Naomi Watts Says She'd Want Saoirse Ronan to Play Her in a Biopic: 'She's Fantastic'

Mar. 15, 2025

Photo: Dominique Charriau/Getty, Samir Hussein/WireImage

Attention Hollywood casting directors,Naomi Wattshas a request!

When hitting the red carpet atThe Watcherpremiere on Wednesday night, the star of the Netflixtrue-crime seriesrevealed to PEOPLE the actress she’d want to play her in a future biopic.

“Oh gosh, I don’t know,” responded Watts, who was at first taken aback when asked, before immediately bursting out her answer. “Saoirse Ronan!” Watts, 54, said.

Although uncertain of her response at first, Watts was confident in choosing the 28-year-old talent. “Because she’s fantastic in everything she does,” Watts said of her decision.

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While Ronan is the clear frontrunner for the fantasied film, Watt’s does have one request of any actress should they be cast. They have to be “a young one, obviously,” she said with a laugh.

Despite being an acclaimed actress who’s racked up several Oscar nominations and a number of awards — including best actress in a comedy at the2018 Golden Globesfor her role inGreta Gerwig’sLady Bird— Ronan has never been cast in a biopic, unlike Watts in 2013.

Watts starred as British iconPrincess Dianain Oliver Hirschbiegel’s biopicDiana, a film described as a compelling portrait of the Princess of Wales during the last two years of her life. Fast forward nine years later and Watts is stepping into the shoes of another rolebased on a true story.

“Part of the reason why I wanted to do this was because I felt like this story could be anybody’s story,” Watts told PEOPLE. “We all love to think that we can get our dream home, and then finally you get it and then it’s not going the way you want it to go. So, I identified with this family and this couple.”

She was able to relate to Nora on a motherly level, especially asa mom of two. “You’re always freaked out about the safety of your children,” the actress admitted. But unlike roles she’s played in the past, she “didn’t need to” reach out to the real-life person to further get into character.

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“It’s different every time you play someone that is a real person. You sometimes want to [reach out] or you just research it on the Internet,” she said of the character-development process — especially regarding “how they speak, how they talk and how they behave.”

Watts added: “But we didn’t know that much about this family, despite how powerful the story was. So creative license has been taking us.”

The Watcheris now available to stream on Netflix.

source: people.com