Anne Hathaway Has Asked People To Stop Calling Her ‘Anne’

Anne Hathaway wants everyone to stop calling her ‘Anne,’ as she’d prefer to be called something else. 

Hathaway is a well-known American actress who has appeared in several popular movies throughout her career, such as The Devil Wears Prada, Les Misérables, and Interstellar.

Her films are believed to have made an incredible $6.8 billion around the globe.

You might assume that since Hathway is a big star in Hollywood, she would be totally fine with people saying her name all the time. But actually, that’s not how she feels.

The actress mentioned that her name doesn’t really suit her, and she pointed out that nobody around her actually calls her by it.

Before we get started, let’s explore how Hathaway became so famous, gaining millions of fans who had no idea she disliked being called ‘Anne.’

Hathaway really made a name for herself when she played Mia Thermopolis in The Princess Diaries.

Surprisingly, the actress landed the part after just one audition, and she really connected with director Garry Marshall right away.

Hathaway remembered saying (according to Vogue): “During the audition, I got super nervous and actually fell out of my chair. I think that’s what impressed him the most.”

This moment feels like a real-life fairy tale for the star. On the anniversary of the movie, she said, “I remember that day and I’m so grateful to the universe. A huge thank you because that was the day my dreams finally came true.”

“There are a lot of aspects to my life that are very real, but also a lot that are very fairy tale. That was the day that my fairy tale started.”

After her part in the coming-of-age comedy, Hathaway was set on making sure her fame continued to grow, so she started choosing more mature roles to prevent being stuck in the same type of character.

“It’s lovely to think that my audience is growing up with me,” the star said.

Hathaway fans watched her grow as an actress, starring in many hit movies like Brokeback Mountain and The Devil Wears Prada.

Recently, Hathaway has had a lot on her plate with different projects and events she’s been attending.

She played a leading role in the new romantic comedy The Idea of You, which came out on Prime Video in May 2024.

The movie, inspired by the book by Robinne Lee, follows the life of Solène, a 39-year-old single mother. She starts a romantic relationship with a younger pop star named Hayes Campbell, who is portrayed by Nicholas Galitzine.

Hathaway also stars in the 2024 psychological thriller Mothers’ Instinct.

This movie, featuring Jessica Chastain, dives into the complicated and sometimes scary aspects of a mother’s love and friendship after a terrible accident happens.

But before these hits, the Ella Enchanted star had one difficult decision to make… her name.

During an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, the host asked Hathaway: “I’ve known you for a pretty long time now. I’ve heard people call you Annie, like your good friends. Do I call you Anne or Annie?”

The actress responded: “Call me Annie! Everybody, everybody, call me Annie – please!”

She shared that she started using the name Anne for her acting career when she was 14 because she needed to get a Screen Actors Guild membership card.

Back then, Hathaway had no clue about how famous she would get, and she didn’t realize that people would start calling her by her real name instead of the nickname she liked.

“They asked me, ‘What do you want your name to be?’ And I’m like, well, it should be my name. My name’s Anne Hathaway,” the actress recalled.

It felt like the best decision at the time. I never thought that from then on, everyone would just call me Anne for the rest of my life.

Hathaway shared that the only person who ever calls her Anne is, you guessed it… her mom – and that only happens when she’s upset with her.

“The only person who ever calls me Anne is my mother, and she only does it when she’s really mad at me,” the actress added.

“So every time I step out in public and someone calls my name, I think they’re going to yell at me.”

Hathaway asked the audience to call her “anything but Anne.” She explained, “People are really nice and don’t want to assume anything, so they try to find other names to use on set. The truth is, no one feels comfortable calling me Anne because it just doesn’t feel right.”

“I’m an Annie. And so people call me, like, Miss H; people call me Hath. So feel free to call me anything but Anne.”