Dakota Johnson jokes she 'made out with a lot of women during Covid' to practice for Am I Ok?

During a Sundance round table interview to promote her new film Am I Ok?, Dakota Johnson got candid about how she prepared for her role of a masseuse receptionist who starts to question her sexuality late in life.

"I went around and made out with a lot of women during COVID, just before we started filming to practice," Johnson joked, before following up with a more serious (and sincere answer.)

"Sonoya and I actually didn't get to spend any time together before we started filming because she had to quarantine," Johnson explained, referencing her co-star Sonoya Mizuno who plays Johnson's best friend Jane. "I did make her dinner one night, made her a nice grilled tuna steak...but I think we kind of bonded over the intensity of making a movie during COVID and then being constantly yelled at to stand further apart."

Directed by Tig Notaro and Stephanie Allynne in their directorial debut, Am I Ok? is a coming out story that centers on Johnson's Lucy, a 32-year old who is pretty much co-dependent on Mizuno's Jane, to the point where she doesn't know what to do with herself if she's not around. When new girl Brit (Kiersey Clemons) starts working with Lucy at her salon, Lucy is forced to unpack her feelings about why she likes being so close with her best friend and also why she's never really dated before.

For Johnson, the role provided her with a chance to tell a story that she felt she doesn't see in Hollywood.

"I think I just really liked the idea of a woman in her 30's not having everything figured out already. I think I prefer the world in which people are allowed to continue to grow and figure themselves out for their entire lives," she explained. "And I think this narrative that we've seen on screen and coming of age movies or buddy comedy movies is that you have to be a fully realized person at a certain point — which is usually in your 20's, which is impossible."

Watch the video interview above and hear Johnson's comments at the 5:50 minute mark.

Related content:

• Dakota Johnson wasn't worried when her famous parents financially cut her off
• Dakota Johnson announces her own movie as Best Feature at the Gotham Awards: See the full winners list
• The Lost Daughter review: Motherhood isn't easy