WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.500 Welcome to the Deep Dive. We take the sources 00:00:02.500 --> 00:00:05.200 you send us, sift through them, and try to get 00:00:05.200 --> 00:00:07.519 to the heart of the story. Exactly. And today, 00:00:07.639 --> 00:00:09.519 we're looking at someone you definitely know, 00:00:09.619 --> 00:00:13.500 or think you know, Mila Kunis. Right. Instantly 00:00:13.500 --> 00:00:16.500 recognizable. You know, Jackie from that 70s 00:00:16.500 --> 00:00:19.120 show, Meg from Family Guy. She's been around 00:00:19.120 --> 00:00:23.160 seemingly forever on our screens. But the materials 00:00:23.160 --> 00:00:25.600 we looked through paint a much deeper picture. 00:00:25.719 --> 00:00:28.500 It's not just the sitcom star. It's a story about, 00:00:28.660 --> 00:00:31.739 well... Huge upheaval, immigration, cultural 00:00:31.739 --> 00:00:34.299 clashes, and a really deliberate, sometimes difficult, 00:00:34.399 --> 00:00:37.159 shift in her career and public image. So we're 00:00:37.159 --> 00:00:39.100 going beyond the surface. We're looking at Milena 00:00:39.100 --> 00:00:41.939 Markovna Kunis, the journey from refugee to, 00:00:42.060 --> 00:00:44.520 well, this major Hollywood player. That's the 00:00:44.520 --> 00:00:46.520 plan. Our mission today is to kind of unpack 00:00:46.520 --> 00:00:48.679 it all based on these sources. Her roots, that 00:00:48.679 --> 00:00:51.159 shock of moving, how she built that early TV 00:00:51.159 --> 00:00:54.820 career sometimes with a bit of strategic maneuvering. 00:00:54.820 --> 00:00:56.820 And then that big pivot, right, moving into film, 00:00:56.880 --> 00:00:58.719 the disappointments, the huge successes like... 00:00:58.640 --> 00:01:01.840 Black Swan and then becoming a producer, a philanthropist, 00:01:01.859 --> 00:01:04.700 a really complex figure. Absolutely. And if there's 00:01:04.700 --> 00:01:06.939 one core thing to keep in mind throughout this, 00:01:07.040 --> 00:01:10.359 it's her origin. Born Milena Markovna Kunis, 00:01:10.459 --> 00:01:13.840 August 14th, 1983, in Chernivtsi, Ukraine, which 00:01:13.840 --> 00:01:16.120 was then part of the Soviet Union. And she moved 00:01:16.120 --> 00:01:19.219 to Los Angeles when she was just seven. A move 00:01:19.219 --> 00:01:22.120 that, as the sources show, cost her family pretty 00:01:22.120 --> 00:01:24.340 much everything they had. And that really seems 00:01:24.340 --> 00:01:27.409 to fuel everything that comes later. OK, let's 00:01:27.409 --> 00:01:30.430 start there. Chernivtsi, Ukrainian SSR, born 00:01:30.430 --> 00:01:33.010 into a Jewish family. The sources suggest life 00:01:33.010 --> 00:01:35.909 was, you know, OK professionally, but restrictive. 00:01:36.049 --> 00:01:38.310 Definitely restrictive. Her family was educated. 00:01:38.569 --> 00:01:41.049 Her mom, Elvira, a physics teacher and pharmacist. 00:01:41.049 --> 00:01:44.329 Her dad, Mark, a mechanical engineer. These were 00:01:44.329 --> 00:01:46.689 good jobs. But they decided to leave in 1991. 00:01:47.030 --> 00:01:49.280 She was seven. And it wasn't just an economic 00:01:49.280 --> 00:01:51.280 decision, was it? It was about the future. Right. 00:01:51.420 --> 00:01:53.920 The sources are clear. They saw no future for 00:01:53.920 --> 00:01:56.180 their kids, Mila and her brother Michael, in 00:01:56.180 --> 00:01:58.760 the Soviet Union. And a big part of that calculation 00:01:58.760 --> 00:02:01.280 was anti -Semitism. That's explicitly mentioned 00:02:01.280 --> 00:02:03.480 as a reason for seeking religious refugee status 00:02:03.480 --> 00:02:06.760 to get to the U .S. It suggests a level of, well, 00:02:06.840 --> 00:02:09.500 fear or at least deep concern about discrimination. 00:02:10.219 --> 00:02:12.419 It must have been immense to make them give up 00:02:12.419 --> 00:02:15.199 everything, those amazing jobs, as the sources 00:02:15.199 --> 00:02:18.620 call them, and degrees that just weren't transferable 00:02:18.620 --> 00:02:21.479 in the US. Imagine being a respected engineer 00:02:21.479 --> 00:02:23.520 and suddenly you're driving a cab in LA, which 00:02:23.520 --> 00:02:26.069 is what her father did initially. That's a huge 00:02:26.069 --> 00:02:28.469 professional and personal blow. And then the 00:02:28.469 --> 00:02:31.270 money aspect. It's just staggering. They arrived 00:02:31.270 --> 00:02:35.750 with only $250. Wow. And, you know, that wasn't 00:02:35.750 --> 00:02:37.969 like their savings plan. That was the legal limit. 00:02:38.050 --> 00:02:40.110 All the Soviet government would let them take 00:02:40.110 --> 00:02:42.710 out. So they landed in L .A. with basically nothing. 00:02:44.000 --> 00:02:46.219 completely over. You can only imagine what that 00:02:46.219 --> 00:02:48.719 felt like for seven -year -old Milena, plucked 00:02:48.719 --> 00:02:51.080 from everything she knew, dropped into L .A. 00:02:51.099 --> 00:02:54.020 and, crucially, not speaking the language. No 00:02:54.020 --> 00:02:56.379 English at all. And her family language, her 00:02:56.379 --> 00:02:58.500 mother tongue, is Russian. That's important. 