Anne Hathaway Nearly Lost Role In ‘The Intern’ Due To Her Age?

Anne Hathaway is celebrating her role as a powerful woman both on screen and off screen in her new movie The Intern. Opening this weekend, The Intern stars Anne Hathaway as the young CEO of a thriving internet start-up who hires a septuagenarian intern, played by Robert De Niro. The director of The Intern is Nancy Meyers, whose more notable films include Something’s Gotta Give (2003) and It’s Complicated (2009).

Anne Hathaway’s character in The Intern is Jules Ostin, who, according to Refinery 29, has it all. Anne Hathaway’s Jules is both a mom, a wife, and a successful career woman. The titular character of The Intern is Ben Whittaker, played by Robert De Niro. Retired and bored, he takes on the role and, in doing so, befriends Jules. Together, they teach each other important life lessons.

Anne Hathaway was complimentary of her relationship with DeNiro’s character from The Intern.

“One of the things I think is so cool about this relationship [in The Intern] is that Ben’s not trying to change Jules. He’s not trying to fix her. What he’s saying is, ‘you’re great. Everything you need you have inside you.’ I don’t know that I’ve ever seen that relationship on-screen.”

While the character that Anne Hathaway plays in The Intern may make it seem relatively easy to have it all, in real life, the struggle is harder. Thanks to both talent and luck, Anne Hathaway has so far successfully navigated the age gauntlet that most actresses face in their careers. While Anne Hathaway has been able to land starring roles in major films in her twenties, including the Academy Award-nominated Rachel Getting Married (2008) and the Academy Award-winning Les Miserables (2012), getting such roles in her thirties is proving to be more difficult. In an interview with Forbes, Anne Hathaway speaks to the ageism that women face in Hollywood and their ability to obtain roles.

“When I was in my early twenties, parts would be written for women in their fifties and I would get them. And now I’m in my early thirties and I’m like, ‘Why did that 24 year old get that part?'”

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Anne Hathaway was asked about the issue of gender equality in Hollywood, and she referenced film franchises as a major contributor to the issue.

“There’s a very big problem when you look at the list of the highest-earning men and the highest-earning women in the global film community… When you look at the reason why that is, that there aren’t a lot of franchises starring women.”

What the future will look for Anne Hathaway remains to be seen, but as long as she continues to fight for roles such as The Intern, it is sure to be successful.

[Image by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images]