Naomi Watts Jokes She Was Cast in ‘The Friend’ Because of Her Connection With Bill Murray

Naomi Watts and Bill Murray teamed up for their latest film, ‘The Friend’, which recently premiered at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival. Watts, 55, humorously shared with PEOPLE that she was cast partly because of her connection to Murray.

"They mentioned Bill's name, and I initially thought, 'Oh, they called me because they want to get to Bill,'" Watts says. "Since people know about our working relationship and friendship, I figured that was the reason."

However, she had an "aha moment" and decided to pursue the role. "I reached out to him, though I wasn’t sure if he’d respond. Sometimes people like that change their numbers often," she adds.

Image Courtesy: People

Watts and Murray first collaborated on the 2014 film ‘St. Vincent’ and have maintained a close friendship since. "It means a lot to me. We have a special bond," Watts says of Murray agreeing to join her in this new drama, which is based on Sigrid Nunez's 2018 novel.

She also appreciates that ‘The Friend’ focuses on friendship, a theme she feels is often overlooked in movies that typically centre on romance or family dynamics. "Friendship is incredibly powerful and becomes more meaningful as you age. It makes sense for us to explore that in this film," Watts explains.

Image Courtesy: People

In ‘The Friend’, Watts plays Iris, who takes on the responsibility of her late friend Walter's (Murray) belongings and his dog after his unexpected death.

The film also features Sarah Pidgeon, Carla Gugino, Constance Wu, Nova Dumezweni, Ann Dowd, Felix Solis, Owen Teague, and Bing the Great Dane. ‘The Friend’ made its world premiere at the 2024 Telluride Film Festival.

–Farheen Ali