Onstage at ELLE Women in Hollywood last night, Mikey Madison—the breakout star of Sean Baker’s buzzy new film Anora—proclaimed that the director “saw something in me that I didn’t see in myself: a character so different from who I am.” And as Madison discussed in her interview for the accompanying ELLE Women in Hollywood issue, Baker’s trust in her changed her life forever.
Willem Dafoe, who starred in The Florida Project, also directed by Baker, presented Madison with the award during a star-studded night in Los Angeles. The ELLE Women in Hollywood event, held in partnership with Ralph Lauren, Harry Winston, and TikTok, drew A-list guests including Eva Longoria, Colman Domingo, and Carey Mulligan, in addition to the Women in Hollywood honorees themselves.
During her speech, Madison continued, “There was something so liberating about living in [Anora’s] reality. To experience her fight, in more ways than one, her tenacity, her sexuality, and her deep hopefulness. I’ve always had the instinct to be more of an observer, always moreso on the outside looking in on life. Playing Ani changed me, not just as an actress but as a person. She taught me the value of my own voice, that my opinions are important and that I have the right to take up space in my world.”
At the end of her speech, she alluded to the political climate, saying, “In times like these where the world is so divided, it’s important for us as women to come together to champion each other, to try to feel more united and celebrate femininity in all forms.”
In an interview for the accompanying ELLE Women in Hollywood issue, Madison shared how portraying Anora’s titular protagonist, Ani, exponentially widened her understanding of sex work. “Everything has changed,” she said. “I have a completely different perspective on it. In a club, women are almost in a position of power, but then outside of it, people view them in such a different way.” She added that Ani is “a sex worker, but that’s just her job. She’s a person, and I hope she’s viewed as such.”
She also shared her thoughts on the state of women in Hollywood, adding, “There’s a lot of room for improvement, obviously. Just being asked this question means something is not quite right. I would like to see more men in power being outspoken about women’s issues in Hollywood…Obviously women are looking out for one another, but shouldn’t men be looking after women as well? I would like for that to change, because the kind of world we live in, men are in a position of power—actors, producers, directors. They should be uplifting women. I think that should be a man’s role.”
Read Madison’s full profile here.
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Lauren Puckett-Pope is a staff culture writer at ELLE, where she primarily covers film, television and books. She was previously an associate editor at ELLE.