Shailene Woodley finally explains Jane’s fringe in Big Little Lies
And to be honest, her answer makes perfect sense
When season two of Big Little Lies premiered at the beginning of June, all anyone could talk about online (and IRL) was the drastic hair change of one of the show’s key characters.
Jane Chapman shocked viewers when she appeared in episode one with a new lease on life and an edgy new fringe. Now, a few weeks into the second season, the actress that plays Jane – Shailene Woodley – has revealed just why her character underwent such a dramatic change.
Shailene explained to The Hollywood Reporter that the choice came from her own personal experiences: “I’ve been in this position in my life where, after a major break-up, triumph or celebration or after a big change, a lot of people alter the way they look. I know for myself; it’s always been haircuts and piercings. That’s been my way of moving forward in new chapters of my life.”
For Jane, her haircut is symbolic of her story as a sexual assault survivor and how she relates to her trauma. “I felt that for Jane, she’s carried this weight of not feeling in her own body because of what happened to her for eight years. She felt disconnected from her own identity on not just an emotional and mental level, but on a physical level as well.”
Triggered by the death of her attacker Perry at the end of season one, Shailene explained that Jane took this as a cue to alter her appearance and ultimately usher in a new phase of her life. “I felt like maybe two or three weeks after that incident she would have woken up one morning, looked at herself in the mirror and thought, ‘This isn’t who I am anymore. This monster is gone and I’m not going to let him live in me or control me any longer.’ In that moment, I feel like she took a pair of scissors and cut her bangs herself.”
“I felt like that would have been her reclaiming her space.”
Tempted to rock the blunt style yourself? You’re not the only one. Celebrities can’t seem to get enough of this haircut.
Would you ever cut your own fringe? Let us know in the comments below.
Main image credit: Getty
Briar Clark got her start in the media industry in 2017, as an intern for Marie Claire and InStyle. Since then, her keen interest in fashion and beauty has landed her gigs as a Digital Content Producer and Beauty Editor with titles like Girlfriend, Refinery29, BEAUTYcrew and beautyheaven. She loves the way seemingly innocuous topics like skin care and style have the ability to put a smile on people’s faces or make them think about themselves a little differently. A big believer in self love and experimentation, Briar has made a point of becoming the Australian beauty industry’s unofficial guinea pig for unusual treatments and daring hair trends. When she’s not testing out the latest beauty launches, Briar is big on broadening her horizons, mostly in the form of food but she’s also partial to travelling to new destinations both near and far (and of course, allocating an extra bag to bring their best beauty offerings home with her).