00:02:58.800 --> 00:03:00.659 The sources point out she actually doesn't speak 00:03:00.659 --> 00:03:03.439 Ukrainian. Oh, really? Why is that? Well, back 00:03:03.439 --> 00:03:05.379 then in her region, kids didn't start learning 00:03:05.379 --> 00:03:07.560 Ukrainian in school until the second grade. And 00:03:07.560 --> 00:03:09.620 that's exactly when she left. So she revived 00:03:09.620 --> 00:03:12.379 speaking Russian, facing this massive English 00:03:12.379 --> 00:03:15.900 barrier. And the impact was immediate. She was 00:03:15.900 --> 00:03:18.139 enrolled in elementary school, Rosewood Elementary, 00:03:18.419 --> 00:03:20.400 just two days after landing. She's talked about 00:03:20.400 --> 00:03:22.400 basically blocking out that whole year. Yeah, 00:03:22.419 --> 00:03:25.080 she said she cried every single day, didn't understand 00:03:25.080 --> 00:03:27.500 the culture, the language, anything. It was complete 00:03:27.500 --> 00:03:29.620 alienation. There's that quote from her college 00:03:29.620 --> 00:03:31.879 essay, isn't there? It really sums it up. It 00:03:31.879 --> 00:03:34.379 does. The first sentence was, imagine being blind 00:03:34.379 --> 00:03:37.439 and deaf at age seven. that captures the intensity 00:03:37.439 --> 00:03:40.080 of it right you can see and hear but you can't 00:03:40.080 --> 00:03:42.539 process or connect just overwhelming sensory 00:03:42.539 --> 00:03:45.879 input without meaning yet somehow she pushed 00:03:45.879 --> 00:03:49.319 through the education path shows that Hubert 00:03:49.319 --> 00:03:51.960 Howe Bancroft Middle School, then even a brief 00:03:51.960 --> 00:03:54.580 stint at Lace's Los Angeles Center for Enriched 00:03:54.580 --> 00:03:57.460 Studies, which is known for being pretty academically 00:03:57.460 --> 00:03:59.719 challenging. That drive is incredible. You see 00:03:59.719 --> 00:04:02.080 that immigrant determination, maybe feeling the 00:04:02.080 --> 00:04:04.759 weight of her parents' sacrifice, needing to 00:04:04.759 --> 00:04:07.300 make it work, to assimilate, to succeed. Although 00:04:07.300 --> 00:04:09.219 her acting career eventually took precedence, 00:04:09.219 --> 00:04:11.620 right? She transferred to Fairfax High School 00:04:11.620 --> 00:04:14.500 and relied mostly on an onset tutor to graduate 00:04:14.500 --> 00:04:18.600 in 2001. Yes. But she got it done. She's a naturalized 00:04:18.600 --> 00:04:21.720 U .S. citizen. And it all comes back to that 00:04:21.720 --> 00:04:24.579 initial journey, that identity. The sources even 00:04:24.579 --> 00:04:28.019 mention a genealogical DNA test. Oh, yeah. What 00:04:28.019 --> 00:04:31.230 did it show? It described her ethnicity as 96 00:04:31.230 --> 00:04:35.250 to 98 percent Ashkenazi Jewish, which, you know, 00:04:35.250 --> 00:04:37.430 connects directly back to why her family felt 00:04:37.430 --> 00:04:39.170 they had to leave the Soviet Union in the first 00:04:39.170 --> 00:04:42.430 place. It really grounds her later advocacy work. 00:04:42.589 --> 00:04:45.089 So that drive, that discipline we talked about, 00:04:45.230 --> 00:04:47.689 it seems like a channel directly into acting 00:04:47.689 --> 00:04:50.860 pretty quickly. But it wasn't initially the plan, 00:04:50.959 --> 00:04:52.740 was it? Not really. It sounds like it was almost 00:04:52.740 --> 00:04:55.319 an accident of assimilation. Her dad enrolled 00:04:55.319 --> 00:04:57.639 her in acting classes at Beverly Hills Studios 00:04:57.639 --> 00:05:00.120 when she was nine, maybe just to help her with 00:05:00.120 --> 00:05:02.879 English, build confidence. But she met her manager 00:05:02.879 --> 00:05:05.420 there, Susan Curtis. Yeah. And things took off 00:05:05.420 --> 00:05:07.459 almost immediately. It's kind of amazing, actually. 00:05:07.500 --> 00:05:09.480 The sources say she landed her first audition, 00:05:09.680 --> 00:05:13.480 a Barbie commercial. That's insane. Luck or talent 00:05:13.480 --> 00:05:15.519 or both. Right. And then another big one for 00:05:15.519 --> 00:05:18.269 kids back then, a Lisa Frank commercial. So bam, 00:05:18.470 --> 00:05:20.449 she's a working child actor almost straight away. 00:05:20.769 --> 00:05:24.709 Then came the TV spots in 94. Days of Our Lives, 00:05:24.829 --> 00:05:28.550 Baywatch. Building that resume. Little parts 00:05:28.550 --> 00:05:31.149 here and there. Some family movies like Santa 00:05:31.149 --> 00:05:33.290 with Muscles, Honey, We Shrunk Ourselves. And 00:05:33.290 --> 00:05:36.350 then a slightly more serious role in 1998 playing 00:05:36.350 --> 00:05:39.389 young Gia Karangi in an HBO movie, Gia. Opposite 00:05:39.389 --> 00:05:42.620 Angelina Jolie. That's a step up. She was, what, 00:05:42.639 --> 00:05:45.439 14 or 15 then? Yeah, just laying the groundwork. 00:05:45.519 --> 00:05:48.600 But the absolute game changer, the role that 00:05:48.600 --> 00:05:50.959 defined her early career, was just around the 00:05:50.959 --> 00:05:54.879 corner. That 70s show. Jackie Burkhardt. Iconic. 00:05:55.139 --> 00:05:56.740 But there was that whole issue with her age, 00:05:56.819 --> 00:05:58.420 right? They wanted someone older. They specifically 00:05:58.420 --> 00:06:01.560 wanted actors 18 or over. And Mila was 14 when 00:06:01.560 --> 00:06:04.779 she auditioned in 1998. So how did she swing 00:06:04.779 --> 00:06:06.220 it? This is where that hustle comes in again. 00:06:06.319 --> 00:06:08.680 Total hustle. According to the sources, she told 00:06:08.680 --> 00:06:11.000 the casting directors she would be 18. She just 00:06:11.000 --> 00:06:14.339 conveniently left out the win. That's brilliant. 