Lady Gaga: Why A Star Is Born Was “the Scariest Thing I Have Ever Done”

Dressed in a show-stopping, shimmering silver Givenchy gown with a long cape, Lady Gaga made a grand entrance into the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on Monday evening for the U.S. premiere of A Star Is Born. As Ally, a struggling artist who has just about given up her dream to be a singer, Gaga strips away her glam looks and suppresses her bold stage personality for first-time director Bradley Coopers stirring re-invention of this classic tale of love, fame, addiction, and loss.

“I exposed myself in ways I had never done before. I completely let go, and it was the scariest thing I have ever done,” said Gaga at the premiere. “I brought everything I had in my body and my soul into this role. I went back and thought about my fears, my insecurities when I was younger and in high school. I was vulnerable. I wore no makeup and dyed my hair back to my natural color. There was no hiding, mentally and physically.”

The first version of A Star Is Born was released in 1937; additional iterations of the story came out in 1954 (starring Judy Garland) and in 1976 (starring Barbra Streisand). This latest riff, which opens October 5, follows the tumultuous relationship between alcoholic country rock star Jackson Maine (Cooper) and aspiring singer-songwriter Ally, who suffers from debilitating self-doubt and depression. Just like her character, Gaga said she understands what its like to have low self-esteem.

“I do see myself in her when I was younger,” Gaga said. “I did not believe in myself. I only saw the negative things in myself. I felt ugly. I was bullied in school, I was insecure. My only escape from the pain was music. But whats different between me and Ally is that when I wanted to become a singer, I was dragging my piano from one dive bar to another playing music. I wasnt going to stop until I made it.”

As moviegoers finally have an opportunity to see her take on A Star Is Born, Gaga, whose real name is Stefani Germanotta, hopes the film will inspire them to help others, and to have faith in people who are trying to pursue their dreams.

“What I hope people will take away from the movie is to have the courage to believe in someone,” said the singer. “If theres 100 people in a room and 99 dont believe in you, thats fine. But if just one person does believe in you, then it can change everything, your whole life. Bradley Cooper believed in me. He really helped me with this movie, and I could have not done this without him. We can all help each other by believing in others.”

Get Vanity Fairs HWD NewsletterSign up for essential industry and award news from Hollywood.Full ScreenPhotos:Even Lady Gagas Fashion Is Proving Shes a Movie Star

August 30, 2018

Gaga made her Venice Film Festival arrival in style: sitting on the edge of a boat, wearing a black Jonathan Simkhai dress. Her pinup hair and makeup, along with the corset style of the dress, was a fair warning to all of us that she was prepared to show the world that not only could she play the role of a classic movie star, she could very well look the part, too.Photo: By Jacopo Raule/GC Images.

August 31, 2018

The next time we saw her, she went for an understated look in vintage Alaïa, looking like a modern-day Marilyn Monroe with her bleached-blonde hair and bold eyebrows.Photo: By Filippo Monteforte/AFP/Getty Images.

August 31, 2018

Gaga stunned at the films Venice premiere in a feather couture creation from Valentino. While Venice is no stranger to over-the-top fashion, Gaga created a new level of spectacle at the premiere of A Star Is Born. The gown, which stole the show when Kaia Gerber wore it on the runway in July, was elevated in its star-studded setting. And though it looks nothing like something Judy Garland would have worn, it was true to Gagas out-there fashion origins, proving that Lady Gaga, the actress, isnt such a different person, after all.Photo: By Maria Moratti/Contigo/Getty Images.

September 8, 2018

A few days after Venice, Gaga arrived in Toronto for press obligations and the films premiere. At a Saturday night event hosted by Entertainment Weekly, she wore this slinky silver Armani Privé gown. Once again, no party or carpet is too small for Gagas closet of couture.Photo: By Michael Loccisano/Getty Images.

September 9, 2018

For the main red carpet premiere, Gaga went for a dramatic, black Armani Privé gown. The lace shawl also doubled as a veil for Gaga and her director-co-star Bradley Cooper to pull off a photo op that looked for all the world like a a faux wedding in the middle of the red carpet. The red carpets at TIFF typically arent the showstopping spectacles of their European counterparts, like Cannes and Venice. Gagas presence changed that entirely.Photo: By Kevin Mazur/Getty Images.

September 9, 2018

There was maybe an hour between her red carpet arrival and the beginning of the film screening, and during that time, Gaga made time for a costume change—a glittering, strappy dress, which, in this context, counted as more casual. She even nodded to her Old Hollywood-inspired style by keeping the sequined pillbox hat and pinned-back curls from her earlier look.Photo: By Eric Charbonneau/REX/Shutterstock.

September 9, 2018

Gaga wore a Ralph & Russo gown for the films Toronto after-party. Many of the actresss press looks have been pulled from couture shows, which most celebrities will save for larger events like the Oscars. For Gaga, though, putting on a couture gown as her fourth look of the day for a post-screening red carpet is all part of the movie-star gig.Photo: By George Pimentel/Getty Images.PreviousNext