Anne Hathaway has revealed that Christopher Nolan banned Ugg slippers from the set of The Odyssey, with the director himself confirming the rule. Speaking on CBS Mornings, Nolan explained the reason behind banning the common footwear.
Why Did Nolan Ban Uggs?
Nolan said: "Oh literally Uggs as in the slippers? You know it's a thing I had with Emily Blunt - and before then is sometimes actors will turn up because the footwear hurts them so they'll turn up in these you know big fluffy comfy slippers."
He added: "And the funny thing is you can be on set where you've got a guy holding a microphone, you've got a giant camera, you've got crew everywhere, but something like that can actually weirdly take you out of reality."
"And for me I think that's always been something where you know, it's like if someone's eating a bag of chips off camera or something. You know there's certain things to just remind you you're in the real world as opposed to the world we're trying to create for the actors."
"I want to stay in the moment. I want the actors to stay in the moment and so for me the ugg boots are a signifier of modernity you know. Absurd though that is."
Other Rules on Nolan's Sets
This isn't the first glimpse into life on a Nolan film set. Anne Hathaway previously suggested that Nolan bans chairs from set, claiming 'if people are sitting down, they're not working'. However, a representative for Nolan later told Indiewire: "For the record, the only things banned from [Nolan's] sets are cell phones (not always successfully) and smoking (very successfully)."
"The chairs Anne was referring to are the directors' chairs clustered around the video monitor, allocated on the basis of hierarchy not physical need. Chris chooses not to use his but has never banned chairs from the set. Cast and crew can sit wherever and whenever they need and frequently do."
Social Media Reaction
Social media users shared their thoughts on Nolan's reported UGG ban, with some branding him "pretentious". One person commented: "So he's pretentious." Another wrote: "He also doesn't allow actors to sit down. Maybe he's a genius at controlling his set?"
A third remarked: "I mean he can do what he wants in his movies but like....they are actors...GREAT actors....who cares what they wear as long as they get the job done....which you know they can. If you NEED someone to not wear UGGS to concentrate then maybe you chose the wrong actors."
A fourth commented: "He's brilliant. It's art and he's the director. They can say no if that's a deal breaker for the actor. But they don't. Because it is reverence for the craft. And it's Chris Nolan."
