Hannah Waddingham says she was raised to believe ‘women are less than’, speaking out over raising girls with internalised misogyny and ‘male dominance’
The actress reflected on her Ted Lasso character and similarities in their lives when it comes to how they were brought up
Hannah Waddingham is not only an incredibly talented actress and singer, she's also a brilliantly influential voice when it comes to standing up for women's rights and speaking out against misogyny.
The Ted Lasso and Ride or Die star recently spoke very candidly about being brought up to believe women are "less than," and the moment she she realised this was wrong, and "male dominance" shouldn't have been normalised in her household.
During a video conversation shared by NPR, Hannah reflects on her Ted Lasso character Rebecca believing she's a feminist, and some similarities and differences between her character's life and her own.
Talking about scenes between Rebecca and her mum Deborah (Harriet Walter,) the actress says Rebecca "has clearly been indoctrinated from birth, by this mother."
Explaining further, she continues to say that Deborah leads Rebecca to think, "In a very passive way and playful way, that women are inferior to men."
Hannah shares the belief that this portrayal of how girls are raised is widespread in real life. "We've been passively indoctrinated generationally, that women are less than, for sure," she says passionately, sharing, "I was myself."
Alluding to the the "sliding doors" moment between her character's life and her own, Hannah shares that Rebecca doesn't join the dots about the level of indoctrination she's lived with until she's much older, whereas Hannah herself realised it as a teenager.
"The sliding doors of myself and Rebecca Welton, is that Rebecca doesn't realise until she's the age she is," Hannah says, adding, "whereas I realised when I was about 15."
The actress continues, "There was a male dominance in my family, and my mum was also indoctrinated by it, I don't mind saying so."
Hannah shares that it's been "interesting" to play someone who "thinks she's a feminist but perhaps isn't," in comparison to herself, who "very much is."
A comment on the video shares a lot of praise for what Hannah is saying. The person writes, "Such a lovely actress and character. I appreciate this topic, because I’m a single mum trying to teach my teenage son that no one is superior to another, and no one would exist without women."
"I’m so lucky that he’s quite the feminist and wants to make the world a better place. I cannot let the manosphere get him."
Showing just how much she isn't afraid to call out inappropriate behaviour by men, Hannah famously hit back at a photographer who asked her to "show leg" on the red carpet.
Arriving to host the Olivier Awards in 2024, Hannah was applauded by onlookers for her response to the photographer's request.
The star responds with, "Oh my God, you'd never say that to a man, my friend," adding that any similar comments would result in her moving on away from the cameras.
"Don't say 'show me leg.' No," she said at the time, adding, "Have some manners" as she walked away.