00:06:14.639 --> 00:06:16.800 Strategic ambiguity, you called it. Exactly. 00:06:16.819 --> 00:06:18.980 It showed she was determined to get that shot. 00:06:19.120 --> 00:06:20.800 And apparently when the producers figured out 00:06:20.800 --> 00:06:22.699 she was only 14. They kept her anyway. Because 00:06:22.699 --> 00:06:25.680 she was just perfect for Jackie. She nailed that 00:06:25.680 --> 00:06:28.879 spoiled, funny, sharp -tongued character. The 00:06:28.879 --> 00:06:31.120 fate was just too good to pass up, even with 00:06:31.120 --> 00:06:33.930 the age thing. And that show was massive. Eight 00:06:33.930 --> 00:06:36.870 seasons. It cemented her place. She even won 00:06:36.870 --> 00:06:39.069 awards for it, right? Yep. Two Young Star Awards 00:06:39.069 --> 00:06:42.189 back to back in 99 and 2000. It was her foundation. 00:06:42.490 --> 00:06:45.389 Right around the same time, 1999, she picks up 00:06:45.389 --> 00:06:48.290 another huge long -running gig, voice acting, 00:06:48.470 --> 00:06:51.089 Meg Griffin on Family Guy. Yeah. She replaced 00:06:51.089 --> 00:06:53.970 Lacey Chabert. And it's fascinating why Seth 00:06:53.970 --> 00:06:56.009 MacFarlane chose her. What was his reasoning? 00:06:56.399 --> 00:06:59.040 He said her voice sounded very natural for a 00:06:59.040 --> 00:07:01.980 teenager. He felt adult actors often sounded 00:07:01.980 --> 00:07:04.939 forced trying to do teen voices. Kunis, being 00:07:04.939 --> 00:07:07.620 15 or 16 then, just sounded authentic. There 00:07:07.620 --> 00:07:09.180 was that specific direction he gave her too, 00:07:09.240 --> 00:07:11.120 wasn't there, during the audition process. Right. 00:07:11.199 --> 00:07:13.399 He reportedly told her to come back, but this 00:07:13.399 --> 00:07:15.779 time speak slower and enunciate more clearly. 00:07:16.019 --> 00:07:18.480 Which makes sense for animation, I guess. Timing. 00:07:18.759 --> 00:07:20.819 Clarity for jokes? Exactly. It's a technical 00:07:20.819 --> 00:07:23.139 skill. And clearly she mastered it. She's been 00:07:23.139 --> 00:07:25.800 Meg ever since and even got an Annie Award nomination 00:07:25.800 --> 00:07:28.199 for it. It's funny. The contrast between Jackie 00:07:28.199 --> 00:07:30.439 and Meg couldn't be bigger. One's the queen bee, 00:07:30.579 --> 00:07:33.420 the other's, well, the punching bag. Totally. 00:07:33.660 --> 00:07:35.959 Jackie is all confidence and dominance. Meg's 00:07:35.959 --> 00:07:38.339 the scapegoat, as Kunis herself described her. 00:07:38.420 --> 00:07:40.920 It shows even early on she had this range within 00:07:40.920 --> 00:07:42.860 comedy. She could play completely different types. 00:07:43.240 --> 00:07:46.680 Okay, so she's got these two huge... TV successes 00:07:46.680 --> 00:07:49.680 running concurrently. The logical next step is 00:07:49.680 --> 00:07:52.339 film, right? But the sources make it clear that 00:07:52.339 --> 00:07:55.360 transition was rocky. Yeah, the early 2000s looked 00:07:55.360 --> 00:07:57.860 tough. Trying to break out of that Jackie Burkhart 00:07:57.860 --> 00:08:00.240 box seems like it was really hard. Her first 00:08:00.240 --> 00:08:02.660 few attempts didn't really land. Get Over It 00:08:02.660 --> 00:08:06.040 in 2001 was just another teen comedy. But then 00:08:06.040 --> 00:08:09.560 came American Psycho 2 in 2002. Oh boy. Straight 00:08:09.560 --> 00:08:12.139 to DVD sequel territory. That's usually not a 00:08:12.139 --> 00:08:13.779 great sign. And this one was apparently particularly 00:08:13.779 --> 00:08:17.160 bad. The reviews were terrible. And crucially, 00:08:17.199 --> 00:08:19.500 the sources mentioned Kunis herself later expressed 00:08:19.500 --> 00:08:22.019 real embarrassment about doing it. That's got 00:08:22.019 --> 00:08:24.319 to sting. You're trying to build a serious film 00:08:24.319 --> 00:08:26.699 career and you end up in this poorly received 00:08:26.699 --> 00:08:29.620 sequel that people kind of mock. Exactly. It 00:08:29.620 --> 00:08:32.440 reinforces that TV actress label in a negative 00:08:32.440 --> 00:08:35.360 way. And a couple other films around that time, 00:08:35.379 --> 00:08:37.399 like Tony and Tina's Wedding and Moving McAllister, 00:08:37.440 --> 00:08:40.399 also didn't do well critically or commercially. 00:08:40.460 --> 00:08:42.720 They just sort of disappeared. So it felt like 00:08:42.720 --> 00:08:45.559 she was maybe stuck for a bit there. For a few 00:08:45.559 --> 00:08:48.860 years, yeah. But then comes 2008. And this seems 00:08:48.860 --> 00:08:51.039 like the real turning point, the start of that 00:08:51.039 --> 00:08:53.500 strategic pivot we talked about. Forgetting Sarah 00:08:53.500 --> 00:08:57.259 Marshall. Ah, yes. The Judd Apatow effect. She 00:08:57.259 --> 00:09:00.039 auditioned for Knocked Up First, right? Didn't 00:09:00.039 --> 00:09:02.240 get it. Didn't get it, but clearly made an impression. 00:09:02.700 --> 00:09:05.539 They cast her as Rachel Jansen in Sarah Marshall. 00:09:05.700 --> 00:09:08.220 And this was different. It involved improvisation. 