Anne Jacqueline "Annie" Hathaway was born on November 12, 1982, is an American film and stage actress. Hathaway made her debut under the guidance of Disney, when she starred in the comedic-oriented film The Princess Diaries (2001) opposite Julie Andrews. It was generally well-received by critics and its success established her on-screen popularity. In the following three years Hathaway continued appearing in Disney-directed films and she had lead roles in Ella Enchanted and The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement (both 2004), which performed moderately at the box office and received mixed reviews.

Hathaway took more creative control over her image with her next projects and co-starred in the mature-themed Havoc and Brokeback Mountain (both 2005) and her contract with Disney was terminated afterward. The following year, Hathaway starred opposite Meryl Streep in the screen adaptation of The Devil Wears Prada (2006), which is her highest-grossing North American film to date. Her acting-style is frequently compared to that of Judy Garland, Julia Roberts, and Audrey Hepburn, and she cites Hepburn as her favorite actress.

Biography

Early Life And Education

Hathaway was born in Brooklyn, New York to Gerard 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 Shakespere and has two brothers, one older and one younger. Hathaway is of Irish ancestry on her father's side and was raised in the Catholic religion with what she considers "really strong values", and wanted to be a nun during her childhood. When Hathaway was fifteen-years-old, she decided not to become a nun after learning that her brother Michael was gay. While she was brought up as a Catholic, she felt that she could not support a religion that was against her brother.

Hathaway was raised in New Jersey and graduated from Millburn High School. She spent several semesters studying at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York before transferring to New York University's Gallatin School of Individualized Study. Her younger brother Thomas currently attends Sarah Lawrence College. She has referred to her college enrollment as "one of the best decisions" she has made, primarily because she enjoyed being "with other people who are trying to get through the same stuff — growing up". Hathaway was a member of the Barrow Group Theater Company's acting program, and the first teenager accepted into the program. She is a trained stage actress and has stated that she prefers appearing on stage than in film roles.

In 1998 Hathaway performed twice with the All Eastern U.S. High School Honors Chorus at Carnegie Hall, which helped lead her first role in the short-lived series Get Real; it premiered in 1999.

Early Career Work

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, but The Other Side of Heaven was received weakly by critics. It performed moderately for a Christian-themed film.

Hathaway continued appearing in comedic-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 critically-acclaimed reception, the film never entered wide release and failed at the North American box office (totalling less than US$4 million), but was screened until mid-2003. Hathaway's next role was in Ella Enchanted (2004), the screen 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".

Hathaway was a front-runner to star opposite Gerard Butler in The Phantom of the Opera, but declined the role because of her conflicting contract with Disney. That same year, Disney began production on The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement. Initially it was going to be filmed in Prague, but the production team decided to construct their own "kingdom" in Los Angeles. The film opened to moderate reviews and peaked higher at the box office than its predecessor, but generated lower ticket sales.

Career Transition

Hathaway began appearing in less comedic-oriented films following the worldwide success of The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement. She said that "anybody who was a role model for children needs a reprieve", although noted that "it's lovely to think that my audience is growing up with me", a reference to her status as a children's actress. She voiced a version of Little Red Riding Hood in Hoodwinked (2005), which received 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) and the drama Brokeback Mountain (2005), opposite Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal; she appeared topless in both films. Havoc was released direct-to-video because of its weak critical reception, but Brokeback Mountain was raved for its depiction of a homosexual relationship in the early 1960s ("it's a deeply felt, emotional love story", said the Los Angeles Times) and received several Academy Award nominations, including "Best Picture", which it lost to Crash (2004). Although Hathaway said that it would have been an honor for the film to have won "Best Picture", she asserted that its content was more important than its award count.

Hathaway's most recent film role was in the dark comedy 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 claims her personal style is something she "can't get right" and that she prefers "doing the things she loves" instead of looking in the mirror.

Hathaway's next film Becoming Jane, in which she stars as English writer Jane Austen, is slated for release in early 2007. While she was selected to supply the role over many other British actresses, some media sources have criticized her for lacking the "proper British sense and sensibility". Hathaway claims that nationality cannot affect an actor's performance and notes Vivian Leigh's appearance in Gone with the Wind (1939) as an example of "actors crossing the pond" and says, "whether I can play the part should be all that matters."

Personal Life

Since 2004, Hathaway has been in a relationship with real estate developer Raffaello Follieri. She enjoys interior design and reading as pastimes, and has stated that she is a non-denominational Christian.