Splash News; REX USANaomi Watts may make a picture-perfect Princess Diana, but portraying the late icon requires more than simply looking the part. In this case, the Oscar-nominated actress did extensive research for the role. But did that include meeting any of the royals?
"No, no, no," Naomi laughed when we discussed the role on the red carpet at last night's The Impossible premiere, held at the ArcLight Cinema Dome in Hollywood. "They're not available for research and things like that!"
The "they" in question are the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge—Di's son Prince William and his pregnant wife Kate Middleton—as well as Diana's other son, Prince Harry. But maybe that would have just added pressure to an already-stressful undertaking?
The British-Australian beauty stopped by The Ellen Degeneres Show to discuss her part in the Oliver Hirschbiegel-directed biopic, appropriately titled Diana, and admitted that portraying the princess was "high pressure."
"I tried to say no, but I guess every time I said no, I rang back up and said I changed my mind," the 44-year-old star explained. "I think it's just the pressure because we all feel we know her so well. The pressure of that is scary because everybody thinks, oh, you're not the right look or whatever…"
But she did sign on and (in our humble opinion) will surely be smashing. So what new information did she learn about Diana during her research? "She had a great sense of humor," Watts weighs in. "And she was kind of a rebel in really good kind of way."