Kristen Stewart Says Playing Princess Diana in a Wedding Dress Was "Spooky"
The actress dug deep for this role.


It's happening, folks. The Los Angeles premiere of Spencer unfolded on Oct. 26, and the long-awaited Princess Diana biopic (opens in new tab) will finally grace a big screen near you on Nov. 5.
Speaking to Entertainment Tonight (opens in new tab) on the red carpet, Kristen Stewart (opens in new tab) revealed what it was really like stepping into the late Princess of Wales' shoes—especially when she had to wear a replica of her wedding dress.
"When we put that dress on, it is embedded in a montage that kind of flashed her life before you," Stewart told ET. "Even though the movie takes place over a three-day period and even though I play her as a speculatively 29, 30-year-old person, we still wanted to give a taste of the scope of her life. Kind of touch on every part, even if it was in kind of lyrical dance. And the wedding dress is embedded in that montage and putting that on was a spooky day."
Playing the title role in Spencer sounds like an emotionally heavy experience. "We didn't have to do the wedding scene but I still had one walk, walking outside of this castle," Stewart continued. "I was like, 'Wait, but this is so particular.' This actually does land on a very precise day of her life and [the director Pablo Larraín] was like, 'Take everything you learned about that day, all of your emotional responses that you have accumulated, put them all right here. What does it feel like to believe in an ideal that then becomes very, very apparently farcical? It's kind of just like, let your heart break in a moment.' I was like, 'OK got it. Let's go.'"
It's not the first time Stewart has used the word "spooky" when talking about filming the movie. She previously told the LA Times (opens in new tab), "I felt some spooky, spiritual feelings making this movie. Even if I was just fantasizing. I felt like there were moments where I kind of got the sign-off."
Stewart, who received a standing ovation (opens in new tab) for her portrayal of Diana in Venice and is an early favorite for the Oscars, stunned as much on the red carpet as she apparently does on screen.
The actress wore a tiny black crop top and tiered tulle and lace skirt by Chanel (opens in new tab). She is a longtime ambassador for the label, which is her go-to (opens in new tab) for many red carpet events. For the Spencer premiere, Stewart kept the strawberry blonde hair she debuted a few weeks ago, but styled it in a cool-girl asymmetric look, short on one side and wavy on the other.
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Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Bustle and Shape. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.
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