Florence Pugh says she convinced Zach Braff to let her cut own hair in A Good Person

Lizzie Edmonds
·2 min read
Florence Pugh and Zach Braff at the UK Premiere of A Good Person at London’s The Ham Yard Hotel (Dave Benett)
Florence Pugh and Zach Braff at the UK Premiere of A Good Person at London’s The Ham Yard Hotel (Dave Benett)
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Florence Pugh has revealed she persuaded actor and directorZach Braff to let her chop off her real hair for a dramatic scene in upcoming film A Good Person.

The British actress, 27, plays Allison in the new movie — a woman whose life falls apart following a tragic accident.

Discussing the scene on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Monday, Oscar-nominated Pugh described how she convinced Braff to agree to her cut her own hair.

She said: “It was my idea. I said, ‘Zach, I think I should chop my hair off at the beginning of the movie.’ And he was like, ‘Cool, that’s not going to work.’ It was like, ‘How do we do this shooting in order?’ And I was like, ‘You’ll figure it out.’”

She added: “He came and spoke to me, very tentatively. And was like, ‘Florence, we can’t do this, we need to use a wig.’ And I was like, ‘You’ll figure it out.’ And they figured it out! I did it.”

Pugh, who was nominated for an Academy Award for playing Amy in 2019’s Little Women, dated Braff between 2019 and 2022, meaning the pair were a couple while the movie was filming.

Pugh spoke about Braff writing the script for her.

She said: “He wrote it for me. I was his muse. There’s so much ease with reading a script when someone knows how you talk, and how far they can push you, and what you’re capable of doing.”

Florence Pugh - In pictures

Florence Pugh during a 2019 portrait session in Los Angeles (Invision/AP)
Florence Pugh during a 2019 portrait session in Los Angeles (Invision/AP)
The Little Drummer Girl (2018) (BBC)
The Little Drummer Girl (2018) (BBC)
Toby Sebastian (L) and Florence Pugh attend The London Critics' Circle Film Awards at The Mayfair Hotel in 2015 (Dave Benett)
Toby Sebastian (L) and Florence Pugh attend The London Critics' Circle Film Awards at The Mayfair Hotel in 2015 (Dave Benett)
Florence Pugh attends The London Evening Standard British Film Awards at Claridge's Hotel in 2016 (Dave Benett)
Florence Pugh attends The London Evening Standard British Film Awards at Claridge's Hotel in 2016 (Dave Benett)
Florence Pugh and Anna Burnett arrive at the London Evening Standard British Film Awards 2016 (Dave Benett)
Florence Pugh and Anna Burnett arrive at the London Evening Standard British Film Awards 2016 (Dave Benett)
Florence Pugh poses at the San Sebastian Film Festival 2016 (Reuters)
Florence Pugh poses at the San Sebastian Film Festival 2016 (Reuters)
Florence Pugh arriving for Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition Preview Party 2017 (PA)
Florence Pugh arriving for Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition Preview Party 2017 (PA)
Florence Pugh and Naomi Ackie attend a special screening of
Florence Pugh and Naomi Ackie attend a special screening of

Pugh also spoke about singing one of her own songs in the movie.

“It’s the first time I have actually ever written a song for a character and performed a song as the character as well,” she said.

“But then, outside the movie, I got to record them as how I would like them, as me, as like the creator. So, when the movie comes out my songs are going to be on the soundtrack as well.”

A Good Person also stars Molly Shannon and Morgan Freeman.

A star-studded screening of the movie took place on Monday night in New York, with Pugh taking her family along with her to the event.

Pugh, left, and Zoe Lister-Jones embrace at a screening of A Good Person (Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
Pugh, left, and Zoe Lister-Jones embrace at a screening of A Good Person (Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)

Her mother Deborah Mackin and father Clinton Pugh, plus her grandmother Pat, were all in attendance at the Metrograph in Manhattan — as was co-star Zoe Lister-Jones.

A Good Person is in cinemas from 24 March and on Sky Cinema from 28 April