evelyn x celia

page dedicated to the most amazing book I’ve read: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.

[emeraldxruby]

The love affair between Evelyn Hugo and Celia St. James spanned for 41 years.

They first met on the set of Little Women in 1959 when Evelyn was 21 and Celia was 19/20.

They were together for about 3 years until they had their 1st breakup in 1962. Evelyn was 24 and Celia was 23.

They spent 5 years apart until in 1967, they reunited inside a bathroom at the Academy Awards. Evelyn was 29 and Celia was 28.

They were together for 9 years until they had their 2nd breakup in 1976. Evelyn was 38 and Celia was 37.

This time, they spend 12 years apart until in 1988, they reconnect through letters before once again reuniting and rekindling their love. Evelyn was 50 and Celia was 49.

They manage to get back the decade and 2 years they lost as they spend 12 years together until Celia’s death in 2000. Evelyn was 62 and Celia was 61.

Evelyn and Celia spent a total of 24 years together and 17 years apart, non-consecutively.

But the two loved each other all throughout the 41 years. Not once did they stop loving the other. Although in the end they express their regret of losing all that time, what’s important is that their hearts always remained with one another.

They always managed to find their way back to each other.

And in the end, they were able to spend their last years together as wives.

**EDIT (01/16/22): Additionally, Evelyn went on to spend 17 years without Celia until her death in 2017. Making their years apart equal to a total of 34 years. So the two spent a total of 24 years together and 34 years apart, non-consecutively. Equaling to 58 years of love between Evelyn Hugo and Celia St. James till both their deaths.

[emeraldxruby]

From a recent interview, it has been confirmed by Liz Tigelaar, the scriptwriter for the TSHOEH, that the script is done and has been handed to Netflix! So that means we’ll be getting that casting announcement soon…. I AM SCARED. TJR has said that they have a “short list of women” that she’s very excited about when asked about the casting for Evelyn & Celia. SO, THEY HAVE NAMES.

And I just wanna put this out there in case I end up being right: I think Eiza González might be cast as Evelyn Hugo

I don’t have major valid reasons for this but from her following TJR and just her overall look… I think they’re at least considering her for the role and she’s part of that “short list” And this is if they’re only considering actresses who are already “known.”

My opinion? I honestly wouldn’t hate it. I’d actually like it. She’s got the look I imagined Evelyn would have, facial structure and physique wise. She’s Latina (Mexican) and is currently 33 years old so I could definitely see her play Evelyn from her 20s to her 30s, just before they switch the actress for Evelyn in her 50s. So basically, the MAIN Evelyn. I’d say she’s a decent actress but haven’t seen too much of her work.

I also feel the need to mention the most popular Fancast for Evelyn Hugo: Ana de Armas.

Who honestly, I’d prefer more over Eiza just because Ana is Cuban and I would love that relation between her and Evelyn. However, I just don’t see Ana taking the role at all because it’s just too similar to her recent movie Blonde, where she portrayed Marilyn Monroe. She would literally have to look the same and go back to that era and I honestly don’t think she’d do that again. TJR has said the same thing before when she was asked about Ana so yeah. And I know some people hate her as a fancast for Evelyn since she is white passing or others have said she’s a White Latina, and I agree. I mean she was literally casted as Marilyn Monroe. So she doesn’t have Evelyn’s signature tan skin but I also do wanna say though that Evelyn was casted as Jo March in Little Women just by dying her hair blonde and dropping her accent. So one could argue that Evelyn herself was white passing with a tan. So I’m honestly in the middle when it comes to this argument. I totally get both sides.

Either way, we’ll just have to see~

[emeraldxruby]

TSHOEH Rant/Discussion about it being a movie

So just wanted to talk about this whole thing again after I watched the first 3 episodes of Daisy Jones and the Six. I wasn’t going to watch it till I read the book but I just couldn’t resist after seeing the clips and now I’m obsessed!!

As a TSHOEH stan, I just couldn’t help but voice out my frustration knowing that we might not get the same treatment since our adaptation is through Netflix and will be a movie. To be fair though, I’ve kind of warmed up to the idea of it being a movie after reading what TJR said about it. How it’s fitting because “Evelyn Hugo, the movie star” gets her own movie. And yeah, when I thought about it like that, it is pretty fitting since the entire plot revolves around Hollywood and movies.

