Filmmaker Aaron Sorkin has defended actor Jeremy Strong's intense acting methods following criticism and the box office disappointment of their latest film, "The Social Reckoning." Sorkin addressed longstanding complaints that Strong's approach borders on a disassociation from reality, asserting that the actor is "not a nut. He’s not crazy."
Sorkin spoke at the 2026 New Yorker Festival about Strong's portrayal of Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg in "The Social Reckoning." "He, of course, understands when he’s making a movie that he’s making a movie," Sorkin said of the 47-year-old actor, who won an Emmy for his role in HBO's "Succession."
Strong studied acting at Yale and under Daniel Day-Lewis, Sorkin noted. The director also maintained that Strong does not take pleasure in the immersive acting that some find disruptive. "I don’t think it’s the way he likes to work. I think it’s the only way he knows how to," Sorkin stated. "I think it’s the only way he knows how to do it."
"Succession" co-star Brian Cox previously called Strong's acting style "f**king annoying ... pointless, selfish, an enemy of the imagination," and disrespectful to the ensemble. Strong, who also received an Oscar nomination for his role in "The Apprentice," has responded that he is "just there to commit utterly to serving the material."
In a previous interview on the New Yorker Radio Hour podcast, Strong stated, "If some people feel that I’m taking it too seriously, or it changes the molecules in the room in a way that makes something uncomfortable, I guess that’s something that I don’t feel that I need to apologize for." He added, "I believe, and I think the directors that I work with all believe, that it's in service of the material, and I personally think that a lot of the reactions to it are of a personal nature."
"The Social Reckoning," a follow-up to the 2010 film "The Social Network," has received tepid reviews and underperformed at the box office since its release this month.
Sorkin recounted that from the first day on set, Strong "only heard" the actor "speak as" Zuckerberg, "using Mark’s voice, walking as Mark, dressed as Mark." It wasn't until the final day of shooting that Strong spoke to Sorkin in his own voice. Sorkin also shared that Strong continued to embody Zuckerberg even after filming wrapped, emailing Sorkin to argue positions on the Meta founder's behalf.
Even on Sorkin's next project, a remake of "The Boys From Brazil," Strong contacted the director a month after wrapping "The Social Reckoning" to discuss his performance, speaking as a Polish Nazi-hunter without preamble. "I was just supposed to understand," Sorkin said. "He has a wife and a couple of young kids at home, and I don’t know what life is like."
Kieran Culkin, Strong's on-screen brother from "Succession," has also critiqued Strong's method, particularly objecting to actors calling themselves "storytellers."