It's based on the 2017 novel of the same name. The relationship is complicated by the fact that her new lover, played by Nicholas Galitzine, is also a member of a popular boy band.
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Hathaway's character takes her daughter to Coachella. That's when an unexpected meeting with a young singer flips her life upside down. She's 40 and divorced. He's 24 and very interested, and both are vulnerable for different reasons.
"It's two people who have a hard time, for very good reason, have a hard time trusting others," said Hathaway. "The only way that you can break down those walls is offering something true and vulnerable about yourself. So, I love that that was kind of what their relationship was built on, playfulness and vulnerability."
Galitzine describes the characters as "very feeling souls."
"Despite what others say in the film, I mean, it's clear that they have a very deep simpatico between them, so I definitely think audiences will want to root for them," he said.
Galitzine tapped into his musical side for this role, and it seemed to work out just fine.
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"I don't respond well to sort of being put in a booth where people watch me. I like to kind of be amongst it all, so it was just a very fun skill I got to hone in this," he said.
"The Idea of You" definitely has its light moments, but it also goes deep.
"[Beyoncé] has this song on [her new album "Cowboy Carter"] that's called 'Just For Fun,' and it's this idea of fun but it's, like, Beyoncé's idea of fun," said Hathaway. "It's like as vast as the ocean and so ... that's what appealed to me was there were so many poppy elements to it without sacrificing any emotional truth."
"The Idea of You" is airing now on Amazon Prime Video.