Jamie Dornan has come to the defense of Gal Gadot’s “Imagine” video, which resulted in mixed reactions from fans.
In March, Gadot assembled a group of high-profile celebrities—Natalie Portman, Will Ferrell, Amy Adams, and more—to sing portions of John Lennon’s song for a video that she then spliced together, presumably as an attempt to mitigate people's anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some saw it as out of touch, while others appreciated the positive gesture.
Speaking on the Tea with Me podcast, hosted by comedian Shane Todd, Dornan explained that Kristen Wiig asked him to participate in the video. The two are co-stars in the forthcoming film Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, which is due this summer.
Dornan explained that because he’s “the biggest fan of her,” he “would do anything for her.” So when Wiig texted him to explain the video’s concept, which she said was meant to “life spirits,” he said, “‘‘Of course I’ll do it’. Then she texted days later saying, ‘Sorry.’”
He contended that Gadot was “trying to do a good thing,” adding, “I just got dragged along with it.” However, Dornan isn’t active on social media, so he didn’t know about the video’s blowback until he was “made aware by mates.”
For his part, the actor purposely filmed his clip in the bathroom at home. “I’ll tell you what the problem was. I literally did mine in the toilet of my house. Quite clearly, some people had escaped to their second home.” He continued, “There’s too much acreage in the background, too many beautiful trees swaying in the background, clearly in front of an ocean, that sort of craic. I was quite aware of that whenever I was doing it, to make it normal.”
“We are in this together, we will get through it together. Let’s imagine together. Sing with us,” Gadot said at the end of the video. “All love to you, from me and my dear friends.”
Other celebrities involved were Sia, Sarah Silverman, Mark Ruffalo, Jimmy Fallon, James Marsden, Zoë Kravitz, Norah Jones, Maya Rudolph, and Leslie Odom Jr., among others. Many fans were upset that celebrities sang the song from the comfort of their extravagant homes at a time when peoples’ lives are in such upheaval.
