Vogue Italia
Published: December 2, 2011

In the hall of fame of “Queen Bees” at the cinema – self-centered teenagers who steal the show at school and rule the lives of their mates (from Heather Chandler in Heathers to Blair Waldorf in Gossip Girl), a special place is reserved for Regina George, the epitome of the “mean girl”, protagonist of a popular 2004 movie.

Thanks to that role, where she skillfully balanced over-the-top irony and wickedness, Rachel McAdams achieved her first success, followed by many others. Defining her career and her personality is difficult, because both of them are characterized by a strong versatility and by the desire to experiment and to put herself to the test.

Graduated with honors in Drama at the York University in Toronto, McAdams has never played safe when it comes to the movies to act in; on the contrary, she’s turned down important roles in blockbusters (among the others, The Devil Wears Prada), but has opted for movies that have reached an iconic status instead (such as The Notebook, where she played with Ryan Gosling).

Back under the spotlight thanks to Sherlock Holmes by Guy Ritchie, she’s among the protagonists of Midnight in Paris by Woody Allen, presented at the Cannes Film Festival in 2011.

In this movie, she wears contemporary outfits and carries an enviable number of Chanel, Dior and Hermès bags, but she confesses she unfortunately “didn’t go back in time.”

The connection between her personal style and the past is very important: “I love vintage pieces. I love things that mean something, that make you remember a certain time or something special.” It’s not a coincidence that she loves the pearl necklace her parents gave her for her graduation (“My mum would prefer to give something you can keep, you can remember“).

The bond with her family has a role in her relation with fashion: she often wears her mum’s clothes from the 70s and confesses she doesn’t remember her favorite brands because she usually raids her sister’s closet (“You have to ask her what she wears“).

She says she’s a “kind of jeans and t-shirt” girl and she loves wearing dresses: “When in doubt, I usually throw on a dress, because it’s easy and always appropriate for any occasion. I think women are very fortunate: sorry for men, they can’t do that.” She likes being comfortable, but sometimes she gives in to the temptation of heels, especially on the red carpet, where you can “go as far as you want“.

She’s got a very refined style: she opts for long and romantic evening dresses, like the one designed by Elie Saab that she wore at the Academy Awards in 2010, or like the Marchesa creation – red embroideries on beige tulle – she wore at the Midnight in Paris premiere in Cannes.

Because of her work, she’s used to live out of a suitcase: she explains she usually wears “what’s clean” or what she “hasn’t worn yet”, which is boring but challenging: “You find new ways to mix and match; accessories become very important.”

Fashion is “a piece” of her life, “so connected to being an actor“. “I think I’ve definitely been educated more as I’ve grown up. Most of my fashion sense growing up was from my mum, who’s a beautiful lady, so I guess I have her to thank for any of those inclinations.”

Her style tip, though not ground-breaking, totally mirrors her independent attitude: “Wear what you love. I think those clothes always look the best if you’re enjoying what you’re wearing and you feel good in it. That’s all that matters.”