The Lie That Helped Get Anne Hathaway Her Role In Brokeback Mountain

According to TED, we tell a lie about ourselves an average of one to two times per day, and we're lied to even more: approximately 10 to 200 times in the same period. One of the most common places to fib is on your resume. So your mom gave you 20 bucks to plate cheese and crackers at her annual Christmas party, and that makes you a former server for high-end events? Right. But as it turns out, you're not the only one who lies their way to landing the job. It's a pretty regular occurrence in Hollywood too. Considering how competitive and cut-throat the business is, we're not all that surprised. 

One such perjurer is none other than Anne Hathaway. According to Geeks, the young actor lied during her audition for "Brokeback Mountain." What's even worse is that she did it right to director Ang Lee's face. Here's how it all went down.

Anne Hathaway kept this story a secret for some time, but she eventually spilled the beans during an interview with Out to mark the film's 10-year anniversary. She admitted to her fellow castmates that right as she was about to exit her audition for the part, Ang Lee had asked, "Oh, by the way, can you ride a horse?" 

In truth, she couldn't. But her parents had always taught her, "If you're ever asked if you can do anything, say yes. You can learn anything in two weeks if you're motivated enough." So even though she'd never even been on a horse, she told Lee that she was a really good rider.

Although she got the part, her little white lie got her into a bit of trouble, especially when she attended the first rehearsal with extras that all worked in rodeos. "The horse wouldn't do a damn thing I wanted it to. And at the end it threw me — in front of everyone," Hathway said. 

In the end, she absolutely killed the part and the film went on to dominate at that year's Oscars (per IMDb). We're guessing that Ang Lee — whose work on the flick led him to become the first Asian to win the Academy Award for Best Director — didn't hold it against her. And Hathaway's brilliant performance caught Meryl Streep's eye, who went on to beg her "The Devil Wears Prada" producers to cast her as the leading lady. It was a win-win (except maybe not for that poor horse).