Here’s why everyone thinks Ariana Grande might be auditioning to play Audrey Hepburn in a rumored biopic
Ariana Grande may be busy with award season appearances for Wicked — but are her freshly-cut bangs and sudden penchant for Givenchy an indication that she’s vying for a role as Hollywood icon Audrey Hepburn?
Last week, at the Palm Springs Film Festival, Grande debuted fine, forehead-laid bangs akin to the beloved Breakfast at Tiffany’s actress who died in 1993.
Normally a bang trim wouldn’t cause widespread whispers, but there are reports Grande is interested in appearing in a possible Hepburn biopic, leaving people wondering whether her new do was an easter egg for an upcoming role she’s either already been cast in or desparately wants to get.
Her subtle hairstyle switch isn’t totally out of the ordinary for the star who’s sported everything from cherry ride tresses to long caramel extensions. But it’s not just the hair or the delicate demeanor sounding Hepburn alarms; her recent fashion has, too.
At this point, the Eternal Sunshine artist has become adept at method dressing. For the past year, she’s merged into her character Galinda from John Chu’s Wicked, donning every shade of pink and burrowing herself in billowing skirts that look like bubbles (designer ones, of course). So, as logic stands, if she were to have been cast as Hepburn in an upcoming project, or at least wanted to audition, no question she’d play the part in style — and it really seems like she’s already started.
Just this past weekend, Grande teamed with her long-time stylist Mimi Cuttrell to pull a dress straight from the Givenchy 1966 vault for the 82nd annual Golden Globes, which saw Grande nominated for the first time for her performance as Galinda. The “we can’t be friends” singer stepped out in a long, pale yellow strapless gown with green and white-beaded hues along the top designed by Hubert de Givenchy himself, paired with long white gloves.
Aside from the fact that the dress was crafted amid Hepburn’s 1960s stardom, it was made by de Givenchy who was a close confidante and collaborator of the Funny Face star. Hepburn notoriously wore a number of pieces by the French designer in the 1954 film, Sabrina, setting the stage for their timeless sartorial influence, before they developed a friendship that surpassed that of just fashion.
In the weeks before the Globes, too, Grande donned looks reminiscent of Hepburn’s emblematic style. In fact, Grande took a page straight from Hepburn’s very-Chanel coded attire in Breakfast at Tiffany’s in Palm Springs after the film festival, bearing a statement pearl choker and a black knee-length dress with a white rosette detail stitched at the tip of her V-cut neckline and a stiff circle skirt. Grande finished the look with a polished bun, her side-swept bangs, and a pair of blacked-out shades. Coincidence? All that was missing from the outfit to make it full-blown Hepburn was a pair of opera gloves and a mouthpiece.
Before her trip to the desert, Grande wore a 1959 Christian Dior champagne-colored, square-neck dress with a rectangular-buckle belt designed by Yves Saint Laurent to the brunch for the Globes’ first-time nominees. Her matching satin waist belt immediately brought Hepburn to mind as the actress was famous for wearing the same accessory, cinching her midsection, as “Princess Anne” in Roman Holiday (1953).
What’s more, Grande posed in a 1963 Pierre Balmain black and white polka dot ballgown adorned with a black fabric waist band and a big bow at the 2024 Academy Gala in Los Angeles. The fabric of the ensemble looked remarkably similar to the strapless Givenchy dress decorated in tiny black flowers that Hepburn wore in Funny Face.
Of course, Grande could be subconsciously emmulating Hepburn’s style, recognizing a bit of her ingenue self in the stunning actress, without any career motives in mind. Only time will tell.
Plans for a Hepburn-focused biopic have been in the works since 2022 when actress Rooney Mara was said to be linked to the project. And for some time, director Luca Guadagnino, celebrated for a number of his films such as Challengers and Call Me By Your Name, was a part of it as well. However, Guadagnino walked away from the opportunity in October 2023. The last public update about the biopic was when Mara sent a statement to Deadline in February 2024, in which she said: “The project is not completely dead … Luca is no longer going to be directing it, but the project is still very much alive. I can’t say more than that right now.”
