Florence Pugh Talks Ex Zach Braff Writing Film Role for Her: 'He Knows Who I Am' (Exclusive)

Florence Pugh has no problem being her ex, Zach Braff's, muse. The 27-year-old actress is starring in Braff's new film, A Good Person, in the lead role of Allison, which he specifically wrote for her.

Pugh spoke with ET's Rachel Smith about the making of the film, calling it "such a special time." Braff wrote the film as he was grieving the loss of several important people in his life, including his friend, Nick Cordero, who died of COVID-19 in 2020. 

The story, which follows Pugh's Allison as she works to overcome an opioid addiction in the wake of a tragic accident, handles a dark storyline with brevity.

"We were living in that time where it was immense darkness and yet through the light of seeing our friends and laughing with our friends made it possible, and I think that's what Zach does so well is he's so good at writing people going through hard times but with that they constantly find levity and constantly find light," Pugh shared. 

As for taking on a role specifically written for her, Pugh felt that slipping into the character had a different kind of ease. 

"Him writing for me, it's a luxury. I've had it in the past where people have written something with me in mind to play that character but I've never had someone write in the way that I speak and the way that he knows that I can push myself," she said of Braff. "He knows my body of work. He knows who I am. He knows my sense of humor. He wrote it truly with me on every page and, obviously, with Allison on every page, and I came and breathed life into her. It made the whole process -- it wasn't an easy character -- but it made it so much easier stepping in. I cut so many corners. I had already done the work of many months of chatting to him about it."

Pugh also shared the funny story of how she ended up getting a producing credit on her ex's film. 

"When we were kinda of creating it in the beginning, we were chatting about it and talking about it and I was coming up with ideas and and we'd be just discussing it I remember one day turning to Zach and being like, 'You know, I think I’m a producer,' and he goes, 'Ummm... uhhh,' and I go, 'No, I think I’m a producer. I think I’ve been making some really big decisions, and I think I’ve been calling some of my friends to be in the in the film. I think I’m a producer.'"

ET also spoke with Braff ahead of the film's premiere about his decision to write the role for Pugh.

"I'm just in awe of her talent and I said, 'I wanna write this for Florence. What I'm writing is really gonna be challenging and she's incredible,'" he recalled. "She's a next-level actress. I mean, she's just unbelievable and what I was writing was gonna be really challenging. It wasn't for your average actors -- I couldn't have written the part for myself. I wanted to write something for her."

The exes split sometime in 2022 after first being seen together in 2019.

A Good Person will be released in select theaters on March 24 and wide on March 31. 

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