"I thought it was gross": Anne Hathaway talks about having to kiss 10 actors for a chemistry test

Ahead of the release of her upcoming movie, The Idea of You, Anne Hathaway looked back on her auditioning days in the 2000s. In an interview with V Magazine published on April 20, Hathaway said:

"Back in the 2000s - and this did happen to me - it was considered normal to ask an actor to make out with other actors to test for chemistry, which is actually the worst way to do it."

Anne added she was once asked to kiss 10 guys for a chemistry test:

"We have 10 guys coming today and you're cast. Aren't you excited to make out with all of them?' And I thought, 'Is there something wrong with me?' because I wasn't excited. I thought it sounded gross."

Along with playing the lead protagonist, Anne Hathaway is also producing the film.

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"It was just a very different time": Anne Hathaway on chemistry tests in the 2000s

While looking back at her early auditioning days, Anne Hathaway recalled how being young could lose you everything if you were labeled "difficult". She added:

"So I just pretended I was excited and got on with it. It wasn't a power play, no one was trying tot be awful or hurt me. It was just a very different time and now we know better."

Being a producer, the actress has a direct say in casting a co-star. While revealing how she and the team zeroed in on a co-star, Anne said they asked each of the actors to choose a song that would get Hathaway's character, Solene, to dance.

"I was sitting in a chair like we had come in from dinner or a walk or something, we pressed play, and we just started dancing together."

After Nicholas Galitzine chose a song by Alabama Shakes, he won the part, and Anne Hathaway recalled him being "so ridiculously perfect" as he walked into the room.

"We were just in a space dancing. I looked over and Michael Showalter, our director, was beaming. Spark!"

English actor Nicholas Galtzine is best known for his roles in Purple Hearts, Red White & Royal Blue, and Bottoms.

While talking about her co-star, Anne Hathaway revealed that once he played his song and saw her smile, she relaxed, and they both just started dancing. She also revealed it didn't feel like he was trying to get the role or show off.

The film is based on Robin Lee's 2017 novel and tells the story of a 40-year-old single mom who falls in love with a 24-year-old international pop star. The Idea of You premiered at South by Southwest on March 16, and is all set to be released by Amazon MGM Studios via Prime Video on May 2.