Name: Lily James Reflects on Transforming into Pamela Anderson | Building Character | Harper’s Bazaar
Uploaded: 2025-10-07T18:08:20.000Z
Duration: 13 min 19 s
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I'm Lily James, and I'm breaking down how I brought some of my most iconic characters to life.

The Countess of Grantham presenting the Lady Rose maclare.

This is Lady Rose Aldridge from Downton Abbey.

This is really, really early doors for me.

I think this is one of their big first auditions that.

That I got where I thought, oh, hang on a second.

This is unbelievable, because growing up in England, I was obsessed with period dramas.

It couldn't have been a more perfect role and more of a dream of mine to exist in a show and in a world like Downton Abbey.

When I found out, I remember I was in a coffee shop in West London and I spilled my drink all over myself.

I had my hair blonde because I'd done this film.

then when I turned up to shoot Downton Abbey, I'd gone back to a brunette, and

I didn't realize you should really tell to people that at that time.

And so I wore a wig in the end, Actually, I think we dyed my hair too.

I was suddenly sitting opposite Maggie Smith, and I'd only just left drama school, and

it was overwhelming and wonderful, and everyone welcomed me in in a really beautiful way.

I'm not going to give you an answer until you say it properly.

I'd go in every morning and there was all this different jewelry lined up, and

I got to pick how I'd accessorize my looks with all the long beads and hats, and

We'd go to Angels, which is this huge warehouse in London that has all the, like, authentic old, vintage pieces from the time.

And then you'll look in the name tag and it'll say Cate Blanchett.

And she'd worn it in, you know, some show because they all get stored there.

It's this huge archive, so you feel this power.

There's such a beautiful story around the wedding dress that I wore as Lady Rose.

Our designer had found this dress in a vintage store, and

it was still in its original box and wrapped in a ribbon.

And it was a woman whose fiance had died in the war, and

And so it actually makes me feel emotional thinking about it.

And so I had this dress that was an original dress from that time period from the twenties.

By the end of the day, I guess it had been in a box for so long, and

it was silk, it was almost disintegrating on my skin.

I love that feeling when you stand in front of the mirror and you're suddenly, like, wearing the skin and the clothes of a new character.

And with Lady Rose, it was so exquisitely done.

In 2015, auditioning for Cinderella was one of the most intense periods of my career.

I got told, even by my agent, there is no way you're gonna get this.

They weren't ugly sisters, but I went in for one of the sisters.

And I remember I'd worn my most disgusting, like, pink and orange tie dye jumper and.

But because I dyed my hair blonde for Downton Abbey, I guess the casting director, the legendary Lucy Bevan, who I adore, said, oh, why don't you read For Cinderella too?

And before I went in, the casting director and my agents were like, just have fun, because you're in front of Disney producers.

You're probably not going to get this, but just, like, go for it.

I. I think I was, like, spinning around and dancing around.

There's so much secrecy around it, so I couldn't tell anyone for a really long time.

I remember Laura and Michelle knocking on my door, and they were like.

And I sort of celebrated it with that cast, actually.

And then I told my brothers and my mum, and

then I couldn't say anything for a really long time.

Don't worry, I'll make sure they don't recognize you.

I don't think I'll ever witness anything quite like that again.

I mean, the ball gown was made of, like, 14 gossamer thin layers of different shades of blue silk, iridescent, like, different shining.

And then I had the corset and took, like, 40 minutes to get in the dress.

The kind of creation of the whole Cinderella look was such a beautiful collaborative process.

We had Carol Hemming, who did my hair, and she would stick tiny Swarovski crystals into my hair.

And you had to make sure that the hair could also be recreated as like a Disney Store wig.

And the slippers, of course, were Swarovski crystal and they were.

Obviously, I couldn't put them on my feet.

I had a wonderful foot double, thank God.

During the promotion of Cinderella, all the incredible shoe designers created like, a Cinderella inspired slipper.

I have the Jimmy Choo slipper, which is stunning on my metal piece, but

there was Louboutin and it was just really Charlotte Olympia, and

it's kind of my most prized possessions now.

This is Deborah from baby driver from 2017.