Hathaway Nearly Quit Mother Mary After Watching Her Own Footage
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- Anne Hathaway told her husband she wanted to quit A24's Mother Mary after seeing early footage of herself performing, recalling to Elle that she thought it was "really bad" and that she wasn't sure she could ask people to come see it.
- Hathaway ultimately chose to stay, reasoning: "there would be no shame if I was fired, but there would be if I quit."
- Hathaway took months of dance lessons for the film, worked on her vocals for a full year during postproduction, and returned to the studio to re-record most of her part with Jack Antonoff, who greeted her with "You have been working."
- Mother Mary, written and directed by David Lowery and released by A24, features original songs by Jack Antonoff, Charli XCX, and FKA twigs, and premiered in theaters last month.
- Hathaway plays the titular pop star, who confronts old wounds when she reunites with estranged best friend and former costume designer Sam (Michaela Coel) ahead of a comeback performance.
- Hathaway last took on a major musical role when she won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar in 2013 for Les Misérables, making Mother Mary her return to the genre more than a decade later.
Why it matters: Hathaway's near-departure could have upended an A24 prestige film built around original songs from Jack Antonoff, Charli XCX, and FKA twigs, but her decision to stay — and reinvest a year of vocal work plus a full re-record with Antonoff — is what landed the performance in the can. For Hathaway, the role marks her first major musical since the 2013 Les Misérables Oscar, and for A24, the bet on a star who publicly wavered has now opened to generally positive early reactions.
