Maya Hawke explores the notion of growth and societal pressure in her latest single “Thérèse.” The track was released earlier this month as the lead single from her impending album, Moss.
Videos by American Songwriter
Now the Stranger Things star is back with a new video for the track, which delves into the same themes—albeit through the lens of a mid-forest orgy. Hawke tapped Brady Corbet to direct the steamy video, which sees Hawke and a few friends get caught by the police after breaking up the gathering.
Standing naked in the woods, Hawke sings, She reminds me of memories / Sleeping off the growing pains. The entire video is dark and brooding, using only a single light to capture the scene.
In an interview with Dazed, Hawke described the video as an effort to depict “the feeling that loneliness is the worst thing, until you realize it’s far superior to bad company; about how free we are as kids and then as we go through puberty and culture crushes down on us and instead of being ourselves, we start to try and be like everyone else.”
Hawke and Corbet first met when the actress auditioned for one of the director’s films. The video was heavily inspired by Japanese photographer Kohei Yoshiyuki, whose series Kōen captured sexual activities hosted at parks throughout Tokyo.
“Brady saw the video very clearly in his head, but I can’t imagine he could have guessed how well his idea fit with what I wanted to reveal and express about the song,” Hawke said. “I hope people like it or hate it, or whatever. I hope it makes them feel something other than shame, self-hatred, and loneliness. I think we are all tired of feeling like that.”
The entirety of Hawke’s sophomore album will arrive on September 23. Watch the video for “Thérèse” below.
(Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for Netflix)
