THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER – On IMDb’s new podcast, ‘Movies That Changed My Life,’ the star of Hulu’s ‘The Great’ opens up on just that — the films she watched growing up that influenced her career.
Elle Fanning is allergic the phrase “strong female characters.”
That’s what the star of Hulu’s new MRC-produced series The Great explained on the latest episode of IMDb’s newly launched podcast Movies That Changed My Life.
“What does that mean?” Fanning asked, in reference to her character Catherine, as in Catherine the Great, to host Ian de Borja, best known for his work on The IMDb Show. She wanted to show all sides to the historical figure, who gets a reimagining in the Tony McNamara-created series in which she stars opposite Nicholas Hoult. “I was really aware that I wanted to humanize her. She makes mistakes; sometimes she waivers, sometimes she’s weak and sometimes she’s incredibly brave. There’s room for that on TV — to have complicated female characters.”
There’s nothing complicated about Movies That Changed My Life. The weekly series features actors and filmmakers discussing the movies that inspired them and helped launch their careers. The podcast joins other popular IMDb original video series including The IMDb Show, IMDbrief and What to Watch. The inaugural episode features Westworld’s Jeffrey Wright, who was followed by Joel McHale, Judy Greer, Felicia Day and Kevin Smith.
New episodes come out every Thursday wherever podcasts are found, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, IMDb.com/podcasts and through IMDb’s iOS and Android apps.
Says Nikki Santoro, head of IMDb Consumer: “These personal and in-depth conversations with our customers’ favorite actors and filmmakers will reveal the defining moments in their lives, ultimately providing listeners with a greater understanding of their favorite performers, as well as recommendations for new films to add to their IMDb Watchlists.”
On the episode with Fanning, she also dishes on her upcoming film The Nightingale, a role that put her opposite sister Dakota for the first time in their careers; how the first time she watched The Neverending Story was with Bijou Phillips at Sean Lennon’s apartment next to John Lennon’s piano; and how she would dress up as the iconic Sandy while watching Grease. To listen to Fanning, click here.
