‘Black Swan’ director tried to start a feud between Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis

“Black Swan” director Darren Aronofsky confessed that he tried to cause tension between Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis during production of the 2010 twisted ballet thriller.

The Oscar-nominated filmmaker, 56, spoke about how he attempted to pit the women against each other in an interview with Vogue while celebrating the flick 15 years later.

“I was trying to be a sneaky director and make them argue,” Aronofsky recalled, noting that Portman, 44, and Kunis, 42, didn’t take the bait.

“Mila and Natalie both realized very quickly what I was doing and made fun of me, so it quickly became a joke that we all understood,” he said. “They’re both very clever and were instantly privy to whatever trick I was playing.”

The actresses — who were already friends when they filmed “Black Swan” — gave their side of the story in the same interview.

“I remember being separated from Mila and that we weren’t in the same space a lot when we weren’t shooting,” Portman reflected.

Aronofsky had a strategy to create tension between his leading ladies.

“Darren made some comment early on, like, ‘Ya know, Nat, Mila’s dancing so well.’ And I was like, ‘Of course she is! She’s so f–king talented and I love her so much and I’m happy she’s doing a great job,’” Portman explained.

The “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” actress shared how their director would tell tales in hopes it would ignite an unhealthy competition between the two.

“Darren would tell me, ‘Nat is working really, really hard. She’s not even taking Saturdays and Sundays off,’” Kunis remembered. “Then I would text Nat and she’d be like, ‘…No, I’m not?’ I think that’s how we figured out what Darren was up to, but it was all in good fun.”

Portman and Kunis’ friendship, however, was too solid for Aronofsky’s games. The Oscar-winner even suggested the “Bad Moms” star for the role.

“We had been friends for years and I remember being at the Rose Bowl Flea Market with her, talking about this ballet movie I was making with Darren,” Portman said in the interview. “Mila said, ‘I remember when I would take off my pointe shoes…’ and I was like, ‘Wait, you did ballet?!’ I immediately called Darren and said there was this amazing actress with ballet experience who would be perfect for Lily.”

Despite their director’s deception, Kunis sang his praises.

“Every journalist wanted to know how scary Darren was: ‘How intense was his set? How intense was he?’” she recalled. “I would say, ‘He’s actually a really kind, lovely guy who took us to see Twilight one time because we had the day off.’ And journalists were always so disappointed that he wasn’t some tortured soul who treated us like garbage.”

Portman famously played Nina, an unstable principal ballerina whose leading role is jeopardized by Kunis’ character, Lily. The rivalry causes Nina’s darkness to take over, and lines become blurred between reality and fantasy.

“Black Swan” was nominated for five Academy Awards in 2011, including Best Motion Picture of the Year and Best Achievement in Directing for Aronofsky.

Portman walked away with an Oscar for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role.

In honor of the film’s 15-year anniversary, a remastered version of “Black Swan” will be released in IMAX theaters nationwide on August 21 and 24.