00:09:08.340 --> 00:09:10.559 Which is a different muscle than scripted sitcom 00:09:10.559 --> 00:09:13.279 work. Totally. And the film was a hit. made over 00:09:13.279 --> 00:09:16.139 $100 million. But more importantly, the reviews 00:09:16.139 --> 00:09:18.340 for her started to change. What were critics 00:09:18.340 --> 00:09:21.460 saying? Things like fresh beauty and focused 00:09:21.460 --> 00:09:24.480 energy, praising her comic timing. People were 00:09:24.480 --> 00:09:26.559 finally seeing her potential on the big screen. 00:09:26.860 --> 00:09:29.480 She herself credited Apatow's team for helping 00:09:29.480 --> 00:09:32.580 her break out. And then she immediately swerves 00:09:32.580 --> 00:09:34.779 in a completely different direction. Yeah. Action 00:09:34.779 --> 00:09:38.279 movie, Max Payne. Also in 2008. Yeah, playing 00:09:38.279 --> 00:09:40.720 the assassin Mona Sax from the video game. Yeah. 00:09:40.820 --> 00:09:43.720 And she really committed physically, training 00:09:43.720 --> 00:09:47.620 in guns, boxing, martial arts, showing that discipline 00:09:47.620 --> 00:09:50.139 again. How did that one go over? Financially, 00:09:50.220 --> 00:09:53.000 pretty well. Made about $85 million, critically. 00:09:53.460 --> 00:09:56.740 Mixed. Some reviewers felt she was miscast, still 00:09:56.740 --> 00:09:58.759 maybe struggling to see her outside of comedy. 00:09:59.039 --> 00:10:00.879 But the industry must have been noticing her 00:10:00.879 --> 00:10:03.519 range or her willingness to try different things. 00:10:03.659 --> 00:10:05.929 Seems like it. Because director Mike - Mike Judge 00:10:05.929 --> 00:10:08.909 cast her in Extract in 2009. He specifically 00:10:08.909 --> 00:10:10.710 said he liked her because she could make the 00:10:10.710 --> 00:10:13.129 character feel credible, real. And then 2010 00:10:13.129 --> 00:10:14.929 felt like a real consolidation year for her. 00:10:14.970 --> 00:10:18.120 Two significant films. Huge year. First, The 00:10:18.120 --> 00:10:21.019 Book of Eli, opposite Denzel Washington, big 00:10:21.019 --> 00:10:23.700 post -apocalyptic action film, made a ton of 00:10:23.700 --> 00:10:26.600 money, over $157 million. And the reviews for 00:10:26.600 --> 00:10:28.980 her performance. Really strong. Richard Roper 00:10:28.980 --> 00:10:31.120 called it a particularly strong piece of work. 00:10:31.440 --> 00:10:33.259 Critics were noting that she was actively choosing 00:10:33.259 --> 00:10:35.639 roles to challenge that earlier image and proving 00:10:35.639 --> 00:10:37.679 she could handle them. She also had a smaller 00:10:37.679 --> 00:10:39.700 part in Date Night that year, didn't she? Yeah, 00:10:39.759 --> 00:10:41.639 a supporting role, but apparently memorable. 00:10:42.039 --> 00:10:44.419 One critic said she gave the film a shot in the 00:10:44.419 --> 00:10:47.480 arm. So momentum was building. All leading up 00:10:47.480 --> 00:10:49.720 to the big one, the critical peak, Black Swan, 00:10:49.960 --> 00:10:53.279 also 2010. This was it, the film that completely 00:10:53.279 --> 00:10:56.820 redefined her image, directed by Darren Aronofsky. 00:10:56.980 --> 00:10:59.399 How did she get cast? Was it Aronofsky seeking 00:10:59.399 --> 00:11:02.240 her out? He apparently saw her in Forgetting 00:11:02.240 --> 00:11:04.059 Sarah Marshall, which is kind of amazing, going 00:11:04.059 --> 00:11:06.940 from that broad comedy to this intense psychological 00:11:06.940 --> 00:11:10.000 thriller. And Natalie Portman, who was already 00:11:10.000 --> 00:11:12.320 starring, recommended her. And the preparation 00:11:12.320 --> 00:11:15.179 for this? Yeah. It's legendary. It sounds absolutely 00:11:15.179 --> 00:11:17.659 grueling. Oh, it was brutal. The sources detail 00:11:17.659 --> 00:11:20.659 it vividly. A super strict diet, only 1 ,200 00:11:20.659 --> 00:11:23.240 calories a day. She lost 20 pounds. Which she 00:11:23.240 --> 00:11:24.960 said she gained right back afterward. Immediately. 00:11:24.980 --> 00:11:27.860 And then the physical training. Four hours of 00:11:27.860 --> 00:11:30.600 ballet practice, seven days a week. Non -stop. 00:11:30.740 --> 00:11:33.240 That level of commitment is insane. Did she get 00:11:33.240 --> 00:11:35.740 hurt? Yeah, she suffered injuries, a torn ligament, 00:11:35.879 --> 00:11:38.360 a dislocated shoulder. This wasn't just learning 00:11:38.360 --> 00:11:41.820 a few steps. It was pushing her body to the absolute 00:11:41.820 --> 00:11:44.179 limit. And you could see that effort on screen. 00:11:44.419 --> 00:11:47.940 The transformation was incredible. And the world 00:11:47.940 --> 00:11:50.980 noticed. The film was a massive critical success. 00:11:51.500 --> 00:11:55.600 Five Oscar nominations. And Kunis herself started 00:11:55.600 --> 00:11:58.620 racking up awards. What did she win? She won 00:11:58.620 --> 00:12:00.820 the Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best Young 00:12:00.820 --> 00:12:03.299 Actor at the Venice Film Festival, a huge honor, 00:12:03.480 --> 00:12:06.840 and the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress. 00:12:07.039 --> 00:12:09.580 Plus, she got nominated for the Golden Globe. 00:12:10.000 --> 00:12:12.879 and the Screen Actors Guild Award. So Black Swan 00:12:12.879 --> 00:12:15.179 basically proved she wasn't just a comedy actress. 00:12:15.259 --> 00:12:17.960 She was a serious dramatic force. Completely. 00:12:18.059 --> 00:12:20.960 It gave her that critical validation, that industry 00:12:20.960 --> 00:12:22.779 respect she'd been working towards for years. 