Shailene Woodley says Tris doesn’t feel comfortable in a dress

Shailene Woodley is now three movies into her four-film series based on the “Divergent” YA books, with “Allegiant” following her character, Tris, as she further battles corrupt forces. It’s an interesting place to be: the end in sight but not quite here. But the ongoing process and massive cast of actors — not just contemporaries like Miles Teller and Ansel Elgort but established greats, including Naomi Watts and Jeff Daniels — coming and going from the franchise has given her some unique experiences. She just never thought, given the dystopian setting, she’d be dressed so well for them.

Of the new cast members, who did you have the most fun working with?
All of them. Jeff Daniels was fun to go toe-to-toe with because he’s got that quiet sinister thing going on instead of the in-your-face aggressive. He’s more passive, which I find to be more chilling and thrilling. And it was fun to work with Bill [Skarsgard], Andy [Bean] and Nadia [Hilker], to have some more similar people in their 20s join the cast and really just rock their roles and bring a fun, youthful energy in.

Is it a different atmosphere when everybody is always together on set?
That happens quite often in these films, and it can be quite tedious to just walk all day or stand there and not say anything. But luckily we all get along really well and find ways to entertain ourselves though the process.

Like trying to mess up each other takes?
Oh my God, there’s so much laughing. I think the crew’s fairly fed up with our jokes and our laughter because there’s too many times that we roll and have to cut because we’re in hysterics. It’s so much fun for us, but I think everyone else gets a little annoyed. They’re like, “Let’s just go home.”

Not to get too superficial, but your wardrobe goes through a distinct change in this installment.
I know, it’s so interesting. It was so weird to put a dress and heels on and try and understand the dynamics of who she was within the nature of that particular wardrobe.

What do you think she feels the most comfortable wearing?
I think Tris feels most comfortable in tactical clothes and her gear, you know, where she knows where all her weaponry is and she knows that she can fight. In a dress you feel quite vulnerable, especially in heels because you’re limited in access to how you can output your energy.

Yet you spend most of this movie in that white dress.
Yeah, it was interesting to be in all the white clothes. And they were quite uncomfortable to wear, so even trying to hold your body a specific way, I didn’t feel like Tris, which made it a great challenge to still have to remember who she was.

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