Cate Blanchett and Sandra Bullock on Appreciating 'Ocean's 8'

Gary Ross directs the all-female cast of crooks in Ocean’s 8, a follow up to the trilogy of films that starred Brad Pitt, George Clooney and Matt Damon. The film is self-referential and there are several links along the way, but this isn’t a sequel.

As Bullock explains, her team riff on the themes and tone of the earlier films. Steven Soderbergh helmed Ocean’s 11 (2001), which itself is a remake of an earlier film that featured the Hollywood ‘Rat Pack’. The Speed (1994) star plays Debbie Ocean, sister to Clooney’s suave thief from the first film.

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There’s also no avoiding the current climate in the film industry, which is desperate to change (or claims to be changing, at least) following the revelations about Harvey Weinstein. The representation of women on screen has been one of the areas of focus for many, and Blanchett says that although no one film can influence the industry on its own, there are changes happening.

That’s not to say Ocean’s 8 takes itself too seriously. Anne Hathaway plays a snobby actress who is at the centre of the heist that the team of eight attempt to pull off. Joining the fearsome squad are the likes of Helena Bonham Carter, Rihanna and Sarah Paulson.

Bullock and Blanchett were finishing each others sentences when we spoke to them, clearly a sign of how much fun was had bonding on set.

Ocean’s 8 is on general release now.