00:12:22.899 --> 00:12:25.159 It changed everything. And what's interesting 00:12:25.159 --> 00:12:27.440 is what she did next. She didn't just stay in 00:12:27.440 --> 00:12:30.200 serious drama land. Nope. She pivoted again back 00:12:30.200 --> 00:12:32.779 to comedy. But now with this newfound credibility. 00:12:33.340 --> 00:12:35.600 In 2011, she starred with Justin Timberlake in 00:12:35.600 --> 00:12:37.259 Friends with Benefits. Which is a pretty big 00:12:37.259 --> 00:12:39.740 hit, right? Rom -com success. Huge hit. Made 00:12:39.740 --> 00:12:43.299 almost $150 million worldwide. And critics loved 00:12:43.299 --> 00:12:45.879 her in it. One called her a gift that keeps giving 00:12:45.879 --> 00:12:48.059 to mainstream romantic comedy. It showed she 00:12:48.059 --> 00:12:50.840 could do both and do them well. And then came 00:12:50.840 --> 00:12:54.840 the absolute monster hit, Ted, in 2012. Reuniting 00:12:54.840 --> 00:12:56.980 with Seth MacFarlane, this movie just exploded. 00:12:57.639 --> 00:12:59.620 Grossed over half a billion dollars worldwide, 00:13:00.080 --> 00:13:04.200 $549 million. Still her biggest commercial success. 00:13:04.600 --> 00:13:08.480 Wow. So that period, roughly 2010 to 2012, Black 00:13:08.480 --> 00:13:11.100 Swan giving her the critical cred, then Friends 00:13:11.100 --> 00:13:13.639 with Benefits, and Ted giving her massive box 00:13:13.639 --> 00:13:16.220 office clout. That's the pivot fully realized. 00:13:16.460 --> 00:13:18.639 Perfectly executed. She proved she could handle 00:13:18.639 --> 00:13:21.399 drama, comedy, action, and that she was a genuine 00:13:21.399 --> 00:13:23.740 movie star who could open a film. So her professional 00:13:23.740 --> 00:13:26.759 career is hitting this incredible peak. But alongside 00:13:26.759 --> 00:13:29.759 that, her public persona is also becoming much 00:13:29.759 --> 00:13:31.539 more prominent, much more complex. Definitely. 00:13:31.559 --> 00:13:33.440 The media certainly noticed her. She was getting 00:13:33.440 --> 00:13:35.879 those big sexiest woman type accolades around 00:13:35.879 --> 00:13:38.820 then. Esquire in 2012, GQ the year before, number 00:13:38.820 --> 00:13:42.120 one on FHM's list in 2013. But she seemed kind 00:13:42.120 --> 00:13:43.960 of dismissive of that, didn't she? The sources 00:13:43.960 --> 00:13:45.879 mentioned a quote where she basically says, looks 00:13:45.879 --> 00:13:47.659 fade, you need something more substantial for 00:13:47.659 --> 00:13:49.580 a career. Yeah, it's that interesting paradox, 00:13:49.759 --> 00:13:52.340 acknowledging the reality of how Hollywood values 00:13:52.340 --> 00:13:55.200 looks, maybe even leveraging it, but also publicly 00:13:55.200 --> 00:13:58.080 stating it's not what defines her or her career 00:13:58.080 --> 00:14:00.240 longevity. And she definitely leveraged that 00:14:00.240 --> 00:14:02.919 visibility for big endorsements. Oh, yeah. She 00:14:02.919 --> 00:14:05.679 was the face of Dior's fashion campaign in 2012, 00:14:06.019 --> 00:14:08.980 became a global ambassador for Jem Fields, the 00:14:08.980 --> 00:14:11.940 jewelry company, in 2013, even visited their 00:14:11.940 --> 00:14:15.679 mine in Zambia. And then that big Jim Beam bourbon 00:14:15.679 --> 00:14:18.419 campaign starting in 2014. That visibility translates 00:14:18.419 --> 00:14:22.120 to influence and money. Forbes had her on their 00:14:22.120 --> 00:14:24.580 powerful celebrities list in 2013, right? Yep. 00:14:24.620 --> 00:14:27.059 Ranked high for marketability, earning an estimated 00:14:27.059 --> 00:14:30.399 $11 million that year alone. She was a major 00:14:30.399 --> 00:14:32.440 commercial force. Okay, before we get into the 00:14:32.440 --> 00:14:34.100 heavier stuff, let's quickly cover the personal 00:14:34.100 --> 00:14:35.940 life milestones mentioned in the sources. Sure. 00:14:36.000 --> 00:14:37.799 She had that long relationship with Macaulay 00:14:37.799 --> 00:14:41.159 Culkin from 2002 to 2011, apparently an amicable 00:14:41.159 --> 00:14:43.740 split. And then she started dating her old That 00:14:43.740 --> 00:14:47.350 70s Show co -star Ashton Kutcher in 2012. Right. 00:14:47.470 --> 00:14:51.090 They got married in 2015, have two kids, a daughter 00:14:51.090 --> 00:14:54.809 born in 2014 and a son in 2016. And they live 00:14:54.809 --> 00:14:57.350 in that much talked about sustainable farmhouse 00:14:57.350 --> 00:15:00.049 in Beverly Hills. There were also some interesting 00:15:00.049 --> 00:15:02.429 health details revealed. Something about her 00:15:02.429 --> 00:15:05.049 eyesight. Yeah, she spoke about having chronic 00:15:05.049 --> 00:15:07.029 iritis, which is an inflammation of the iris. 00:15:07.049 --> 00:15:08.990 It actually caused temporary blindness in one 00:15:08.990 --> 00:15:11.049 eye at one point, but she had surgery to correct 00:15:11.049 --> 00:15:13.610 it. And she has that distinctive eye color difference, 00:15:13.889 --> 00:15:16.889 doesn't she? Heterochromia iridum. One brown 00:15:16.889 --> 00:15:19.230 eye, one green eye. It's quite striking. OK, 00:15:19.309 --> 00:15:22.690 so shifting back to her public actions. Beyond 00:15:22.690 --> 00:15:25.149 the endorsements, there's a clear pattern of 00:15:25.149 --> 00:15:27.669 using her platform for other things. Absolutely. 