Dakota Johnson Is Getting Ready to Shoot Directorial Feature Debut

“Madame Web” star Dakota Johnson, in town at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival where she is set to receive the event’s prestigious President’s Award, is close to locking in final details for her directorial feature debut.

Speaking with Variety from the Czech spa town, the actor says her debut is a project “very close to her heart.” The film is one she is working on alongside “Cha Cha Real Smooth” co-star Vanessa Burghardt, who she calls “an incredible autistic actress.” 

“I’ve always felt that I’m not ready to direct a feature,” she continues. “I don’t have the confidence but, with her, I feel very protective and I know her very well. I can see this world, so I just won’t let anybody else do it. That’s the real answer.”

On top of receiving the award, the “50 Shades of Grey” alum is at the spa town with two films: Celine Song’s three-hander romance “Materialists,” in which she stars alongside Chris Evans and Pedro Pascal, and Michael Angelo Covino’s Cannes-sensation “Splitsville,” which she also produced under her TeaTime Pictures banner.

Johnson plays a matchmaker in Song’s sophomore effort and, when asked about the matchmaking qualities required of a producer, the actor says she “cares a lot about how people get along on a set and how people collaborate.” “If there’s not a healthy collaboration, if it’s not a good match, then it’s not a good match. And we really don’t move forward if it’s not a good match,” she emphasizes. “I can’t waste time on toxic sets anymore, or in situations that are not fun or fulfilling or healthy. That’s one of the perks of [producing], because I get to put amazing people together and make something.” 

Speaking about what she considers a toxic set to be, the actor says that she doesn’t want to face “anybody who’s mean or condescending or unkind.”

“I don’t want to face people who are not willing to…