The next time you’re watching a Kate Hudson comedy, pause the movie and begin to give whoever is present a full dissertation on behind-the-scenes details just like Lord of the Rings fans do. There may not be as much world-building in rom-coms. Or lore. Or actors accidentally getting broken bones in a certain take of a certain scene. But there are love ferns. And Liz Phair pop rock songs.
Here are 25 pieces of Reel Trivia from Kate Hudson’s romantic comedies that will put you on your way to becoming the subject matter expert.
How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003)
1. Kate Hudson’s iconic yellow dress in the film was designed by costume designer Karen Patch and a team from Carolina Herrera. Yellow was chosen specifically to match the yellow Isadora Diamond necklace that Hudson wears in the gala scene.
2. The “Isadora Diamond” is a real gem created by Harry Winston Jewelry. It was named after Isadora Duncan, an American dancer often credited with pioneering contemporary dance in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The 80 carat jewel was valued at between $5-6 million in 2003.
3. The movie is loosely based on the 1998 book How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days: The Universal Don’ts of Dating, a humorous guide to dating that features stick-figure illustrations. Andie’s (Kate Hudson) friends in the movie, Michelle and Jeannie, are named after the book’s authors, Michele Alexander and Jeannie Long.
4. Matthew McConaughey has stated that he receives more residual checks from this film than any other that he’s done.
5. To prepare for her role as a magazine columnist, Kate Hudson spent a day shadowing Vogue editor Anna Wintour. Wintour is widely known to movie fans as the inspiration for the character of Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada.
Raising Helen (2004)
1. The film was released by Buena Vista Pictures, a distribution label of The Walt Disney Company. Hence, the Disney animated short “Lorenzo” was shown as a preceding feature in theaters during Raising Helen’s US run.
2. Liz Phair’s 2003 song “Extraordinary” is used as the third closing credits song. Two music videos for the song were released, one using clips of Raising Helen, with Liz Phair inserted into several scenes of the movie as she performs. Phair’s song “Why Can’t I?” is famously featured in several early ’00s rom-coms as well, most notably in 13 Going on 30 (2004).
3. One of the models at the fashion show that Helen (Kate Hudson) attends with her adopted children is Erinn Bartlett. Bartlett later became Kate Hudson’s real-life sister-in-law, as she married actor Bill Hudson in 2006.
4. According to the The American Humane Society’s animal action report for the film, the pet turtle that Henry (Spencer Breslin) carries while running was actually made of clay.
5. In one scene, Helen’s niece, Audrey (Hayden Panettiere), prepares for a prom date with a mild-mannered boy from her school. The boy is played by 21-year-old Joseph Mazzello, known to audiences for his role as Tim in Jurassic Park (1993).
Fool’s Gold (2008)
1. The movie is set in the Caribbean, and director Andy Tennant initially planned to film in the Bahamas. According to producer Donald De Line, the start of shooting would have coincided with hurricane season, so filming was done in Australia instead, primarily along the Gold Coast.
2. The 1715 Treasure Fleet is a real fleet of Spanish galleons bearing gold and silver that were lost in a hurricane off the coast of Florida. The ship that Finn (Matthew McConaughey) searches for, the Aurelia, is fictional. The real ships bore names such as Nuestra Señora de las Nieves (Our Lady of the Snows), and Nuestra Señora de la Popa (Our Lady of the Stern).
3. Composer George Fenton’s fifth collaboration with director Andy Tennant, after Ever After (1997), Anna and the King (1999), Sweet Home Alabama (2002), and Hitch (2005).
4. Filming halted after crew members discovered box jellyfish in the water near Fraser Island that were capable of inducing Irukandji syndrome. The principal cast members have often brought up this story in interviews, with Matthew McConaughey often marveling that the jellyfish are only the size of a human thumbnail.
5. Kate Hudson was nominated for the “Worst Actress” Razzie Award in 2008 for two roles—one for her role as Tess in Fool’s Gold, and the other as Alexis in My Best Friend’s Girl (2008).
Alex & Emma (2003)
1. The movie opens with a cover of the 1926 song “It All Depends On You”. The song was performed by voice artist Jess Harnell, known for his roles as the voice of Wakko in Animaniacs, Ironhide in the Transformers films, and the announcer from America’s Funniest Home Videos.
2. Nearly every trailer and TV spot for the film’s theatrical and DVD release featured Michelle Branch’s 2001 song “All You Wanted”. The few ads that didn’t used Norah Jones’ “Those Sweet Words”, which is also used in the movie.
3. While taking a break from writing, Alex and Emma take a walk on a bridge in New York. During this shot, there is a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it flash of light seen across Kate Hudson and Luke Wilson. This was a camera flash from paparazzi who were taking photos of the actors while shooting.
4. In 1866, author Fyodor Dostoevsky made a deal with publisher Fyodor Stellovsky. Dostoevsky was desperate to pay his gambling debts, and promised to deliver Stellovsky a book (at least 160 pages) by November 1, 1866, in exchange for an advance of 3,000 rubles. Failure to do meant Dostoevsky would forfeit his rights to his existing writings, as well as any further writing for the next nine years, which would go to Stellovsky. The author hired stenographer Anna Grigoryevna Snitkina to fast-track his writing, and the duo completed the novel The Gambler over a period of 26 days. Dostoevsky fell in love with Snitkina during their work together, and they married in 1867, remaining married until his death in 1881. This became the basis for the story of Alex & Emma.
5. According to director Rob Reiner, the film’s original title was “Loosely Based on a True Love Story”, referring to Dostoevsky and Snitkina. Reiner added “When anybody would say, `What’s the title?’ I’d say `Loosely Based on a True Love Story’ and they’d say, `Well, no. … What’s the title of it?’ We were going to have trouble there.”
Bride Wars (2009)
1. Kate Hudson served as a producer on Bride Wars, her first time doing so. According to Hudson, it took around six years from the first time the script was pitched to her until the film started shooting.
2. The original pitch for the film was R-rated and featured much more raunchy humor. Kate Hudson has retrospectively likened the tone of the original script as close to the film Bridesmaids (2011). After shopping the film to various studios, 20th Century Fox expressed interest, but only if the movie was reworked to a PG rating. Hudson has stated she was disappointed, but went ahead with the studio’s requests, as it gave her the chance to finally get the project off the ground.
3. The “third bride”, Stacy, is played by Casey Wilson, who also co-wrote the film’s shooting script.
4. Kate Hudson lost her voice the day after shooting the scene where her hair is revealed to have been dyed blue since the shot required multiple takes of the actress having to scream. She also improvised the dialogue when she’s telling her hairdresser about “the guy who messed up my centerpieces”.
5. Kate Hudson accidentally hit Anne Hathaway while filming the wedding-day brawl. Hathaway later recalled “Did you notice Kate’s enormous wedding ring in the movie? Imagine, surrounded in a cloud of tulle, Kate Hudson’s hand with the 9.000-carat diamond coming out and smacking you across the face and staying in character.” Some tabloids later used this incident to spread rumors that the two actresses were feuding during filming.