HOWEVER, after watching the first 3 episodes of Daisy Jones, I just feel so jealous because they get 10 episodes, each around 40~50 mins… :( I just get so frustrated with the idea that they might cut some parts from the book that might seem like it only adds a small part but is like still essential!

Here’s another interview where TJR also talks about this:

So alright, maybe somehow Liz Tigelaar did manage to make a good script and didn’t condense much of the story but I don’t know. There’s still Netflix editing to worry about… I just don’t trust them anymore after all the cancellations they do of shows with a strong wlw presence. But they have made some good decisions like The Half of It, Fear Street, all being movies so there was no need to worry about cancellations so there’s that. But even it was made into a show, it would’ve been a limited series anyways so we wouldn’t even have to worry about that aspect SO I’M JUST STILL WONDERING WHY?! I’m just gonna assume it’s because of the budget.

Anyways, I know that it’s inevitable to have some parts of the book cut or changed in the movie since book to movie/show adaptations always have changes. I’m just worried it’ll be a lot more since it will be in a form of a movie that’ll only be around 2 hours long. My biggest frustration too is not having more content since it’s a movie. If it were a limited series like Daisy Jones, we’d just have Evelyn, Celia, Harry, Monique, etc. LONGER. We’d be in their world longer, if that makes sense. Like I’ll know I’m just going to want MORE. 3 episodes of Daisy Jones, each around 40~50mins, and I’m over here wanting MORE and cannot wait for the next episodes to drop!!

But ultimately, if TJR says the script’s good, then who am I to disagree? I am glad that she’s very much involved behind the scenes so that gives me some hope. Overall, if they manage to make the script, the directing, the CASTING, and just everything about this movie SPECTACULAR, I do very much see this movie doing numbers. Like, I’m not even kidding, this could have the potential to be an Oscar nomination sort of movie. I mean, it’s right there in the story. (Another reason why I kinda warmed up to the idea of it being a movie). Who knows? Whoever gets casted as Evelyn Hugo might just actually win an Oscar for this role and that’ll literally be the most amazing thing that can happen. Life imitating art. I really do see the potential of this movie and Netflix better not screw this up.

[emeraldxruby]

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo Fancast 2

(So here’s my 2nd attempt on fancasting for TSHOEH. Once again, I picked the actors/actresses based on their “vibe” and a few of their physical characteristics that matches some of the descriptions written in the book. Also I’m just so impatient now because it’s 2023 and we still don’t have any news on the casting. Like it is stressing me out lol. Just hoping they get it RIGHT!)

Evelyn Hugo - Adria Arjona

(Background info: Arjona is an American actress of Puerto Rican & Guatemalan descent. She is currently 30 y/o and 5’7” tall)

“When you see pictures of E back in the day with her brassy blond hair, those dark, straight-as-an-arrow eyebrows, that deep-tanned skin, and those golden-brown eyes, you have no choice but to stop what you are doing and stare right at her.” (10)

“Her jawline is strong, her cheekbones are high, and all of it comes to a point at her ever-so-swollen lips. Her eyes are huge but not so much round as an oversized almond shape. Her tanned skin next to her light hair looks beachy but also elegant. I know it’s not natural--hair that blond with skin that bronze--and yet I can’t shake the feeling that it should be, that humans should be born looking like this.” (15)

“...I was five foot eight, with dark, shiny brown hair, long legs, light bronze skin, and a chest that pulled at the buttons of my dresses.” (43)

Middle Aged Evelyn Hugo - Eva Mendes

(Background info: Mendes is an American actress of Cuban descent. She is currently 48 y/o and is 5’6” - 5’8” tall)

Older Evelyn Hugo - Rita Moreno

(Background info: Moreno is a Puerto Rican-born American actress and is currently 91 years old. She was the first Hispanic woman to receive an Oscar in 1962)

“Where her cheeks were once angular, they are now a bit sunken. But they have just a tint of soft rosiness to them, and her lips are a dark nude.” (20)

