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(From left) Christian Convery, Anne Hathaway, Maisy Stella and Ewan McGregor are the Platts in “The End of Oak Street.”
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Anne Hathaway wants her suburban mom character Denise Platt to be a surprise.
While crafting the look for her character Denise Platt, an early ’80s wife and mom living in the suburbs in “The End of Oak Street,” Hathaway was inspired by Dorothy’s iconic look in “The Wizard of Oz.” “I thought about the time in history when Denise would have gotten married, and what the world around her would have been like, how things would have changed, so I wanted her to be someone who felt a little bit like a doll, who may have felt like a little girl who hadn’t quite grown up all the way,” shares Hathaway. “And the more I read the script, I kind of kept coming back to this reference point of Dorothy from ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ and I was speaking to Erin Benach, our costume designer, and I said, ‘Do you think you could please put me in a lot of blue before the dinosaurs come? Because I feel like that’s Dorothy in her gingham dress.’
“There was just something about it that I loved. I just wanted everything to feel very defenseless, so the house coat she wears, it has that pink under layer to it, pink pockets on it, and I just wanted her to feel like the last person you would ever imagine could transform into a beast, so that way when she does, when she’s got blood splattered on her and she’s screaming and protecting her children from certain death from a gigantic billion-foot-long snake thing, you’re just like, ‘wow, I had you wrong, Denise Platt.’”
Anne Hathaway as mom Denise Platt in “The End of Oak Street.”
Photo credit: Warner Bros. Pictures
In “The End of Oak Street,” directed by David Robert Mitchell (“It Follows”) and co-produced by J.J. Abrams, Hathaway, Ewan McGregor, Maisy Stella and Christian Convery play the Platts, whose life is upended after a mysterious cosmic event rips their street from suburbia and transports their neighborhood to someplace unknown, a place where dinosaurs roam the streets.
McGregor says that fighting with dinosaurs was a lot of fun. “Annie and I had some really long runs to do,” says the actor, “over gardens, down streets, jumping fences, running over peoples’ front yards, careful not to put our ankle down a hole. But we had fun doing that.”
Ewan McGregor as dad Greg Platt in “The End of Oak Street.”
Photo credit: Warner Bros. Pictures
But for McGregor, the family is the heart of the movie. “As much as the dinosaur action is going to be incredible and insane, I think if you didn’t have a believable family at the heart of it that you cared about, it wouldn’t matter so much,” he says.
Fortunately, long before cameras rolled on the film’s biggest action sequences, Hathaway, McGregor, Stella (daughter Audrey) and Convery (son Brian) developed the easy chemistry the filmmakers had hoped for. Between takes they spent time together talking and laughing, creating the genuine warmth that anchors the Platt family on screen.
Both on and off camera, McGregor emerged as the emotional center of the cast. Hathaway admired his effortless transition into demanding stunt work, while Stella credits his warmth and humor with helping the cast quickly feel like a believable family.
Roar! A dinosaur chases Christian Convery as Brian, and Maisy Stella as Audrey, in “The End of Oak Street.”
Photo credit: Warner Bros. Pictures
Prior to “The End of Oak Street,” Maisy Stella (“My Old Ass”) hadn’t done wire work, which made the filming experience even more exciting. “It’s big!” she shares. “The action and the stunts and the scope of the film feel very exciting. I have not done wire work before, and it was really cool! we could feel the intensity, and I think the action is really nicely balanced with the family’s love and care, and their dynamic with each other. I think it needed that really beautiful blend of both.”
Christian Convery, who won a Children’s and Family Emmy Award for his lead role in “Sweet Tooth,” enthusiastically talks about the film’s action too. “The scale of the action on Oak Street is definitely not what you would see in a normal action movie, because there are dinosaurs!” he shares. “There are ravenous, murderous dinosaurs that are constantly chasing our beloved protagonists throughout this film. There’s a lot of fence hopping. There is a lot of screaming. There are a lot of rooftops and a lot of jumping.”
(From left) The Platts’ dog Starbuck (played by Australian Cattle Dogs Buzz and Brisket), Christian Convery as Brian, Anne Hathaway as Denise, and Maisy Stella as Audrey, in “The End of Oak Street.”
Photo credit: Warner Bros. Pictures
Apart from mom, dad and the kids, another very important part of the Platt family is their dog, Starbuck. Starbuck was brought to life by two Australian Cattle Dogs: Buzz, who excelled in quieter emotional moments, and Brisket, who handled many of the film’s physically demanding action sequences. Together they created one unforgettable canine companion.
Shares director Mitchell, “Working with animals is always challenging, but our Starbuck – or Starbucks, actually, there were two – I love what they did. It was really nice having them on set and some of the sequences where, for example, Christian, who plays Brian, is interacting with his dog, are really beautiful. And we had a very talented trainer for these really talented dogs, which was great.”
Brisket formed close bonds with the cast, becoming a source of comic relief and comfort during long days of action-heavy filming. Brisket was especially close with Hathaway, often ignoring his assigned seat and curling up beside Hathaway instead. Their friendship quickly became an on-set favorite, and Hathaway has joked that pizza was more than enough motivation to keep Brisket happy.
For Hathaway, Starbuck is the undisputed hero of the film. “We were lucky to have Buzz and Brisket,” says the actress.
#EndofOakStreet
Photo credit: Warner Bros. Pictures
Get ready to be transported to a different kind of neighborhood when “The End of Oak Street” lands in cinemas on August 12. #EndofOakStreet
About “The End of Oak Street”
After a mysterious cosmic event rips Oak Street from suburbia and transports their neighborhood to someplace unknown, the Platt family soon discovers that their very survival depends on them sticking together as they navigate their now unrecognizable surroundings.
Starring Anne Hathaway and Ewan McGregor, THE END OF OAK STREET also stars Maisy Stella and Christian Convery. The film is written and directed by David Robert Mitchell and produced by J.J. Abrams, Hannah Minghella, Jon Cohen, David Robert Mitchell, Matt Jackson and Tommy Harper. The executive producers are Chris Bender, Jake Weiner, Joanne Lee and Leeann Stonebreaker.
Mitchell’s team behind the camera includes director of photography Michael Gioulakis, production designer Maya Shimoguchi, editor John Axelrad, composer Michael Giacchino and costume designer Erin Benach.
Warner Bros. Pictures Presents A Bad Robot Production, A Jackson Pictures Production, A David Robert Mitchell Film: THE END OF OAK STREET. The film will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, only in theaters and IMAX in North America on August 14, 2026, and internationally beginning 12 August 2026.
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