Anne Hathaway’s latest film is an age-gap romance that she says will make women ‘ooh’ and ‘ahh’. She stars as Solène, opposite Nicholas Galitzine (Hayes Campbell), in the new Amazon Original, Idea of You. The story begins when art gallery owner Solène, a 40-year-old single mother, is chaperoning her teenage daughter’s trip to Coachella, and buds an unexpected love affair with twenty-something Campbell, the British lead singer of boy band August Moon. The two become arm-in-arm jet-setters, while chased by paparazzi, and stay in presidential suites in dreamy locales, making the film a made-for-Hollywood fairy tale romance. The film is based on the Robinne Lee novel of the same name.

The project is the latest in a long string of motion pictures, over her quarter-century career. Hathaway’s Hollywood breakthrough came in 2001 with the Disney film “The Princess Diaries,” where she played teenager Mia Thermopolis, who discovers she is heir to a European throne. Opposite Julie Andrews (“Sound of Music”), this role catapulted her into the spotlight, paving the way for her as a Hollywood leading actress.

She showcased her range by taking on roles in films such as “Brokeback Mountain” (2005), and “The Devil Wears Prada” (2006), a comedy-drama set in the fashion industry, starring opposite Meryl Streep and Emily Blunt.

Her roles have spanned various genres including science fiction, with “Interstellar” (2014); heist comedy in “Ocean’s 8” (2018), where she played an actress; and the comedy, “The Hustle” (2019), where she played a con artist. Beyond her work in film, Hathaway has also made her mark in the realm of voice acting, in animated television and films. In 2005, she voiced the character Red Pucket in “Hoodwinked.” In 2010, she won an Emmy for her voice work in TV’s The Simpsons. 

A year later, she lent her voice in “Rio” and its sequel “Rio 2” (2014). In 2013, she again lent her voice, this time both literally and figuratively, to narrate “Girl Rising,” a documentary film by CNN that highlighted the journeys of seven girls from different parts of the world, as they faced various challenges in pursuit of their aspirations. Elixuer was honoured to speak to the 41-year-old actress about her most recent film, Idea of You, a movie that she also produced.

What attracted you to the Idea of You script?

I loved Solène as a character. I thought she was so sweet, with a sharp sense of humour. I thought that was a really incredible combo. I loved the stage of life she’s at, where she’s experienced a really bad trauma to her trust, and she’s right at that place where she could become bitter, and kind of negative about love, and then the most unexpected thing happens to her – she finds someone unexpectedly. I just love the idea of these two people, the idea that it’s the last thing either of them expect, but they become the one thing each other needs. I thought that was really beautiful. 

Can you speak to the concept of the film?

I think that it’s really exciting when someone finds someone they can be intimate with – and intimacy is not just meaning physical intimacy. You can find someone to be intimate with your trust. I think that watching two people who have both had their trust taken advantage of, discover that they can be safe and be intimate in that way with each other – in addition to being able to explore pleasure and friendship and humor, all those really yummy things, those really romantic things. It got me really excited. It’s a great time to figure out if you have another gear. 

The film is about a singer in a boy band, and I’m wondering if there were any artists or boy bands you were obsessed with?

I had artists I was obsessed with. I haven’t become obsessed with a boy band – yet. It could happen. I do like BTS (Bangtan Boys). I was very into aggressively-talented, female singer-songwriters: Fiona Apple, Tori Amos, Ani DiFranco, Alanis Morrisette. (I also like) Otis Redding, and Slipknot.

How did your perception of love change after making this film?

I think it’s going to be unique to everybody. I think the part I feel changed by, because I experienced it in my life, it’s horrible when somebody abuses your trust. It’s really terrible. It’s really hard to recover from, and can take a really long time. But if the opportunity presents itself, take it with both hands and don’t look back. I love seeing a character heal from a trust trauma.

Why should people see the movie? 

It’s a wonderful movie about love, trust, intimacy, pleasure, and fun, silliness, and music. There are fun concert sequences, great clothes, and an abundance of British charm. 

Also, one of the things I want to put out there is that we obviously screened this movie for test audiences, and people really, really love it. But women, especially women over the age of 35, are having an intense emotional reaction to the movie. There is something about this movie that is touching something very deep inside of us. I think, perhaps, it’s a fear we’ve internalized that we are going to disappear while we are still alive. This movie says, “No, thank you,” to that entire narrative.

It’s a different kind of wish-fulfillment. The wish isn’t, “Oh, I want to be a princess, or work at this company.” The wish is, “I want to exist and I want to feel loved.” I think that’s a great reason to see the movie. Also, the art is amazing; I forgot to mention that. 

“I live my life with love. I live my life with compassion. I live my life hoping the best for absolutely everyone, no matter how they feel about me. And when you live that way, it’s amazing how beautiful every day can be.” – Anne Hathaway

What were the most fun scenes to do, or can you tell me about something fun that happened on set?

We had a lot of fun. The characters had “bounce” together. So, we had cycles side-by-side, through this path. And the thing they didn’t tell us was there was only one spot you could actually cycle through, and the other spot you’d fall off- your bike. So, naturally, Nicholas stayed up, and I ‘ate’ it. It went from that, to jumping in the freezing cold ocean, while trying to sell that we were in the middle of France. Then, our characters got frisky on a beach. That was our first day – we did all of that in swimsuits. 

So, with that, you can either lean in, and laugh, or resist. This job was a joy. There was so much laughter. We needed that, because our characters experience some intense emotions, so we needed to be all in with each other – our director, our cinematographer, with every department – in order to tell a story that, to me, was a “feel everything” movie. 

At a certain point in filming, energy starts to lag and you want to pick up people’s spirits, to remind them we are making this thing together. We were improvising a dance with our camera operators, who were jumping on the bed with us. 

So, we called the crew together and played the song (Wang Chung) “Dance Hall Days.” None of us knew what was happening next, and we had to be really present with each other to this really great song. And it was just such a wonderful time. The rest of the shoot flew by, because everyone had a spring in their step when they realized we were making something that was full of joy, fun, silliness, and emotion. That was a special day. 

What are your favourite romantic movies?

I like my romance to be a little surreal. I also like things that are delightful and bring you along for the ride. One of my favourite movies is Pretty Woman. I also loved It Happened One Night. But I think Moonstruck might be my favourite romantic movie. I like things that are heightened but extravagant in their desire for beauty. 

Dave Gordon | Contributing Writer