Lady Gaga recently revealed the drastic step she took to maintain mental wellness while making "House of Gucci."
In a new interview with Variety, Gaga spoke about the effects of staying in her character, Patrizia Reggiani, throughout shooting the Ridley Scott movie, which included speaking in an Italian accent non-stop for nine months.
The singer-actress said that process had its downfall because, as she put it, "I brought the darkness with me home because [Reggiani's] life was dark."
It led to her seeking out a mental health professional before the movie wrapped production.
"I had a psychiatric nurse with me towards the end of filming," she told the trade. "I sort of felt like I had to. I felt that it was safer for me."
Gaga clarified that she wasn't saying this to "glorify" her commitment to acting.
"I don't think that any actor should push themselves to that limit," she said. "And I ask myself all the time why I do that."
Gaga admitted she was the same way for her Oscar-nominated performance in "A Star Is Born" in which she starred opposite Bradley Cooper.
"I was always Ally," she said, referring to her character in the 2018 movie.
"I've done some pretty extreme art pieces throughout my career — the things I've put my body through, my mind. It's like a walnut of sadness in my stomach as I say this to you," she continued. "I don't know why I'm like that."
"I think that the best answer I could give you is I have a sort of romantic relationship with suffering for your art that I developed as a young girl, and it just sometimes goes too far," Gaga explained. "And when it does go too far, it can be hard to reel it in on your own."
Gaga's dedication could lead to another Oscar nomination. Her performance recently scored her a Golden Globes nomination.
Gaga told Variety that she'll "do anything for art," but that would change if she became a mother.
"I probably will completely change this when I have a child, but I don't have a child yet," she said. "I want to be available and present for my children in a way that I think when you are acting in that way, it could be problematic for a child to be around."
"House of Gucci," which is currently playing in theaters, is based on the 2001 book "The House of Gucci: A Sensational Story of Murder, Madness, Glamour, and Greed." In the book, author Sara Gay Forden recounts how Gaga's Reggiani plotted the murder of her then-ex-husband, heir of the Gucci empire, Maurizio Gucci (played by Adam Driver). Reggiani would go on to spend 18 years in jail after being convicted of the crime.
The movie also stars Al Pacino, Jeremy Irons, and Salma Hayek.