00:15:27.690 --> 00:15:29.970 Like attending the Marine Corps Ball in 2011 00:15:29.970 --> 00:15:32.649 after Sikonit Scott Moore invited her via YouTube 00:15:32.649 --> 00:15:34.649 while serving in Afghanistan. That got a lot 00:15:34.649 --> 00:15:36.549 of positive attention. And more recently, that 00:15:36.549 --> 00:15:38.450 charity wine initiative during the pandemic. 00:15:38.919 --> 00:15:41.700 Yeah. Quarantine Wine in 2020 and then Outside 00:15:41.700 --> 00:15:45.059 Wine in 2021 co -developed with Kutcher. They 00:15:45.059 --> 00:15:46.879 raised money for COVID relief and organizations 00:15:46.879 --> 00:15:49.919 like THORN, which combats child sexual exploitation 00:15:49.919 --> 00:15:52.360 online. That shows a consistent philanthropic 00:15:52.360 --> 00:15:54.419 focus. And then there's her political engagement, 00:15:54.559 --> 00:15:56.679 which the sources indicate is pretty direct. 00:15:57.049 --> 00:15:58.789 She's a clear supporter of the Democratic Party. 00:15:58.889 --> 00:16:02.230 Very clear. There is a quote from 2012 where 00:16:02.230 --> 00:16:04.269 she criticized the Republican Party, specifically 00:16:04.269 --> 00:16:07.490 saying she felt they were attacking women and 00:16:07.490 --> 00:16:09.909 focusing too much on religion. She wasn't shy 00:16:09.909 --> 00:16:12.269 about her views. Which leads us to that Planned 00:16:12.269 --> 00:16:14.809 Parenthood donation controversy in 2017. That 00:16:14.809 --> 00:16:18.639 was... Unusual. Highly unusual and very deliberate. 00:16:18.779 --> 00:16:21.240 She publicly revealed she was making monthly 00:16:21.240 --> 00:16:23.519 donations to Planned Parenthood in the name of 00:16:23.519 --> 00:16:26.320 then Vice President Mike Pence. Who was, of course, 00:16:26.320 --> 00:16:29.080 known for his strong anti -abortion stance. So 00:16:29.080 --> 00:16:31.620 this was intended as a direct protest. Exactly. 00:16:31.620 --> 00:16:34.379 And it blew up. Supporters of Planned Parenthood 00:16:34.379 --> 00:16:37.080 cheered it, but it caused immediate and intense 00:16:37.080 --> 00:16:39.440 backlash from anti -abortion groups. And that 00:16:39.440 --> 00:16:41.799 led to the hashtag Boca Jim Beam campaign, right? 00:16:42.259 --> 00:16:44.600 Directly targeting her sponsors. Yes. It was 00:16:44.600 --> 00:16:48.059 a very clear example of how taking a specific, 00:16:48.299 --> 00:16:51.100 provocative political stance can have immediate 00:16:51.100 --> 00:16:53.740 real world consequences for your commercial endorsements. 00:16:53.860 --> 00:16:56.700 It put Jim Beam in a difficult position. Then 00:16:56.700 --> 00:17:00.500 fast forward to 2022. Russia invades Ukraine. 00:17:00.980 --> 00:17:03.440 This must have hit incredibly close to home for 00:17:03.440 --> 00:17:06.559 her, given her origins. Deeply personal. And 00:17:06.559 --> 00:17:09.180 her response was massive and very public. The 00:17:09.180 --> 00:17:11.950 GoFundMe campaign with Kutcher. That raised an 00:17:11.950 --> 00:17:13.809 incredible amount, didn't it? They set a goal 00:17:13.809 --> 00:17:16.809 of $30 million for refugee aid, matched $3 million 00:17:16.809 --> 00:17:19.309 themselves, and ended up exceeding the goal. 00:17:19.410 --> 00:17:21.849 It was a huge effort. And she spoke very powerfully 00:17:21.849 --> 00:17:24.250 about it. Saying she was so proud to be from 00:17:24.250 --> 00:17:26.960 Ukraine. really connecting her current platform 00:17:26.960 --> 00:17:29.420 back to her roots as a refugee from Chernivtsi. 00:17:29.519 --> 00:17:31.859 That whole effort, her visibility on the issue, 00:17:32.000 --> 00:17:34.119 it led to Time magazine naming her one of their 00:17:34.119 --> 00:17:36.900 100 most influential people in the world in 2022. 00:17:37.299 --> 00:17:39.900 It recognized that global impact. She's also 00:17:39.900 --> 00:17:42.140 been active against anti -Semitism, which again 00:17:42.140 --> 00:17:44.059 ties back to her family's reasons for leaving 00:17:44.059 --> 00:17:45.920 the Soviet Union. Right. The sources mention 00:17:45.920 --> 00:17:47.980 her signing letters supporting a Tel Aviv film 00:17:47.980 --> 00:17:50.319 festival against boycott attempts and calling 00:17:50.319 --> 00:17:53.099 for Amazon to remove an anti -Semitic film. Consistent 00:17:53.099 --> 00:17:55.619 advocacy there. OK, now we need to address the 00:17:55.619 --> 00:17:58.759 most recent and arguably most difficult public 00:17:58.759 --> 00:18:02.099 issue mentioned in the sources. The Danny Masterson 00:18:02.099 --> 00:18:05.539 situation. Yeah, this is complex. In 2023, after 00:18:05.539 --> 00:18:08.680 her former That 70s Show co -star Danny Masterson 00:18:08.680 --> 00:18:11.299 was convicted on two counts of rape, it came 00:18:11.299 --> 00:18:13.599 out that both she and Kutcher had written character 00:18:13.599 --> 00:18:16.059 support letters to the judge before his sentencing. 