‘Broad City’ gals made Natalie Portman insecure about ‘Garden State’

Natalie Portman used to be proud of her work in 2004's Garden State, in which she plays Sam, Manic Pixie Dream Girl extraordinaire. And then Wayne's Abbi Jacobson and co-creator Ilana Glazer came along with Broad City.

"I've been insecure about [the movie] recently because of Broad City," Portman told a panel at the Toronto International Film Festival this week. "Best show. If you haven't watched it, watch it."

Not a bad review of the show, considering Portman says Broad City made her "insecure" about Garden State following a particularly strong dig at the film in Season 2.

"On the show, there's a really dorky character who's a gym instructor, like an Equinox guy or something, and he's the worst," Portman said. "And he's like, 'Oh my God, I love Garden State! I donated all my money to Zach Braff's Kickstarter.'"

'And I'm like, 'Oh my God,' " Portman continued, her head in her hands. "So now, because the people I think are the coolest think it's really lame, I'm kind of insecure about it."

The episode in question is Season 2's "Mochalatta Chills," in which Jacobson's boss, Trey, cops to donating $14,000 to Braff's Kickstarter for 2014's lukewarmly received Wish I Was Here. Ultimately, in Broad City, Braff's crew ends up spelling his name wrong, but Trey is psyched anyway.

So, yes, "dorky" may be the right way to describe Trey, who is played by Broad City writer Paul Downs. Especially considering Braff's Wish I Was Here grossed $5.4 million at the box office, which was just under its $6 million budget.

Portman, for her part, also addressed the stereotypical nature of Sam in Garden State, calling her character "troubling."

"When the point of the character in this movie is to, like, help the guy have his arc, that's sort of the problem," she said. "And that's why it's good that they're talking about it, because it certainly is a troubling trope."

Last year, Broad City was renewed for a third season, which is expected to make its premiere in early 2016.

[Vulture]