Back when The Princess Diaries came out 25 years ago, it not only had us wishing we’d one day discover we were descendants of royalty, but was a coronation of acting royalty in the form of its leading actress, Anne Hathaway. Between her affable charm, gift for physical comedy, and sly emotional resonance, it was clear from the beginning she was destined for stardom even if her ascension involved challenging viewers who mainly saw princess tiaras and Prada shoes when thinking of her talents.
After a while of being typecast in family fare since the film’s release, Hathaway quickly surprised viewers by choosing heavier roles in films Best Picture-nominee Brokeback Mountain and especially, Rachel Getting Married. As a recovering addict returning home for her sister’s wedding, Hathaway gives a masterclass in gut-wrenching realism and earned her first career Oscar nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role. Although the Best Actress Oscar was bound to go to the overdue Kate Winslet for The Reader, her nomination still turned a new leaf into her career.
Since the film’s release, she has remained true to her comedy roots with Bride Wars and the ensemble film, Valentine’s Day. But then came what was a career-highlighting year. In 2012, she became the latest actress to inhabit the iconic role of Catwoman in The Dark Knight Rises, which became a billion-dollar hit, and starred in the latest film adaptation of the musical, Les Miserables.
Back when Shirley MacLaine honored Anne Hathaway the year she was nominated for Rachel Getting Married, MacLaine commended her for her musical talents she showed in the ceremony’s opening, saying “Keep singing.” Clearly, Hathaway heeded her advice as she immersed herself into the role of Fantine, shattering critics and audiences alike with her rendition of “I Dreamed A Dream.” Numerous accolades would follow including the Golden Globe, the BAFTA, and ultimately, the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress.
However, what was a career-highlighting period for Hathaway also became a fraught one. With every red carpet pose or televised acceptance speech during that awards season came trolls lambasting her for coming off as “too wanting” or “rehearsed” and articles with headlines such as “Why Do So Many People Hate Anne Hathaway?.” As a result, Hathaway went on a self-imposed exile.
As egregious and frustrating as it is that she had to retreat from the spotlight for having mere image issues, the online Hatha-hate still highlighted how we’re as quick to tear down starlets as we are to uplift them. The public lashings that Timothée Chalamet is getting over Opera-gate feel like nothing compared to the vitriol that Anne Hathaway has gotten for giving theater kid energy, or Brie Larson for wanting more diversity in film criticism, or Chappell Roan for asserting strict fan boundaries, or Rachel Zegler for both saying an old animated film is dated and standing up for human rights.
Thankfully, Christopher Nolan avoided all the Internet noise when he cast Hathaway in the 2014 blockbuster Interstellar, which got Nolan’s usual acclaim and did decent box office. Then, she followed it up with the Nancy Meyers-helmed comedy hit The Intern. Plus, there’s her portrayal of actress Daphne Kluger in the heist comedy spin-off, Ocean’s 8. With every snotty laugh and posh pose, Hathaway was able to satirize the media’s perception of her.
Like with almost every actor who has taken the coveted trophy, there remained a string of highs and lows since her Oscar win with even some of her highs going mostly unnoticed. Specifically, her turn in the sci-fi dark comedy, Colossal, and as a femme fatale psychiatrist in the ‘60s-set noir, Eileen, which is arguably her best work in years. But of course, like every performer who has so much as a slight career dry spell, there’s always room for a comeback. This year, it looks like she might have a big one.
The long-awaited musical psychodrama Mother Mary has been in the pipeline long enough to the point where this writer wondered if the film was just a figment of our imaginations. But as it turns out, it’s not only real and finally hitting theaters soon, but is coming out in what is going to be a busy year for the Oscar-winning star.
Shortly after, Hathaway will return to the role of Andrea “Andy” Sachs in The Devil Wears Prada 2 which, if the record-breaking trailer views are of any indication, is bound to be a money-maker thanks to nostalgia for the original Oscar-nominated hit, as well as the returning original cast. Then in July, she’ll play the role of Penelope in the hotly-anticipated blockbuster adaptation of The Odyssey where she re-teams with Christopher Nolan. However, it won’t be the only summer blockbuster starring Hathaway that’ll hit IMAX screens.
Just recently, the teaser for The End of Oak Street, the new sci-fi thriller helmed by It Follows’ David Robert Mitchell and set for release on August 14th, aired online. The story involving a family experiencing a weird phenomenon taking place in their neighborhood seems indeed mysterious. But its ambiguous premise along with acclaimed names like Anne Hathaway and the always-reliable Ewan McGregor carrying the project should be enough to invite audience intrigue.
Capping out Hathaway’s busy year is the film adaptation of the 2018 mystery novel Verity, which is currently set for an October release. A re-teaming of Hathaway and her The Idea of You director Michael Showalter, Verity follows a struggling writer (Dakota Johnson) who’s asked to complete the book series of the bedridden titular novelist (Hathaway) only for her to be drawn to Verity’s mysterious past. Although previous adaptations of Colleen Hoover’s work haven’t yielded strong critical results, they’ve still fared well financially. Given the star power in the cast ( Hathaway, Johnson, Josh Hartnett) in addition to the Colleen Hoover brand, Verity could be another box office win for Hathaway.
That being said, even if Levity doesn’t strike box office gold, it’ll surely still be a testament of her immense range that’ll be on full display this year. How she can go from comedies to thrillers to sci-fi blockbusters with ease. Similarly, if Mother Mary ends up being a critical and/or commercial misfire, it’ll still be proof that as she enjoys likely commercial success with The Odyssey and The Devil Wears Prada 2, she’s still someone willing to tackle risky, auteurist visions.
As an Anne Hathaway fan, I “dreamed a dream” that a moment like this would come for her and it came true.
