Maggie Gyllenhaal reveals her inspiration behind 'The Bride!'

(photo AI/IANS)

Los Angeles, (IANS) Actress-director Maggie Gyllenhaal has spoken up on her source of inspiration for her upcoming film ‘The Bride!’.

The actress was inspired to direct after seeing a tattoo at a party, reports ‘Female First UK’.

The 48-year-old actress and filmmaker has helmed the new Gothic romance movie and explained how it came about after she saw a man with a tattoo of the Bride of Frankenstein on his arm and decided to watch the original 1935 picture that starred Boris Karloff and Elsa Lanchester.

Maggie, who made her directorial debut with ‘The Lost Daughter’, told SFX magazine, "I was at a party, and I saw a man with a tattoo on his whole forearm of the Bride of Frankenstein. And I was like... huh! It just hooked me. I saw this tattoo, and I was like, 'Have I ever seen that movie? I know the image’. I was doing press in LA, and I went back to my hotel room and looked her up online. Then I watched the movie”.

As per ‘Female First UK’, Maggie felt that the fact that she hadn't seen Bride of Frankenstein gave her a fresh sense of perspective as she embarked on making the movie.

The actress said, "Throughout this process, the feeling of coming to something new and fresh has been a part of my experience. I came to her very open and curious, without much history attached, aside from the general way that she exists in our cultural mythology”.

The actress was particularly struck by the fact that Lanchester's Bride has only minimal screen time in the film.

She explained, "Well, Elsa Lanchester doesn't speak, which I found really interesting, especially when she's the titular character. You're kind of expecting that the movie is going to be about her, and it just isn't. But then when she does come on screen, she's undeniable. She has very few actual minutes of screen time as the Bride, and yet somehow she makes this lasting impact. I think it has to do with her so clearly being disobedient and not willing to fit in a box. Like, she's just saying 'No' from the moment she wakes up to this pretty f***** situation that she finds herself in”.

Maggie shared that she and lead star Jessie Buckley didn't set out to imitate Lanchester's look, but it ended up that way.

The actress said, "Jessie and I were involved together for a long time. Before the Actors' Strike (in the summer of 2023), we were working, thinking, sharing images and poems and songs. Then we have this big break where we can't work, and we're just gathering information alone”."We really felt no responsibility to imitate the original Bride of Frankenstein. "We didn't think of it that way at all. But by the time we got the look finished, she does have that little bit of a wink to the Bride's hair. We loved the idea that electricity dyed all of her hair white: the hair on her head, her lashes, her brows”, she added. Maggie Gyllenhaal reveals her inspiration behind 'The Bride!' | MorungExpress | morungexpress.com

Read More........ → March 01, 2026

Elle Fanning says she was shocked to know about ‘Sentimental Value’ Oscar nomination

(Photo: elle fanning/instagram)

Los Angeles, (IANS) Hollywood actress Elle Fanning was taken by surprise when she was nominated for the Oscars for ‘Sentimental Value’.

The 27-year-old star is up for Best Supporting Actress at next month's Academy Awards ceremony but has confessed that she went on a night out with her sister Dakota Fanning before the nominations were announced in January, reports ‘Female First UK’.

Elle told The Hollywood Reporter, "I was not watching it. Dakota and I had gone out the night before. We had quite a late night. I couldn't compute. I go out bleary-eyed, and I'm like, 'Mom! Dakota! Wake up. I think I got it. I think I got it. I looked like a crazed zombie who was walking in circles saying, 'Is this real?'".

‘Sentimental Value’ received nine Oscar nominations and Fanning says that the most exciting nod for the Norwegian picture was Olivier Bugge Coutte's recognition in the Best Film Editing category.

The Maleficent actress said, "What Olivier has done with the film, and the way that it is edited and constructed, I'm so happy that he wasn't overlooked because it's so particular and he has such a keen eye and was so essential to the film. Editors, I've come to learn now in the producing process, too, hold the key to your performance in a lot of ways”.

As per ‘Female First UK’, Elle said that close bonds have been forged between Sentimental Value's cast and crew since the movie premiered at the Cannes Film Festival last year.

She said, "The fact that the family was held together and that no one was left out and that we get to continue the celebration with each other is really meaningful. I've been quite emotional about this whole experience. I'm still a little glassy-eyed and in shock over it all”.

The nod is the first Oscar nomination of Elle's career and she admits that the recognition feels particularly special because she has been acting since the age of two.

The actress said, "I've been acting since I was two. I've never gotten to have this experience before. (It's) my first time being nominated (for an Oscar). It does really mean something to me, to be recognised by my peers. I don't think you realise how special that feels until it happens”.

The Oscar nomination comes after a varied year for Elle, which also saw her star in the sci-fi action flick ‘Predator: Badlands’, and she explained how she never wants to be typecast.

She said, "You don't know what projects are going to come to you or what's being written at the time, but I have been very fortunate to be able to have these varied projects”.

“I like to be scared. I like to be terrified a bit and step into something new because I feel like that's how I have to keep pushing myself. Maleficent, that was amazing and it opened up a lot of doors for me in that sense, but then there's a box; people want to put the Disney princess on you. I'm like, 'Wait, don't do that to me’”, she added. Elle Fanning says she was shocked to know about ‘Sentimental Value’ Oscar nomination | MorungExpress | morungexpress.com

Read More........ → February 27, 2026