‘Carol’ Featurette Centers on the ‘Shape Shifting’ Cate Blanchett (Exclusive Video)

Carol follows two women (Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara) in 1950s New York who develop an unexpected relationship and fall for each other, but pressures from society and their friends and family threaten to break them apart.

In an exclusive featurette debuting here at The Hollywood Reporter, director Todd Haynes explains Blanchett’s ability to perform and transform herself into different mediums when filming.

“I worked with Cate in my Bob Dylan-inspired film I’m Not There and she famously transformed into the electric Dylan in a shape shifting performance that still astounds me,” he says. “So, I was so excited to work with Cate again and to see how she could pull it off as a woman this time.”

Carol (Blanchett) is a married, well-off woman who has a child. But after she meets Mara’s character, she risks her stable life to explore a relationship with her.

Mara, who has already won the best actress award at the Cannes Film Festival where Carol first debuted, plays a younger woman who works at a department store when she first meets Carol.

“Rooney is just an impeccable talent. I feel she understands the medium of film and for somebody this age to know how to calibrate the scale of articulation for this intimate medium, I think it speaks to extraordinary intelligence and innate ability,” states Haynes.

The featurette also introduces several of the actors playing supporting roles, including Sarah Paulson and Kyle Chandler.

The Weinstein Co.’s Carol, which was recently named best picture by New York Film Critics Circle, began hitting theaters in the U.S. on Nov. 20. Watch the clip above for an exclusive look.