Queer characters like the bisexual Hedda and lesbian Eileen receive affirming portrayals, blending desire, agency, and societal conflict into a nuanced sapphic thriller that normalizes intersectional identities without reductive trauma.

The adaptation reimagines Eilert Lovborg from Ibsen's Hedda Gabler as the female Eileen Lovborg, portrayed by Nina Hoss, which constitutes a gender swap of a canonical male character.

The adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's 'Hedda Gabler' portrays the protagonist Hedda, canonically a white Norwegian woman, as a Black character played by Tessa Thompson, constituting a race swap.

The film depicts marriage as a cynical and suffocating arrangement for the protagonist, who chafes against traditional wifely expectations while reflecting on a past marked by sexual freedom and multiple lovers. This framing critiques conventional family structures and endorses individual autonomy over marital fidelity.