“Her hair is past her shoulders—a beautiful array white, gray, and blond—with the lightest colors framing her face.” (20)

“Her eyebrows, however—those dark, thick, straight lines that were her signature—have thinned over the years. And they are now the same color as her hair.” (20)

“In the sunlight, it’s easier to see the signs of aging. The whites of her eyes are cloudy, and the complexion of her hands is in the process of becoming translucent. The clear blue tint to her veins reminds me of my grandmother.” (24)

Celia St. James - Kennedy Walsh

(Background info: Walsh is an American YouTuber and Internet personality that also has acted in a few films. She is currently 23 y/o and is 5’7” tall)

“She had a childlike, girl-next-door kind of face. Big, round, pale blue eyes, long lashes, Cupid’s bow lips, long strawberry-red hair. She was simplicity perfect.” (86)

Middle Aged Celia St. James - Jessica Chastain

(Background info: Chastain is an American actress, is currently 45 y/o, and 5’4” tall)

“Her red hair was still stunning but now clearly dyed. The golden undertones that had been there before, the result of nature and sunlight, were now slightly saturated, coppery. Her blue eyes were just as enticing as they always had been, but now the skin around them was softer.” (310)

Harry Cameron - David Corenswet

(Background info: Corenswet is an American actor, is currently 29 y/o, and 6’4” tall)

“He was handsome, for an executive. Most producers around the lot were rotund, a lot of them losing their hair. But Harry was tall and slim. He was young. I suspected he didn’t even have a decade on me. He wore suits that fit him nicely and always complemented his ice-blue eyes. There was something vaguely midwestern about him, not so much in how he looked but in the way he approached people, with kindness first, then strength.” (47)

Middle Aged Harry Cameron - Bradley Cooper

(Background info: Cooper is an American actor, is currently 48 y/o, and 6’1” tall)

John Braverman - Jake Picking

(Background info: Picking is an American actor, is currently 31 y/o, and 6’1” tall)

“In a tux that seemed to strain at his broad shoulders, John looked as all-American as a husk of corn.” (227)

“He had such an intimidating physical presence. More than six feet tall, two hundred and twenty-five pounds, with a tight crew cut. He looked like a guy you didn’t want to mess with. But anyone who knew him, and especially those of us who loved him, knew he was the first guy you could mess with.” (235)

Monique Grant - Zoë Kravitz

(Background info: Kravitz is an American actress and is of African American and Jewish descent. She is currently 34 y/o)

“As a biracial woman myself — light brown skin and dark brown eyes courtesy of my black father, an abundance of face freckles courtesy of my white mother...” (3)

“I’m thirty-five years old.” (7)

[emeraldxruby]

I’m beyond happy that TSHOEH is FINALLY confirmed to go through with a live adaptation BUT I gotta say one major thing about it.

HOW IS IT NOT A LIMITED/MINI-SERIES?!?! Like the material was RIGHT there! I so imagined it being like 7 episodes, each one highlighting each of her 7 husbands, each one titled as the names of her husbands. Then an 8th episode where it’s titled as “Celia St. James”

Or to make it more detailed, they could’ve done an “Intro” (1st) episode where it shows the present time with Monique and Older Evelyn and the origin story of Evelyn when she was a teenager, then 7 episodes for each husband, and then a final episode to wrap everything up in the present time.

Like... I’m so disappointed that they didn’t do this. As of right now, I can’t imagine how they would be able to encompass ALL the major & beautiful parts of this book in just 2 hours at best or less. The first thing I thought of when I read that it will be a MOVIE was “this better be a 5 hour movie then!” Like I seriously can’t imagine how they’ll be able to fit and really tell the story of Evelyn, her husbands, HER AND CELIA’S STORY (THE MOST IMPORTANT TO ME), her and Monique’s and Monique’s own storyline (leading UP to the plot twist).

But at the end of the day. I’m just happy and ecstatic that there will be an adaptation of this beatitiful book at all. Though I wish it was a series instead, I’ll take what I can get for now. Ultimately, I truly hope Netflix doesn’t screw this up... like badly. This book means SO much to me and I’m sure to so many people too.

