Probably the coolest gang of girlbosses I had met.
What does it take to be a girlboss? Leave it to these talented, badass women - Britt Robertson, Charlize Theron, Kay Cannon and of course, Sophia Amoruso - to give us a 13-episode comedy series "Girlboss" inspired by Amoruso’s popular autobiography ‘#Girlboss’ about her rise from a dumpster-diving young adult who went from selling vintage clothes on eBay to operating a million-dollar online fashion empire, Nasty Gal.
The series is loosely based on the best-selling memoir of the same name, and is executive produced by Kay Cannon (Pitch Perfect films) who also serves as the showrunner; Charlize Theron (Fast & Furious 8); Laverne McKinnon; and Amoruso. Girlboss stars Britt Robertson (The Space Between Us) as Amoruso, Ellie Reed and Alphonso McAuley.
Photo Credit: Netflix
Girlboss premieres on Netflix 21st April, and its release comes at a fateful time. Nasty Gal filed for bankruptcy in late 2016, not long before Amoruso stepped down as CEO. You may argue that perhaps a series about her rags-to-riches story for the millennials doesn’t seem all that inspiring; but more than focusing on her failure, it is important to celebrate her success as well.
The bankruptcy does not, in any way, makes Amoruso any less of an inspiring role model, nor should it diminish her success of the empire that she built. If anything, featuring her story at a time now is all the more important to highlight that she is in every way, flawed and human.
The road to bringing this Girlboss to Netflix wasn’t easy as well. At a panel discussion in New York earlier this year, Theron and Cannon recalled the time where they were rejected by studios because it wasn’t ‘male-friendly’, or that having a title with the word ‘Girl’ wouldn’t sell - said the executives in a meeting room dominated by men.
Photo Credit: Netflix
“There’s always this worry with characters like this, and I’ve seen and heard this many times in my career, where you hear that age-old tale that people are not going to like her and find her too abrasive and you have to make sure the audience likes her,” said Theron at the session.
In an exclusive interview with InCinemas, Cannon further explained that she was adamant to see the project through, where she even invited her industry friends over to her house for a mock pitch session, just so she could “give the best pitch possible”.
“When you’re asking for Netflix, you are asking for a multi-million dollar investment that they say yes to. There were many obstacles, and because I am a competitive person, I just really had to push it through.”
Photo Credit: Netflix
“I never expected my story to be so well-received,” said Amoruso.
“What you find that the women who write business books primary have the same pedigree and education where women rose through the ranks and did the right things. So for the women who fall on their faces in their 20s, 30s and whatever it may be, to hear the story of someone who had figured it out or gotten really far but it also totally flawed and loses confidence sometimes, I think it gives the viewers (an opportunity) to feel better in their lives and that it’s normal.”
Serving as one of the executive producers of the show, Amoruso shared that she was quite hands-off the production, but there was a scene she had to step in. “There was one bit of yelling where I was like: “I think that’s a little too far, I will never yell at someone like that.” and I think you guys took it out.”
“You know, it is about my life and Nasty Gal, there are a lot that happens in the series that falls on the arc of what actually happens, but my friends are not based on real people,” she told InCinemas.
Photo Credit: Netflix
Robertson, who stars as Amoruso, revealed that she didn’t know what she signed up for initially. “I just brought my take of what they wanted me to do with this character to the table. It's not exactly about trying to be her, to talk like her and learn all the mannerisms… that’s not what we are trying to do.”
“At that time when I got booked for the role, I’ve got a little bit of me, a little bit of Sophia, a little bit of Kay, a little bit of everybody. And so I hope we found a really interesting, complex and fun loving version of this gal!”
Having starred in numerous films like Tomorrowland and The Space Between Us, the 27-year-old actress said playing Amoruso in Girlboss was a “game changer in my career”.
“When I got this opportunity, it just seems so right! This character seems so right for me and I love it so much. I look forward every day to playing her,” she shared. “I’ve just never had the opportunity to work with someone who is so in tune with the character and cares deeply who this character is and wants to see her succeed and fall and all the things you want out of people. You want to see her exist in her world and that’s where I really attach myself to. It’s different in a lot of ways but very comfortable at the same time.”
Girlboss premieres on Netflix on April 21!
Will you be binge-watching Girlboss? Let us know in the comments below!