“I was very nervous”: the director Anne Hathaway didn’t want to disappoint
The early 2000s saw the height of teen-oriented romantic comedies, with titles like Mean Girls and Bring It On gaining significant popularity. For Anne Hathaway, a role in The Princess Diaries would shoot her into the mainstream. It was quickly lapped up by young girls, and remains a classic from that era of cinema. She played Mia Thermopolis, a normal, unpopular high schooler who discovers she is the heir to Genovia’s throne.
The film was incredibly popular, and as a result, Hathaway landed more leading roles in child and teen-oriented films like Ella Enchanted, Hoodwinked!, The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement, and The Cat Returns. However, she eventually transitioned to more adult roles, appearing in Brokeback Mountain and the beloved comedy The Devil Wears Prada.
The latter is one of her most recognisable roles. She played Andy, a journalist who finds herself thrown into the world of fashion magazines, despite knowing little about the cutthroat, high-pressure world. Establishing herself as a diverse actor, Hathaway went on to appear in a mix of period dramas, thrillers, romantic comedies, musicals, and dramas.
Hathaway won an Oscar for her performance as Fantine in 2012’s Les Misérables, helping her to cement her status as a critically-acclaimed star even further. The actor has since continued to star in films to mixed success, with some of her most notable movies being The Dark Knight Rises, Interstellar, and One Day.
Proving herself to be a willing actor ready to star in whatever genre is thrown her way, she accepted a role in Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland in 2010. The dark fantasy interpretation saw Johnny Depp play the Mad Hatter while Mia Wasikowska played the titular character. Hathaway was cast as The White Queen, also known as Mirana, who sports all white outfits, pale skin and light hair, hinting at her hidden darkness through the use of dark lipstick, eyebrows, and nails.
Hathaway found herself “nervous” about working with Burton since she was such a big fan of his movies. The director began his career in the ‘80s, and Hathaway grew up watching many of his films. She told Skimbaco Lifestyle, “I had admired him from the first time I saw Beetlejuice, and I didn’t want to disappoint him. I wanted to fit into Wonderland, which was a mad, imaginative, wonderful world.”
“Also I was very nervous about working on green screen, which I had not done before. So I worked out all the details before I got on the set and Tim was totally open to everything,” she added. Luckily for Hathaway, she found Burton easy to work with. “He is not a director who says ‘no’ very often. He likes to play, he likes to explore. Even if he might disagree with you or if he doesn’t understand where you want to go, he will give you the opportunity to try.”
She continued, “For instance, my character having a weak stomach was a happy accident. He made an entire arc in the movie about that and I was so happy with that. I don’t know him very well but he is very easy to get along with. He is very interesting, very funny and he is a rule breaker.” Hathaway collaborated with him a few years later on the sequel Alice Through the Looking Glass, which he produced.