[emeraldxruby]

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo Fancast

(Disclaimer: I honestly would prefer an unknown cast / newcomers to be casted in the live adaptation if they were to *accurately* depict the characters. My picks are merely actors/actresses that meet a *few* of the character’s descriptions as well as their overall vibe. Just judged based on either appearance, “aura”, or both)

Evelyn Hugo - Bianca A. Santos

(Background info: Bianca Santos is an American actress of Cuban and Brazilian descent. She is fluent in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. She is currently 31 years old (born in 1990) and 5'5” in height)

“When you see pictures of E back in the day with her brassy blond hair, those dark, straight-as-an-arrow eyebrows, that deep-tanned skin, and those golden-brown eyes, you have no choice but to stop what you are doing and stare right at her.” (10)

“People often talk about her straight, thick eyebrows and her blond hair, but I can’t take my eyes off her bone structure. Her jawline is strong, her cheekbones are high, and all of it comes to a point at her ever-so-swollen lips. Her eyes are huge but not so much round as an oversized almond shape. Her tanned skin next to her light hair looks beachy but also elegant. I know it’s not natural--hair that blond with skin that bronze--and yet I can’t shake the feeling that it should be, that humans should be born looking like this.” (15)

“...I was five foot eight, with dark, shiny brown hair, long legs, light bronze skin, and a chest that pulled at the buttons of my dresses.” (43)

“I was supposed to be both naive and erotic.” (51)

“I like the way your skin is too dark for your blond hair, the way the two shouldn’t go together and yet seem so natural on you” (97)

Older Evelyn Hugo (50-60 y/o) - Sofia Vergara

(Background info: Sofia Vergara is a Colombian-American actress and is currently 49 years old (born in 1972). She is fluent in both Spanish and English. She has naturally blonde hair)

Celia St. James - Abigail Cowen 

(Background info: Abigail Cowen is an American actress and is currently 23 years old (born in 1998))

“She had a childlike, girl-next-door kind of face. Big, round, pale blue eyes, long lashes, Cupid’s bow lips, long strawberry-red hair. She was simplicity perfect.” (86)

Older Celia St. James - Jessica Chastain

(Background info: Jessica Chastain is an American actress and is currently 44 years old (born in 1977))

“Her red hair was still stunning but now clearly dyed. The golden undertones that had been there before, the result of nature and sunlight, were now slightly saturated, coppery. Her blue eyes were just as enticing as they always had been, but now the skin around them was softer.” (310)

Harry Cameron - David Corenswet

(Background info: David Corenswet is an American actor and is currently 28 years old (born in 1993))

“He was handsome, for an executive. Most producers around the lot were rotund, a lot of them losing their hair. But Harry was tall and slim. He was young. I suspected he didn’t even have a decade on me. He wore suits that fit him nicely and always complemented his ice-blue eyes. There was something vaguely midwestern about him, not so much in how he looked but in the way he approached people, with kindness first, then strength.” (47)

Older Harry Cameron - Colin Firth

(Background info: Colin Firth is an English actor and is currently 61 years old (born in 1960)) 

Monique Grant - Zoë Kravitz

(Background info: Zoë Kravitz is an American actress and is of African American and Jewish descent. She is currently 33 years old (born in 1988))

“As a biracial woman myself — light brown skin and dark brown eyes courtesy of my black father, an abundance of face freckles courtesy of my white mother...” (3)

“I’m thirty-five years old.” (7)

[emeraldxruby]

Celia was wearing a yellow silk dress with a ruffled edge. Her red hair, now shorter, was pulled back in a chignon. She was older, certainly, but never more breathtaking. When they called her name, she got up on the stage and accepted her award with the grace and sincerity that audiences had always known her for. And just as she was about to leave the microphone, she said,

[emeraldxruby]

“Evelyn, who was your great love? You can tell me.”

Evelyn looks out the window, breathes in deeply, and then says, “Celia St. James.”

The room is quiet as Evelyn lets herself hear her own words. And then she smiles, a bright, wide, deeply sincere smile. She starts laughing to herself and then refocuses on me. “I feel like I spent my entire life loving her.”