00:18:16.509 --> 00:18:18.089 And these weren't public statements, right? They 00:18:18.089 --> 00:18:20.769 were intended for the judge only? Correct. Private 00:18:20.769 --> 00:18:23.269 correspondents reportedly describing Masterson 00:18:23.269 --> 00:18:25.910 in positive terms, mentioning things like decency 00:18:25.910 --> 00:18:28.730 and generosity, part of the sentencing consideration 00:18:28.730 --> 00:18:31.430 process. But when the letters became public knowledge, 00:18:31.670 --> 00:18:35.490 the reaction was intense. Huge backlash. The 00:18:35.490 --> 00:18:37.509 core issue for many critics was the perceived 00:18:37.509 --> 00:18:40.609 hypocrisy. Here are two people heavily involved 00:18:40.609 --> 00:18:43.200 with Thorne. A charity fighting child sexual 00:18:43.200 --> 00:18:45.779 exploitation. Writing letters of support for 00:18:45.779 --> 00:18:48.670 a convicted rapist. Even if intended privately, 00:18:48.970 --> 00:18:52.150 the public conflict was stark. Exactly. It seemed 00:18:52.150 --> 00:18:54.470 irreconcilable to many. How could they advocate 00:18:54.470 --> 00:18:56.950 for victims of sexual abuse while seemingly vouching 00:18:56.950 --> 00:18:59.589 for someone convicted of such crimes? The fallout 00:18:59.589 --> 00:19:01.750 was immediate. They had to respond. They released 00:19:01.750 --> 00:19:04.670 a video apology fairly quickly. They explained 00:19:04.670 --> 00:19:06.849 the letters were meant just for the judge as 00:19:06.849 --> 00:19:09.109 character references and weren't intended to 00:19:09.109 --> 00:19:12.069 question the verdict or hurt the victims. How 00:19:12.069 --> 00:19:14.690 was the apology received? According to the sources, 00:19:14.869 --> 00:19:17.660 not well by everyone. It was widely criticized 00:19:17.660 --> 00:19:20.220 in media reports as feeling performative and 00:19:20.220 --> 00:19:23.000 insincere. It didn't seem to quell the controversy. 00:19:23.380 --> 00:19:25.980 It really highlights that tightrope walk for 00:19:25.980 --> 00:19:28.319 public figures, doesn't it? Private loyalties 00:19:28.319 --> 00:19:31.160 versus public expectations and the image tied 00:19:31.160 --> 00:19:34.119 to their advocacy work. It's incredibly difficult 00:19:34.119 --> 00:19:37.500 terrain to navigate, especially now. The sources 00:19:37.500 --> 00:19:40.440 really underscore how blurred the lines are and 00:19:40.440 --> 00:19:43.200 how quickly public opinion can turn based on 00:19:43.200 --> 00:19:46.519 perceived inconsistencies. OK, so despite that 00:19:46.519 --> 00:19:49.400 very public controversy and the ongoing scrutiny, 00:19:49.619 --> 00:19:52.640 her career on screen and behind the scenes continues 00:19:52.640 --> 00:19:55.180 moving forward. Yes, she's remained very active. 00:19:55.259 --> 00:19:57.200 Looking back a bit, commercially, she had that 00:19:57.200 --> 00:19:59.299 huge success with the Bad Moms movies. Right. 00:19:59.359 --> 00:20:02.390 2016 and the Christmas sequel in 2017. did really 00:20:02.390 --> 00:20:04.789 well, didn't they? Hugely well. The first Bad 00:20:04.789 --> 00:20:09.690 Moms made something like $184 million on a $20 00:20:09.690 --> 00:20:12.650 million budget, a massive return. And critics 00:20:12.650 --> 00:20:14.750 praised her comedy chops in them, her correct 00:20:14.750 --> 00:20:17.170 comedic timing. It showed she still had that 00:20:17.170 --> 00:20:19.630 reliable commercial comedy pull. But she also 00:20:19.630 --> 00:20:22.970 kept pursuing challenging dramatic roles. The 00:20:22.970 --> 00:20:25.930 sources single out four good days from 2020. 00:20:26.599 --> 00:20:29.140 Yeah, playing opposite Glenn Close as a woman 00:20:29.140 --> 00:20:32.339 battling severe opioid addiction, it was a really 00:20:32.339 --> 00:20:35.380 gritty, demanding role. And her performance was 00:20:35.380 --> 00:20:38.089 acclaimed. Highly acclaimed. Critics called it 00:20:38.089 --> 00:20:41.269 a revelation, maybe her finest work. It proved 00:20:41.269 --> 00:20:43.630 Black Swan wasn't a fluke. She could consistently 00:20:43.630 --> 00:20:45.829 deliver that level of dramatic intensity. And 00:20:45.829 --> 00:20:47.990 a really key development around this time, or 00:20:47.990 --> 00:20:50.549 slightly earlier, was her move into producing, 00:20:50.630 --> 00:20:53.369 wasn't it? Huge step. She launched her own production 00:20:53.369 --> 00:20:56.170 company, Orchard Farm Productions, back in 2014. 00:20:56.609 --> 00:20:58.569 What does having your own company like that allow 00:20:58.569 --> 00:21:00.670 you to do? It gives you control. Instead of just 00:21:00.670 --> 00:21:02.890 waiting for roles, you can develop your own projects, 00:21:03.130 --> 00:21:05.430 shape the narrative, choose the stories you want 00:21:05.430 --> 00:21:07.450 to tell. tell, it's about taking power within 00:21:07.450 --> 00:21:09.849 the industry. And she got a deal with a major 00:21:09.849 --> 00:21:12.509 studio right away. Yeah. First look deal with 00:21:12.509 --> 00:21:15.730 ABC Studios for television projects. That means 00:21:15.730 --> 00:21:18.869 ABC got the first crack at anything Orchard Farm 00:21:18.869 --> 00:21:21.750 developed. It's a significant foothold. And we 00:21:21.750 --> 00:21:24.309 saw that producer role combined with her acting 00:21:24.309 --> 00:21:26.890 in that Netflix film, Luckiest Girl Alive in 00:21:26.890 --> 00:21:31.049 2022. Exactly. She starred and produced playing 00:21:31.049 --> 00:21:33.680 a woman dealing with past trauma. And again, 00:21:33.839 --> 00:21:37.119 her performance got rave reviews. What were critics 00:21:37.119 --> 00:21:40.039 saying about that one? Collider called it a career 00:21:40.039 --> 00:21:42.819 best performance, hypnotic. It really showed 00:21:42.819 --> 00:21:45.279 the power of that combination, finding material 00:21:45.279 --> 00:21:47.799 through her production company that plays to 00:21:47.799 --> 00:21:50.099 her strengths as an actress. She's controlling 00:21:50.099 --> 00:21:53.009 the quality and depth of her roles now. So what's 00:21:53.009 --> 00:21:55.210 next? The sources mention a few upcoming things. 