The Idea of You has cemented its status as a modern-day rom-com with every fan harkening on the narrative as their current favorite guilty pleasure. With the rom-com queen Anne Hathaway at its forefront, the movie had already ticked the checklist of summer binge season. However, with certain revelations like its lead characters’ inspiration from Harry Styles, the flick increasingly skyrocketed with its imprints of anticipation.

Surprisingly though, the author of the narrative has displayed extensive regret upon disclosing the former One Direction member as a source of inspiration because of some latest developments she did not anticipate beforehand.

After Robinne Lee named Harry Styles as one of her inspirational palettes for The Idea of You, many have resorted to dubbing the movie as a “fan fiction” of the artist. Reflecting on the labels, Lee recently opened up about her regret by rejecting the remarks of “fan fiction” in an interview with Entertainment Weekly recently. The author acknowledged that although Styles was indeed her inspiration, he was one among many. However, fans and tabloids seemed to have latched on Styles as a hook for their “clickbait”.

For Lee, this misconception and misleading is “unfortunate” because, according to her, when crafting Hayes Campbell, it is not just Harry Styles who she is picturing. Hence, to confine her ideas into an alleged “clickbait” proposition surely is not the best way for her creation to make headlines. Lee confessed that there were multiple sources she took inspiration from “JFK. Jr. when he was dating Daryl Hannah” to Michael Hutchence during his affair with Helena Christensen. She further recalled her obsession with Duran Duran and how most have missed out on those references throughout the book. 

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Lee’s regret stems from the implications of naming famed artists but interestingly, Harry Styles is not the only luminary to have inspired a lead character in The Idea of You. Even the heroine, Anne Hathaway, was cast based on an esteemed artist from the record industry.

During a recent interview with Variety, Cathy Schulman, the producer of The Idea of You, addressed the inspiration behind casting Anne Hathaway as a lead for the movie. Acknowledging Hathaway’s fit for the role, Schulman drew parallels with Taylor Swift and her credibility of drawing fan fervor into different stages of life through her records. The producer was reportedly in search of an actress with a broad demographic appeal and nobody suited better than the rom-com queen, Anne Hathaway. 

For Schulman, the visibility of Hathaway’s character development was fundamental. Hence, when the opportunity came knocking on the door, every piece fell right into the puzzle, since Hathaway was 39 during the filming and turned 40, which perfectly aligned the storyline. Although the revelation of the producer's identity for Swift may not have carried the same weighty consequences as Robinne Lee publicly naming Harry Styles as her muse, Lee's subsequent face-off with the challenges, nonetheless, serves as an eye-opener about the negative odds of a clickbait.

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What do you think of Robinne Lee's regret for naming Harry Styles as one of her muses in crafting Hayes Campbell, the lead of The Idea of You? Let us know in the comments below!