Uma Thurman has long been an action icon, from her sword-wielding feats in “Kill Bill” to her fierce roles in modern thrillers. At the “Pretty Lethal” premiere at the 2026 SXSW Film & TV Festival on March 13 in Austin, Texas, the 55-year-old actress gushed and opened up about the incredible stunts performed by her young stars.
While her role as sinister hotelier Devorah Casimer required less physical strength, Thurman was impressed by the ballet-trained stars who staged their daring scenes. The action thriller mixes dance, survival horror and empowering hyper-violence, proving Thurman’s enduring interest in gritty, female-led stories.
‘Pretty Lethal’ premiere buzz at SXSW
“Pretty Lethal” follows a talented ballet troupe, including Maddie Ziegler, Lana Condor, Avantika, Millicent Simmonds, and Iris Apatow, whose bus breaks down on their way to a competition, thrusting them into the deadly chaos of Thurman’s eerie roadside motel.
“My role wasn’t as heavy as the other actresses in the movie, so it wasn’t difficult for me in that way,” Thurman told People magazine. She praised their “amazing” efforts, adding: “They did all their dancing and stunts, and were working with the stunt team to create this amazing action sequence.
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Uma thurman star dedication to work
The commitment of the cast impressed Thurman, who drew on her “Kill Bill” training from previous projects like 2025’s “The Old Guard 2.”
In a previous interview with The Times, she recalled, “Thank God for that, because I signed up very late for this project, so I didn’t have time to do proper training. Fortunately, I spent hundreds of hours learning how to hold a sword.” Her Pretty Lethal co-stars echoed the inspiration: “Kill Bill was a huge inspiration to us,” Ziegler, 23, told People at SXSW.
Her fight scenes, just being a badass woman, we looked to for inspiration.
when [director] Vicky [Jewson] “He told me that Uma wanted to do it and I responded, I was out of control.”
Director Vicki Oeson Phelan and his praise of Uma Thurman
Jewison expressed his admiration for Thurman’s villainy, saying: “Uma is clearly an icon, and she can play a villain like no one else can.” She has a wicked sense of humor and brings empathy to the character allowing you to stay with the character when the most ridiculous things happen. “I don’t think anyone but someone with Uma’s talent could do it,” she told People.“This is an incredible combination of ballet and a fight for survival,” Thurman told Screen Rant of the script’s appeal. “And then when I met Vicki on Zoom, I kind of understood that she was going to break this thing, and make this like intense female empowerment, pop art, ultra-violent action, and I was like, ‘Whoa, this could be something special.'” Uma Thurman’s rich legacy and influence Thurman’s history adds weight to the exciting focus of Pretty Lethal, from Poison Ivy in Batman & Robin to Discord in The Old Guard 2.
At SXSW, she highlighted the film’s cool vibe to InStyle magazine: “This isn’t your typical Amazon premiere. I looked at it and thought, ‘How are we going to do this?'” It’s feminine, but it’s wild. It’s shocking and funny and powerful, so it’s over the top. Ziegler and the actors shared stories about Thurman’s knitting habit during filming, mixing her cool demeanor with intense action preparation.