00:21:55.390 --> 00:21:58.009 She's keeping busy. She recently co -starred 00:21:58.009 --> 00:22:00.049 with Michael Keaton in a film called Goodrich, 00:22:00.210 --> 00:22:02.710 which apparently got good reviews when it premiered. 00:22:02.730 --> 00:22:05.029 And she's producing and starring in another film. 00:22:05.190 --> 00:22:08.309 A romance called The 47 Night Stand for Skydance. 00:22:08.450 --> 00:22:10.970 Still developing her own projects through Orchard 00:22:10.970 --> 00:22:13.150 Farm. And then there's the big franchise news. 00:22:13.569 --> 00:22:16.109 Ah, yeah, the Knives Out sequel. She's officially 00:22:16.109 --> 00:22:18.230 joined the cast for the next Rian Johnson mystery, 00:22:18.490 --> 00:22:21.539 Wake Up Deadman. That's a huge ensemble. joining 00:22:21.539 --> 00:22:24.019 a really hot franchise. It absolutely is. It 00:22:24.019 --> 00:22:27.099 shows she's still very much in demand, seen as 00:22:27.099 --> 00:22:29.680 a versatile, bankable star who can fit into these 00:22:29.680 --> 00:22:32.319 major Hollywood productions. It's a long, long 00:22:32.319 --> 00:22:35.319 way from worrying about straight -to -DVD sequels. 00:22:35.680 --> 00:22:38.380 Hashtag tag outro. So when you synthesize everything 00:22:38.380 --> 00:22:41.019 from these sources, what's the core takeaway 00:22:41.019 --> 00:22:43.259 about Mila Kunis? It's not just a simple Hollywood 00:22:43.259 --> 00:22:46.009 story, is it? Not at all. It's a story fundamentally 00:22:46.009 --> 00:22:49.190 about adaptation, about pivoting, driven by that 00:22:49.190 --> 00:22:51.910 initial profound experience of immigration and 00:22:51.910 --> 00:22:54.009 displacement. You see that thread running through 00:22:54.009 --> 00:22:56.250 everything, the hustle to get the 70s show roll 00:22:56.250 --> 00:22:58.930 by bending the truth about her age. The discipline 00:22:58.930 --> 00:23:01.170 to endure those early film struggles and then 00:23:01.170 --> 00:23:03.849 commit so intensely to roles like Black Swan 00:23:03.849 --> 00:23:06.609 or Four Good Days to reshape her image. And that 00:23:06.609 --> 00:23:08.809 same drive seems present in her public life, 00:23:08.869 --> 00:23:11.619 too. Using her platform for causes she believes 00:23:11.619 --> 00:23:14.079 in, whether it's Ukraine aid, Planned Parenthood 00:23:14.079 --> 00:23:16.940 or fighting anti -Semitism. It seems very connected 00:23:16.940 --> 00:23:19.720 to her own identity in history. Absolutely. She's 00:23:19.720 --> 00:23:22.259 clearly someone who uses her influence intentionally, 00:23:22.380 --> 00:23:25.059 even when it courts controversy like the Jim 00:23:25.059 --> 00:23:27.859 Beam boycott or more recently, the intense scrutiny 00:23:27.859 --> 00:23:30.079 over the Masterson letters. She seems to operate 00:23:30.079 --> 00:23:32.420 in that space where the personal, the professional 00:23:32.420 --> 00:23:35.619 and the political constantly intersect. and often 00:23:35.619 --> 00:23:38.680 clash under a very bright public spotlight. And 00:23:38.680 --> 00:23:40.980 she's experienced both the power and the peril 00:23:40.980 --> 00:23:43.920 of that position, the ability to raise millions 00:23:43.920 --> 00:23:47.299 for a cause, but also the vulnerability to significant 00:23:47.299 --> 00:23:50.200 public backlash when private actions conflict 00:23:50.200 --> 00:23:52.940 with public persona. Which brings us to our final 00:23:52.940 --> 00:23:55.059 thought, something for you, the listener, to 00:23:55.059 --> 00:23:57.980 chew on. We've seen how Kunis' life has been 00:23:57.980 --> 00:24:00.359 shaped by navigating identity, assimilation, 00:24:00.480 --> 00:24:02.440 and public perception from a very young age. 00:24:02.829 --> 00:24:04.869 So the question becomes, how does someone in 00:24:04.869 --> 00:24:07.170 that position manage the inevitable tension between 00:24:07.170 --> 00:24:09.690 personal loyalties like loyalty to a longtime 00:24:09.690 --> 00:24:12.490 friend and colleague and the immense moral expectations 00:24:12.490 --> 00:24:14.990 placed on them as a public figure, especially 00:24:14.990 --> 00:24:18.170 one deeply involved in advocacy work? Where do 00:24:18.170 --> 00:24:21.750 we, as the audience, draw the line when the person, 00:24:21.910 --> 00:24:24.730 the performer and their public stance seem to 00:24:24.730 --> 00:24:27.950 collide? Is there room for nuance or does the 00:24:27.950 --> 00:24:31.519 platform demand absolute consistency? That challenge, 00:24:31.700 --> 00:24:33.740 navigating the gap between private relationships 00:24:33.740 --> 00:24:35.839 and public responsibility in this incredibly 00:24:35.839 --> 00:24:38.740 scrutinized era, might just be the biggest, most 00:24:38.740 --> 00:24:41.200 complex pivot Malikounis has yet to fully navigate. 00:24:41.480 --> 00:24:43.319 Definitely something to think about. That's all 00:24:43.319 --> 00:24:44.980 the time we have for this deep dive. Thanks for 00:24:44.980 --> 00:24:46.099 joining us. We'll see you next time.