Anne Hathaway
Biography
Anne Jacqueline Hathaway (born November 12, 1982) is an American film and stage actress. Hathaway made her acting debut in the 1999 television series Get Real, but her first prominent role was in Disney's family comedy The Princess Diaries (2001), which established her career. She continued to appear in Disney films in the next three years, and she had the lead roles in Ella Enchanted and The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement (both 2004). Hathaway took more creative control over her career in 2005 and co-starred in the adult-themed Havoc and Brokeback Mountain. The Devil Wears Prada (2006), in which she starred opposite Meryl Streep, has become the highest-grossing film of her career, and Becoming Jane, in which she stars as Jane Austen, was released in 2007.
Hathaway's acting-style has been compared to that of Judy Garland and Audrey Hepburn, and she cites Hepburn as her favorite actress and Streep as her idol. People magazine named her one of 2001's breakthrough stars and in 2006 she was listed as one of the world's "50 Most Beautiful People"
Hathaway was born on November 12, 1982, in Brooklyn, New York to Gerald Hathaway, a lawyer, and Kate McCauley, an actress who inspired Hathaway to follow in her footsteps. She was named after the wife of playwright William Shakespeare. She has an older brother, Michael, and a younger brother, Thomas. Hathaway was raised in the Catholic religion with what she considers "really strong values", and wanted to be a nun during her childhood. However, at fifteen, she decided not to become a nun after learning that Michael was gay. Although she was raised as a Catholic, she felt that she could not be part of a religion that disapproved of her brother's sexual orientation. Hathaway was raised in New Jersey and graduated from Millburn High School where she was in many school plays. She spent several semesters studying at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York before transferring to New York University's Gallatin School of Individualized Study. She referred to her college enrollment as one of her best decisions because she enjoyed being with others who were trying to successfully "grow up". Hathaway was a member of the Barrow Group Theater Company's acting program and the first teenager admitted. She is a trained stage actress and has stated that she prefers appearing on stage to film roles. Hathaway is a soprano and in 1998 she performed twice with the All Eastern U.S. High School Honors Chorus at Carnegie Hall. Three days later, she was cast in the short-lived 1999 television series Get Real.
Hathaway starred in Get Real for one season, after which it was cancelled. Her first major film role was in The Other Side of Heaven (2001) opposite Christopher Gorham, but before production began in New Zealand, she auditioned for the lead role of Mia Thermopolis in the Garry Marshall-directed The Princess Diaries (2001). Marshall cast her immediately because she fell off her chair during the audition and his granddaughters thought that she had nice hair. Hathaway enjoyed filming The Princess Diaries and called it "really fun". It was released before Heaven because of its comedic-oriented plot, which critics said was effective because of her casting; a reviewer for BBC wrote that "Hathaway shines in the title role, and generates great chemistry". Across the world, the film was a commercial success and a sequel was planned shortly after. Hathaway was named one of 2001's breakthrough stars by People magazine. The Other Side of Heaven was received weakly by critics, but it performed well for a Christian-themed film. Hathaway continued appearing in comedy-oriented films and was known in the media as a children's role model. The following year, she starred in Nicholas Nickleby (2002) opposite Charlie Hunnam and Jamie Bell, which opened to positive reviews; the Northwest Herald referred to it as "an unbelievably fun film" and the Deseret News said that the cast was "Oscar-worthy". Despite critical acclaim, the film never entered wide release and failed at the North American box office (totalling less than US$4 million). Hathaway's next role was in Ella Enchanted (2004), the film adaptation of the award-winning novel. It received indifferent reviews: the Chicago Tribune called it "shiny candy that tastes oddly familiar yet lacks sugary punch", and the New York Times felt that it was "clichéd and forgetful". However, the Dallas Morning News cited Tommy O'Haver's directing-style as "a Flintstones-like humor to the setting by melding modern with medieval culture". In 2004 Hathaway was to star opposite Gerard Butler in The Phantom of the Opera, but she rejected the role because of her conflicting contract with Disney, which she was unhappy about. Disney began production on The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement in early 2004 and it was initially going to be filmed in Prague, but the location was changed to Los Angeles, where the "kingdom" of Genovia was built. The film opened to negative reviews and peaked higher at the box office than its predecessor, but ended with lower ticket sales.
Hathaway began appearing in less comedic-oriented films after The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement. She said that "anybody who was a role model for children needs a reprieve", although she also noted that "it's lovely to think that my audience is growing up with me", a reference to her previous status as a children's actress. She voiced a version of Little Red Riding Hood in Hoodwinked (2005), which received generally mixed reviews; The Hollywood Reporter said that it "gets hopelessly lost in the woods" and is "too one-note to sustain a feature-length format". That same year, Hathaway was cast in the mature-rated Havoc (2005), in which she played a spoiled socialite. In a surprise move, Hathaway was featured in several nude and sexual scenes throughout the film. This came as quite a shock to people more familiar with her more childish and comedic roles. She also appeared in the drama Brokeback Mountain (2005), opposite Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal, appearing nude in the film as well. Havoc was not released in theatres in the United States (but was later released in other countries) because of its weak critical reception, but Brokeback won rave reviews for its depiction of a homosexual relationship in the 1960s, and received several Academy Award nominations, including "Best Picture". Hathaway asserted that its content was more important than its award count. Hathaway's latest film was The Devil Wears Prada (2006), in which she stars as an assistant to a powerful fashion magazine editor (Meryl Streep, whom she described as being "just divine"). Hathaway said that working on the film earned her respect in the fashion industry, but she claims that her personal style is something she "can't get right"[ and instead prefers "doing the things she loves". Hathaway was then seen in Becoming Jane, in which she stars as English writer Jane Austen, released in early 2007 in the UK and will be released in August 2007 in the US. She will also star as Agent 99 in the screen adaptation of the TV series of Get Smart, which will premiere in 2008, and has recently signed onto the Hoodwinked sequel, Hood vs. Evil.
Source: Wikipedia
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