‘LOVE BEING PART OF PROVOCATIVE FILMS’
Anne Hathaway, whose first release this year is a thriller, usually gets to play women who think for themselves
Twenty years into her career, Anne Hathaway is used to being cast a certain way. “I’m not usually sent roles that are defined by the male gaze,” she said. “Normally I get sent women who live and think for themselves — to the extent we do in this sick world.”
But at first glance in Serenity, Steven Knight’s noirish thriller, Hathaway’s character appears to have spent her lifetime catering to the pleasures of men. It’s the first entry in a big year for Hathaway, who stole the show from Sandra Bullock and Cate Blanchett in last spring’s Ocean’s 8. In May, she’ll appear in The Hustle, a female-centric remake of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, followed by The Last Thing He Wanted, about a reporterturned-arms dealer, and Modern Love, an OTT series spun from The New York Times column. Hathaway spoke about female actors who still floor her and Hollywood’s echo chamber of men. Excerpts:
Karen is a dramatic pivot from roles we’re used to seeing you in. Were you immediately game?
I was very surprised when I got the script for Serenity and found out that Steven wanted me. I was just very honoured and couldn’t wait to roll up my sleeves and dye my hair.
What was your reaction to the script when you first read it?
It knocks you. I was on the edge of my seat. One of my favourite things about Serenity was how provoked I felt in my mind and in the pit of my stomach.
Later this spring, you’re playing a high-class con artist in the comedy The Hustle. Did you need a lift after Serenity?
You know, I never thought I’d be able to say what I’m about to say: I did it for the fun of it. It seemed like it was going to be a blast, and it mostly was.
You seem to enjoy a comic thrill ride, like Daphne Kluger, the narcissistic actor in Ocean’s 8. From what demented place did you conjure her up?
Well, it was fun to apply a lot of observation that I’ve made over the past 20 years or so about the incredibly ridiculous world of celebrity — to send that up with my tongue firmly in my cheek.
You went into Ocean’s 8 saying ‘Do not embarrass yourself in front of your heroes’. What on earth were you worried about? Oh, I think I was worried that everyone would like each other and secretly not like me and I’d just be kind of outside of it. In the past I’ve let my excitement get the best of me, I just wanted to enjoy the experience...to take in how glorious it was to be in the presence of so many queens.
Is there anyone now who could possibly intimidate you?
Yes. I burst into tears when I met Julia Roberts. It sometimes produces — how do I say this? — weirdness and awkwardness. And I’m learning to just say thank you and not make such a fuss about it and have a good time.
You’re one of the more than 300 women in film, TV and theatre in the Time’s Up initiative. What’s your take on the movement’s accomplishments last year?
All I can represent is my own experience, which is I was ignorant of all the effort that has gone into keeping women separated. Now that I’ve found my sisters and my arms are linked with them, I’m never letting go.
On Instagram you cited a recent study that female-led films earn more than ones starring men — yet pay inequity is a huge issue. Hollywood has been full of men who would describe themselves as good, but who have been in echo chambers full of other men who look and think like them. This doesn’t make these men bad, but it does mean the conversations at the highest levels of power are, by default, limited.
I really love being a part of provocative movies that require a certain muscularity from the audience, a certain level of mature film viewership. ANNE HATHAWAY ACTOR