Scenes From A Marriage Changed Jessica Chastain And Oscar Isaac's Friendship Forever

The Juilliard School is responsible for shaping some of the greatest acting, musical, and dance talents of all time — and for helping to cultivate lifelong friendships. Such is the case for Jessica Chastain and Oscar Isaac, who met while enrolled in Juilliard's acting school, long before either was famous. Chastain, who graduated from the program in 2003, and Isaac, who graduated two years later in 2005, are still friends today. But their multi-decade relationship has been tested by the projects they've chosen to collaborate on.

In 2021, Chastain and Isaac starred opposite each other in "Scenes From a Marriage," a five-episode limited series that aired on HBO in the fall of 2021. Created by Hagai Levi, the dramatic miniseries follows a couple (played by Isaac and Chastain) as their marriage crumbles. A remake of the 1973 Swedish miniseries directed by Ingmar Bergman, this contemporary English language update uses its two leads as a lens through which to examine love, hatred, monogamy, temptation, and all the other factors that test a committed relationship.

Fans might remember that during the series' press tour, Chastain and Isaac went viral for engaging in flirty behavior on the red carpet. But behind the scenes, Chastain says filming the show fundamentally changed the reality of their friendship.

The production team behind "Scenes of a Marriage" spent four months filming the series, which covers the breakdown of the 10-year marriage between tech executive Mira (Jessica Chastain) and philosophy professor Jonathan (Oscar Isaac). The series sports a small cast, and Chastain and Isaac handle the majority of the emotional heavy lifting. According to the former, the work took its toll on their friendship. In an August 2023 interview with Vanity Fair, she says shooting the show "was very tough. And I love Oscar [Isaac], but the reality is, our friendship has never quite been the same."

Chastain added that the relationship between the two would be okay, but after filming wrapped, she needed a break from her co-star to recover from the emotionally charged shoot. Back in 2021, Chastain explained her process of working with Isaac to "Today," saying that because of their longtime friendship, "we can almost read each other's minds, but it also means we could hurt each other really strongly ... In the scenes, we would know how to get to the other one."

Seven years before Jessica Chastain and Oscar Isaac appeared in "Scenes From a Marriage," the two friends starred opposite each other in the crime drama "A Most Violent Year." Released in 2014 and written and directed by J.C. Chandor, the film is set in the corrupt, violent world of New York City in the 1980s. Isaac stars as fuel business owner Abel Morales, a man trying to maintain his code of ethics while growing his operation, and Chastain portrays Abel's calculating wife, Anna.

The film was well-received by critics — it currently holds a Rotten Tomatoes score of 90% — and in an interview with EW's "Awardist" podcast, Chastain shared that a sequel is in the works. She says she met with Chandor, and he "pitched me this whole idea, and I think it's amazing, so I'm waiting. I'm just waiting to get a script."

Chastain didn't specify whether Isaac would join her for the "A Most Violent Year" sequel. But despite the strain "Scenes From a Marriage" put on their friendship, it seems inevitable that these two talented actors will continue collaborating long into the future.