5 of the coolest famous friendships
As Ocean’s 8 finally hits theaters – with its staggeringly starry, women-led cast – we’re taking the opportunity to celebrate the girl gangs we wish we were part of…
The cast of Ocean’s 8
It turns out that Cate Blanchett, Sandra Bullock, Mindy Kaling, Rihanna, Helena Bonham Carter, Awkwafina, Anne Hathaway and Sarah Paulson are a dream team both on screen and off. Last December, Paulson revealed to PorterEdit that the eight actresses had set up a WhatsApp group: “I’m not going to lie, it is a very cool chain to be part of… Your phone just blows up for hours.” And Blanchett confirmed the group bond was strong during filming in a recent interview: “We laughed so much, and there was a real camaraderie. It’s one of those things where I can’t wait for it to come out, selfishly, so I can go on the press tour with them and reunite with everyone.” Just imagine the clothes-swapping possibilities.
The cast of Big Little Lies
During the filming of 2017’s most talked-about TV show, Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern, Shailene Woodley and Zoë Kravitz got on famously. They confirmed their rapport at the Emmys, gushing about each other non-stop; Dern even described her co-stars as an “incredible tribe of fierce women”. In fact, the cast goes even further back: Dern has previously played both Witherspoon and Woodley’s mothers (in Wild and The Fault in Our Stars respectively); Kravitz and Woodley fought through the Divergent series together; and Kidman very nearly became Kravitz’s real-life stepmother when she was engaged to her father, Lenny. A friendship force to be reckoned with.
Brie Larson, Hari Nef and Rowan Blanchard
Scroll through the Twitter and Instagram accounts of Brie Larson, Hari Nef and Rowan Blanchard to see 21st-century friendship goals in action – more of a social-media sisterhood than a hanging-out-in-bars situation. Blanchard also shares a book club with Larson – previous recommendations include Maggie Nelson’s brilliant memoir, The Argonauts, a pick that hints at the kind of radical discussions we like to imagine they share regularly.
The cast of Book Club
Speaking of books, bound-to-be-blockbuster Book Club was the catalyst that brought icons Diane Keaton, Jane Fonda, Candice Bergen and Mary Steenburgen together. In the film, Fonda’s character introduces this formidable group to Fifty Shades of Grey in an attempt to reinvigorate their love lives. The actresses have made no secret of their joy in finding these new friendships. “I just didn’t know how hilarious these women were!” exclaimed Keaton in an interview.
Janelle Monáe, Tessa Thompson, Lena Waithe, Cynthia Erivo and Solange Knowles
The very well connected Janelle Monáe brought her enviable group of friends – which includes Tessa Thompson, Lena Waithe and Solange Knowles – to everyone’s attention with a series of Instagram posts from this year’s Met Gala. The members of this fearless girl gang are trailblazing one and all: Monáe has been doing things her own way since the release of her first album, The ArchAndroid, in 2010. Lena Waithe’s success in acting, writing, producing and directing, including Netflix’s Dear White People (which Thompson stars in), plus Thompson’s Time’s Up advocacy and Knowles’ award-winning album, A Seat at the Table, are powerful pushes for equality of all kinds. Their vocal support of one another is a true example of what can happen when women raise each other up.
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