Taylor Swift Wrote The Role For Her Redheaded Seductress Character In Sugarland’s ‘Babe’ Music Video
Take a look at what Taylor Swift made herself do! The singer has come a long way since her teen fairy tale days, and her evolution has never been more evident than it is in Sugarland’s “Babe” video. The idealistic pop princess looking for her Prince Charming has morphed into an experienced seductress who knows that not every love story has a happy ending, and Swift is even willing to play a character who destroys another woman’s happily ever after. “Everything Has Changed,” indeed.
As reported by People, Taylor Swift underwent a sexy retro makeover for her role in Sugarland’s music video for “Babe,” a song about the fallout of infidelity. Swift co-wrote the lyrics with Train lead singer Pat Monahan, and she provided guest vocals on the track. Swift also came up with the concept for the video and the character she plays in it, a femme fatale who has a steamy affair with a married man. The “Red” singer rocks red hair for her role, and she has a retro glam look inspired by AMC’s popular period drama set in the ’60s, Mad Men. In fact, the video was actually filmed on the old Mad Men set in Los Angeles. It was directed by Anthony Mandler.
Sugarland member Jennifer Nettles revealed that Taylor Swift reached out to her and bandmate Kristian Bush to let them know that she had an idea for the “Babe” music video, and both members of the country music duo immediately fell in love with her concept. Swift also decided to cast herself as one of the characters in the video, a glamorous working girl who wears tight sweaters and breaks up the monotony of her secretarial job by seducing a coworker who is presumably her boss.
Superman Returns star Brandon Routh plays the man who quickly submits to her advances, and Nettles plays the happily ignorant woman who is married to him, a stereotypical ’60s housewife who lives in a large house in a wealthy suburban neighborhood. The illusion of her perfect Donna Reed life is shattered when she makes a surprise visit to her husband’s office and catches Swift and Routh’s characters in the act.
Kristian Bush, who plays the bespectacled neighbor at the end of the video, described it as “your favorite summer movie you haven’t seen yet” during an interview with Entertainment Tonight. Jennifer Nettles has also talked about the subject matter of “Babe,” hinting that it might be inspired by one of Taylor Swift’s exes. ELLE suggested that the most likely culprit is former One Direction singer Harry Styles.
You can check out the “Babe” music video below.
