If you’re not already familiar with the play, you may find yourself a little lost in Hedda—or perhaps just bored. DaCosta has made a hit horror film (Candyman) and a mainstream superhero movie (The Marvels), and with Hedda, you get the sense that she and Thompson are having a blast as they break free of the constraints that come with making a studio blockbuster. Thompson’s Hedda and Hoss’ Eileen circle one another like hungry panthers—you can still sense the erotic crackle between them. But elsewhere, you’re not quite sure why Hedda is so intent on stirring the pot. That’s part of the point, of course—Hedda isn’t supposed to be easy to parse. But Thompson’s performance is so mannered that it’s hard to surf Hedda's brainwaves. Her diction is aggressively fluted and mannered, so deliberately stylized that it feels like needless embellishment. Thompson is a terrific actress; she was astonishing Rebecca Hall’s 2021 adaptation of Nella Larson’s Passing, as woman drawn into the fragile web of an old high school friend who has tried to erase her racial identity. But aggressive stylization still needs to serve the essence of the character; it can’t just read as a premeditated, fussed-over choice. It doesn’t help that certain elements of Hedda are deliberately overstated: no actress could survive the garish makeup Hoss wears, or her weird half-siren, half-milkmaid gown, which ends up serving a purpose in the plot—one that feels far too calculated.