The Anne Hathaway-aissance is upon us. But you didn’t need us to tell you that if you’ve encountered even a fraction of the new Hathaway content 2024 has served up so far — see her “Idea of You” press tour outfits (and please, let’s push back on the idea that this is “age-gap dressing”); profiles in the New York Times magazine and Vanity Fair; videos of her dancing at a Versace party; and even just her whole Versace campaign. And who could forget the 2022 viral “Calma” clip, where both her Italian prowess and hot pink outfit were on full display. 

Hathaway’s style and charm, grasp of Romance languages, and relatable accounts of her fertility struggles and sobriety (not to mention, equally relatable advice for moms) make it hard to believe that she once, suddenly and arbitrarily, became the most despised celebrity in Hollywood. Circa 2013, she received so much internet scorn — for being not sexy enough, too enthusiastic, and in her words, a “striver” — that the vitriol got a name: “Hathahate.” It was one of the most striking examples of America’s allergy to female ambition and how that highly subjective quality, “likability,” impacts female actors’ careers. In light of all that, you could call the great press she’s getting around “Idea of You” a victory tour — which might explain why she’s suddenly joined TikTok. The woman behind Mia Thermopolis and Andy Sachs is out there again, talking about how she’s shed her “people pleaser” impulses and is as sexy as any self-respecting Scorpio. Now, if only she’d just tell us what’s going on with “Princess Diaries 3”...