where I felt like I was heard and seen, I was invited to collaborate… Those girls are also great actresses, so it also felt like we were playing off of each other.”

Diane said she leaned on the women in the cast and asked questions as a first-time mom. She revealed, “My daughter was 6 months. I was just worried, is she going to forget about me?… I had extreme separation anxiety.”

She continued, “It’s exhausting… You work all week when you make a film… Then on weekends, when most people relax and recharge the batteries, you have to be mom. It’s a full-time double job.”

She added, “It was… empowering to see Jessica has kids, Penelope has kids, how they manage to do it all and where they put the priorities and where they also say no.”

There was even a trailer for the kids on set! Diane commented, “Jessica always made sure wherever we were, there was a trailer for all the kids to play… To be able to have lunch with your kid every day was very special.”

Jessica was also fighting to make sure the women received equal pay. Diane emphasized, “She makes sure we all get treated equally… She being a producer on this really made sure we all got paid the same… All the things I am assuming she liked to have on a film were available to everyone else, and that’s pretty great.”

“The 355” focuses on an international group of female spies on a mission to prevent a terrorist group from destroying the world. Diane quipped, “I have played a spy… I love a spy movie.”

Kruger had to train physically for fight scenes with Jessica. She said, “Well, I mean, [Jessica]’s a pretty fierce fighter. So I think we kicked each other’s butt… and that was a very comical day because they pad you up with tons of padding everywhere just in case you hit each other and die. So that was a very funny day.”