Cara Delevingne was driving home when Taylor Swift called with an idea for her “Patient Zero” music video. The model and actress didn’t need much convincing from her longtime friend.
Delevingne, 34, recalled the invitation in an October 20 interview with Bustle. She had already heard the song, loved it and wanted to know when she could start listening to it on repeat.
Her appearance was a surprise when the video premiered during the MTV Video Music Awards on September 27. Dakota Johnson and Colin Farrell led the cast, with Swift directing and appearing onscreen.
The invitation also reunited two collaborators from another elaborate Swift production. Delevingne played Mother Chucker in the singer’s 2015 “Bad Blood” video, whose cast included Selena Gomez, Gigi Hadid and Cindy Crawford.
Cara Delevingne Was Amazed by Swift’s Attention to Detail
Delevingne said she loves working with friends and praised the ambition of Swift’s production. The concept, the individual details and the Easter eggs all impressed her. She found it difficult to comprehend how Swift could manage so many elements and execute them well.
“She’s a genius, she really is,” Delevingne said. The friends were photographed together again at the Academy Museum Gala in Los Angeles on October 17, according to PEOPLE.
Swift Thanked Delevingne for Playing the Other Woman
Delevingne appears as another woman involved with Farrell’s character while he is in a relationship with Johnson’s. Swift plays a figure from his past whose appearances gradually turn the story into a ghostly warning.
After the premiere, Swift thanked her friend in a public message. “Cara, thank you for agreeing to play the lusty other woman. That’s what friends are for?” she wrote in the statement published after the video’s release.
The official production credits name Emmanuel Lubezki as cinematographer and Ethan Tobman as production designer. Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford and his wife, Kelly, also make cameos.
Fiona Apple Helped Write “Need It” Using Post-it Notes
Delevingne has been building a music career of her own. Her debut album, Not Normal, arrived through Warner Records on September 25, with 12 tracks. The album credits list Delevingne and BJ Burton as producers.
Delevingne spent three and a half years on the record, telling Bustle that sobriety helped her face the scrutiny of releasing music.
For “Need It,” she and Fiona Apple exchanged photographs of handwritten Post-it notes while developing the verses. Delevingne had described the process in BroadwayWorld’s June 26 coverage of the single. Their musical connection goes back further: Delevingne sang backing vocals on Apple’s 2020 album Fetch the Bolt Cutters.
Another collaborator was Jessica Lee Gagné, known for her work on Severance. She directed a seven-minute video combining “I Forgot” and “Out of My Head,” which debuted in May.
In an earlier Vogue interview, Delevingne explained that she had played her songs over muted scenes from Severance before approaching Gagné. The filmmaker was initially reluctant to make a music video, but Delevingne asked her to listen to the tracks. They eventually filmed in Montreal over five days.
The album also includes “Crazy, Baby,” a love song written for Delevingne’s partner, the musician Minke.
“Club Kid” Began With an Offer From Jordan Firstman
Firstman met Delevingne at parties in Los Angeles and offered her a role. She took the pitch seriously when he sent his screenplay, she told Bustle.
She plays Sophie, the business partner of Firstman’s character, Peter, in Club Kid. The comedy-drama follows a New York party promoter whose life changes when he discovers he has a 10-year-old son.
The ensemble also includes Diego Calva, Reggie Absolom, Colleen Camp and Kirby Howell-Baptiste. Firstman wrote and directed the film, which screened in the Un Certain Regard selection at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival.
A24 has scheduled Club Kid to open in theaters on November 6.