Mia Threapleton Says She Manifested Working With Wes Anderson Aged Just 13

Elle

2 days ago

Start as you mean to go on, they say - and Mia Threapleton's start, has set a high. In her biggest role to date, the actor stars alongside the likes of Tom Hanks and Michael Cera as Benicio del Toro's daughter in The Phoenician Scheme – a veritable who's who of global Hollywood talent. There is only one director who can pull this calibre of actor together, and that is Wes Anderson. The film has just shown at Cannes Film Festival, and Threapleton touched down days later in London where ELLE UK caught up with the star.
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'The Cannes carpet was… terrifying,' Threapleton confessed. 'The stairs are very tall and very red, and I was just thinking, don't fall over. Everything is fine. Pull down your dress at the front. Don't let anyone tread on the back of it. That was the first red carpet that I'd ever done, and being there with everybody really made me feel a hell of a lot calmer because firstly, they'd all done it before, and secondly, it was the same people that felt like a family when I was working with them. I knew that we were all going to have a giggle. And then I got into the cinema, and I felt like the room was vibrating. I couldn't hear anything, because my heart was thumping so loud in my ears. And then I sat down, the film started, and I just thought - here we go.'
Threapleton's excitement in joining Anderson's iconic legacy is effervescent. With total gratitude and a slight sense of disbelief, she recalls watching Anderson's work as a teen and aspiring to be like the actors she has just worked with. Needless to say, she has done her homework, quoting lines from The Grand Budapest Hotel and confessing that aged thirteen, when watching Moonrise Kingdom, she wrote in her journal: 'I really wish I can work with Wes Anderson one day.' In Mia's case, manifestation truly works.
Anderson's cinematic world far transcends what is only seen on screen, case in point: the social media account Accidentally Wes Anderson. With its instantly recognisable aesthetic, Anderson's films – and the impeccably dressed characters that come with them – have been replicated by legions of cinephiles time and time again. For Threapleton's character Liesl, there are no Adidas tracksuits nor Peter Pan collars. Playing a nun, her costume evolves from conservative and clean to pipe-smoking and red-lipped.
'She is a blank canvas, and then paint gets added. It was very informative to who Liesl is. The eyeshadow goes on and it feels different. It is incredibly indicative of the internal journey that she is going on when we see her. And I really miss those green stockings.' Showing affection towards the bolder aesthetics Liesl adopts, it is then unsurprising that Mia takes sartorial inspiration from style icons Iris Apfel and Isabella Blow.
Be it fashion or film, Threapleton's enthusiasm is infectious. Watch our interview with Mia to hear more about her wardrobe essentials, Scarlett Johansson's big sister energy, hiding in plant pots on set and the lessons she learnt from her star studded The Phoenician Scheme cast.
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