Anne Hathaway
Anne Hathaway |
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Anne Whitney Hathaway (born November 12, 1982) is an American film and stage actress. She came to fame in 2001, after starring in the family film, The Princess Diaries, and has since established a career as a Hollywood actress, starring in the films Ella Enchanted, Brokeback Mountain and The Devil Wears Prada.
Biography
Early life
Hathaway was born in Brooklyn, New York to what she has described as a "solidly upper-middle class family".[1] Her father, Gerald Hathaway, is a lawyer, and her mother, Kate McCauley, is an actress who inspired Hathaway to follow in her footsteps;[1] her maternal grandfather was Joe McCauley, a Philadelphia radio pioneer. Hathaway, who has Irish ancestry on her father's side, grew up in the Catholic religion with what she describes as "really strong values",[1] and wanted to be a nun during her childhood.[2] She shares her name with Anne Hathaway, the wife of playwright William Shakespeare.
Hathaway grew up in New Jersey and graduated from Millburn High School, and also spent several semesters studying at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York, before transferring to New York University's Gallatin School of Individualized Study. Hathaway has noted that her decision to attend college was "one of the best decisions" she has made, because she enjoyed the experience of being "with other people who are trying to get through the same stuff - growing up".[3]
Career
Hathaway was a member of the Barrow Group Theater Company's acting program, and was the only teenager to ever be accepted into the program.[4] As a result, she is a trained stage actress, and has said that she feels more comfortable on stage than in film roles.[1] Her first major role was in the short-lived television series Get Real. She gained widespread recognition for her starring roles in The Princess Diaries (2001) and its 2004 sequel, playing a teenage girl who discovers that she is a member of royalty. Since the success of the two films, Hathaway had a notable role in the 2002 film production of Nicholas Nickleby, opposite Charlie Hunnam and Jamie Bell, and a starring role in 2004's Ella Enchanted, playing a fairy tale princess. Hathaway, who is a former top-ranking soprano, was reportedly a front-runner for the role of Christine in the 2004 film adaptation of The Phantom of the Opera. However, due to scheduling conflicts with The Princess Diaries 2, she could not take the role (which was eventually played by Emmy Rossum).
Hathaway has moved away from appearing in family films, explaining that she thinks "anybody who was a role model for children needs a reprieve",[3] although she has also noted that "It's lovely to think that my audience is growing up with me", referring to her status as a children's film actress.[5] She starred in the dark R-rated film Havoc and had a supporting role in Brokeback Mountain, opposite Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal; Hathaway appeared topless in both films,[1] and believes that her nude scene in Brokeback Mountain was the definitive moment in which her career changed paces to darker roles.[5] Her latest film is the dark comedy The Devil Wears Prada, in which she plays an assistant to a malicious fashion magazine editor (played by Meryl Streep, whom Hathaway described as being "just divine").[1] Hathaway believes the film to be a statement about a maturing young woman in the work force.[1] She has also disclosed that as a result of working on the film, she respects the fashion industry, but her personal fashion style is something she "can't get right".[4] The film opened on June 30, 2006 and since then has become a steady hit, likely to reach a $120M finish in the USA-Hathaway's top grosser
Hathaway will soon star in Becoming Jane, in which she plays author Jane Austen.
Personal life
Since 2004, Hathaway has been in a relationship with real estate developer Raffaello Follieri.[1] Hathaway enjoys reading and notes "interior decoration" as a hobby.[1]
When Hathaway was fifteen, she decided against becoming a nun after discovering that her brother Michael was homosexual. Though she was brought up as a Catholic, she found that she "couldn't support a religion that didn't support my brother". She has stated that she is a Non-denominational Christian, and hasn't "found the religion" for herself.[2]
Selected filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Becoming Jane | Jane Austen | pre-production |
| The Devil Wears Prada | Andrea Sachs | ||
| 2005 | Hoodwinked | Red | voice only |
| Brokeback Mountain | Lureen Newsome | ||
| Havoc | Allison | direct-to-video | |
| 2004 | The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement | Amelia Mignonette Thermopolis Renaldi | |
| Ella Enchanted | Ella | ||
| 2002 | Nicholas Nickleby | Madeline Bray | |
| 2001 | The Other Side of Heaven | Jean Sabin | |
| The Princess Diaries | Amelia Mignonette Thermopolis Renaldi |
References
Footnotes
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "MSNBC". Anne Hathaway learns from a legend in ‘Prada’. Retrieved June 21.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ a b "The Himalayan Times". Anne Hathaway Wished To Be A Nun. Retrieved June 21.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ a b "All-Access Anne". Jane. - (-). June 23, 2006.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: year (link) - ^ a b "The Mercury News". 'Prada' star Anne Hathaway doesn't like it haute. Retrieved June 27.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ a b "StarPulse". Topless Scene Moved Anne Hathaway's Career in New Direction. Retrieved July 7.
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Interviews
- Out.com interview (December 2005)
- AP interview (June 2006)
Web sites
- Anne Hathaway at IMDb
- AnneHathawayFan.com, an extensive fan site