After setting the internet on fire with The Idea of You trailer earlier this year, Anne Hathaway returned to her romantic comedy roots. Of course, viewers are buzzing about the palpable chemistry between her and her co-star Nicholas Galitzine. While audiences love Galitzine as the pseudo-boy bander, the Oscar winner revealed the sweet song choice that landed the rising star the role of her younger lover.
Hathaway was already a lock as the music-driven rom-com’s leading lady. However, finding her younger partner in the May-December romance was a major undertaking. The Princess Diary star spilled to V Magazine she and fellow producers had seen several young actors before deciding on Galitzine. She revealed each actor had to prove their musical talent with some boy band moves, saying:
We asked each of the actors coming in to choose a song that they felt their character would love, that they would put on to get my character to dance, and then we’d do a short little improv. I was sitting in a chair like we had come in from dinner or a walk or something, we pressed play, and we just started dancing together.
Substituting a traditional chemistry test for a dance session between Hathaway and her potential love interest was genius. Dance allows the talent to let their guard down. This worked in the Bottoms actor’s favor as he’s now starring opposite the Hollywood A-lister.
But it wasn’t just the mini-dance session that sealed the deal as Hathaway explained how Galitzine’s song choice played a role in securing the role. She said:
The Alabama Shakes. And it was just easy. I heard [the lead singer of Alabama Shake’s] Brittany’s voice and I just started smiling. And he saw me smile, so he relaxed, and we just started dancing. Nobody was showing off. Nobody was trying to get the gig. We were just in a space dancing. I looked over and Michael Showalter, our director, was beaming. Spark!
So Nicholas Galitzine unlocked the way to Anne Hathaway’s heart – The Alabama Shakes. Of course, the rest is history as Galitzine and Hathaway appear to be rom-com perfection in the movie (which will be available to stream with an Amazon Prime subscription). Beyond the rising Hollywood star’s song choice, the Les Miserable star admitted his line reading and musicianship cemented him as the top choice. She mentioned that “he just charmed” the producers while carrying a tune and playing guitar (much like pop star Harry Styles). That’s all you need to lead a fictional band.
It appeared the Red, white, and Royal Blue star’s casting was secured before he uttered a line. The Oscar winner knew Galitzine would be the perfect Hayes. Upon seeing the actor, she mentioned “laughing” as “he was so ridiculously perfect for the part.”
Viewers won’t have to wait much longer to see Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Galitzine have created a new rom-com classic as The Idea of You premieres on Amazon Prime Video on May 2. Don’t forget to take some time to watch the best romantic comedies of all time before the Amazon Prime movie arrives. You can look at our movie schedule to see what other rom-coms are premiering this year.
