‘Feud’ Star Susan Sarandon On Reliving The Bette Davis/Joan Crawford Rivalry

Ryan Murphy’s next creation is Feud and, while he may be able to claim the title of creator for the television event, the actual story is as real and true as Hollywood is ever likely to get, telling the true story of a rivalry that destroyed lives. Feud casts Jessica Lange as Joan Crawford and Susan Sarandon as Bette Davis for the television event, which, as the title suggests, attempts to document the details of the rivalry of the two Hollywood actresses. Sarandon, who admittedly does bear a resemblance to Bette Davis, opens up about playing the classic Hollywood icon and how filming Feud has given her a new perspective on an age-old story.

Feud Star Susan Sarandon On The Bitter Spite Between Two Actresses

FX is set to premiere Feud next week, so in anticipation of the premiere, Uproxx reports that Susan Sarandon stopped by The Tonight Show to talk with host Jimmy Fallon about playing the famous actress. The feud that developed between Davis and Crawford was no small secret with gossip and eyewitness accounts revealing the rivalry that marked much of the careers of both Bette and Joan, culminating in the film, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?

As Susan shared, that 1962 film starred Bette and Joan together, creating a production nightmare for all involved, but also infused the actresses’ performance with the kind of real passion so rarely felt in performances.

“There were a lot of people who pitted them against each other for a lot of reasons,” Sarandon explained. “They had kind of innate jealousies and things, and you know they want to keep women apart because together we’re just so powerful.”

Ms. Sarandon goes on to explain that, as they were running in the same social circles, Crawford and Davis found themselves getting intimate with the same men, which only fueled their animosity toward one another.

The final straw came with the 1963 Academy Awards when Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? was up for five Oscar nominations. Among those nominations, Bette Davis was nominated for Best Actress for playing Baby Jane Hudson, while Joan Crawford’s performance in the film went largely unrecognized.

Susan Sarandon Says Her Sexuality Is “Up For Grabs”

People reports that Ms. Sarandon was recently very candid in discussing her sexuality, speaking in a way that reveals her orientation may be more fluid than she has previously implied.

“My sexual orientation is up for grabs, I guess you could say,” Sarandon said in a Pride Source interview.

Upon filming the 1983 film, The Hunger, Susan entered into a relationship with Philip Sayer, a gay male and her co-star on the project. Sayer died in 1989.

Sarandon referred to the relationship in the recent interview, commenting that she was once in a relationship with a man who didn’t leave her for another woman.

“I did at one point have a very successful and very loving and wonderful affair with a man who then wasn’t with another woman after me, and that worked out fine!”

Earlier in her life, Susan dated and married actor Chris Sarandon, but, while she kept the name, Susan reveals that relationship didn’t last long. Following that romance, Susan was romantically linked to director Franco Amurri. The two had a daughter together, Eva Amurri.

More recently, Sarandon ended a 23-year relationship with Tim Robbins and has been rumored to have been dating 31-year-old Jonathan Bricklin, though neither party has either confirmed or denied the rumors.

Speaking of dating, Ms. Sarandon has found the new era of dating less accommodating than it has been for previous generations.

“I haven’t really had a large dating career. I haven’t exactly been in the midst of a lot of offers of any kind. I’m still not!” said Sarandon. “I don’t know what’s going on! But I think back in the ’60s it just was much more open.”

Feud debuts on Sunday, March 5 on FX.

[Featured Image by Rabbani and Solimene Photography/Getty Images]