USA TODAY – Here’s a fairy tale: Once upon a time, a spirit animal known to mortals as Cate Blanchett sits next to a newly anointed Cinderella (Lily James) under the bright lights of a ballroom. Tea service appears, like magic.

Suddenly, a discussion bubbles up from the cauldron: How does one build a career in Hollywood, the sort that can be held aloft for other girls, in a land where micro-sized outfits and male studio heads guard the gate to opportunity?

Blanchett considers. “I’m fortunate to have an old-fashioned agent,” says the actress, who revamps the evil stepmother in Disney’s new live-action Cinderella (in theaters Friday). She follows the role with that of a closeted lesbian in the anticipated 1950s drama Carol, and then journalist Mary Mapes in Truth, an upcoming film about Dan Rather’s final days at CBS.

“There are very few (agents) interested in building a career. But also you get talked to — as an actor, I imagine, but particularly as an actress — (as if) you are a puppet. And you get told what to do,” says Blanchett, 45. “You’re sort of sold this idea that you have no agency within your career. You don’t build a career yourself, you don’t make choices. And I think your career is built out of what you say no to as much as what you say yes to.”

Continue Reading

JUSTJARED – Lily James and Richard Madden channel their inner Cinderella and Prince Charming in these new JustJared.com exclusive portrait session pictures.

The perfect pair star in the new live-action re-telling of the classic fairytale Cinderella, in theaters tomorrow! The movie is on track to have an amazing weekend at the box office, due in part to its stellar cast, which also includes Cate Blanchett, Helena Bonham Carter, and more.

Lily spoke about taking on the iconic role of Cinderella.

“Well obviously every girl wants to be a princess…the idea is just so magical. But on top of that, it’s a dream role because Cinderella is so special and kind and unique. Plus, we have a great opportunity to create a whole life beyond the fairytale, which is already so beautiful as it is, but making it richer and giving each character their own specific back stories,” Lily said. “And I liked the fact that Ken Branagh wanted to keep it light and magical, much like a fairytale.”

Richard commented on what he hopes audiences walk away with after seeing the film.

“I think the element of strength from unity is something audiences will definitely respond to. This is a story about two people coming together who actually bring out the best in one another, and from that love comes strength. Hopefully audiences will leave the theater understanding just how powerful love is,” Richard said.

I have updated the gallery with a new photoshoot of Lily and Richard for AOL Build. They look amazing!

Lily and Richard posed for People Magazine, giving us another beautiful photoshoot. You can watch the behind the scenes video and interview below. I will try to add the scans as soon as possible. Enjoy!

She plays the radiant blond princess in Disney’s new Cinderella live-action remake. But Lily James is a big fan of some other royals as well.
The 25-year-old star chatted about her favorite prince and princess and what makes her feel like royalty at a shoot for PEOPLE’s new issue alongside her on-screen Prince Charming, Richard Madden, 28.
“Sadly, I’ve never met Princess Kate,” she admitted. But she has found a fan in the duchess’s husband, Prince William. “I have met Will. I was at a charity event and he said hello,” she recalled about her royal run-in. “I think he said something to do with [Downton Abbey] … he likes [the show]!” (James plays Lady Rose MacClare in the period drama.)
The British actress also dished on her favorite Disney dame: Belle from Beauty and the Beast. “As a kid I had long brown hair. And I think you always side with the princess that you think that maybe you could look like,” she said.
Her day-to-day life may not be studded with ball gowns, glass slippers and princes on horseback, but James finds that it’s the little things in life that keep her feeling like she still has some of that Cinderella magic. “I think I feel most like a princess when I’m sort of bursting with happiness and love. So whether that would be, like, with my boyfriend or my family, or … at a really fun party,” said James, who is dating actor Matt Smith. “When you’re just full – you’re full of life.”

I have replaced MQ portraits of Lily, Richard Madden and Kenneth Branagh for ‘Cinderella’ with high quality ones. Many thanks to Kikky for the pictures!

W MAGAZINE – This past December, Lily James was lying on a beach in Jamaica, recuperating. It was the only sane way to end a year during which the actress shot a season of Downton Abbey and three films, including Cinderella, in which she plays the title role opposite Cate Blanchett’s evil stepmother, out March 13. “I can finally talk to you like a human being,” she said over the phone. “Before I got here, I felt like a weird, twisted version of myself.”
In conversation, James comes off as ?a combination of Lady Rose MacClare, the impulsive mischief-maker at Downton, and her earnest, straight-arrow Disney character. “As a child, I loved fairy tales and princesses,” James, 25, recalled. “But a lot of people think they’re not great role models for kids: aspiring toward just marriage or a man…” She trailed off, realizing she was quite possibly biting the hand that just gave her career a huge boost. “But I feel like in the film we try to focus on a message of strength and kindness as a way to live your life.”
Growing up in Surrey, England, James sang and performed, but she never went the Shakespeare and ?Jane Austen route—that is, until she arrived at drama school when she ?was 18. “My head exploded. I became ?a massive geek.” Like many British actresses, she’s wary of being typecast in period dramas, but a corseted Tiffany-blue gown was unavoidable for Cinderella’s grand entrance at the ball. “It was so ?tight, I could only eat soup,” she said, laughing. “I basically spent most of that scene burping.”

Lily, Richard Madden and Kenneth Branagh posed for a portrait session during press day for ‘Cinderella’. Unfortunately, they are in MQ but I will try to replace them with high quality ones as soon as I can.

A new photoshoot for Cosmopolitan Russia has been added to the gallery, featuring Lily and her ‘Cinderella’ co-star Richard Madden.