Beyoncé Made A Bold Demand To The Studio After Seeing Herself In The 'Austin Powers' Movie Poster

Back in 2002 an iconic superspy embarked on a shagadellic adventure with a badass FBI agent named Foxxy Cleopatra, played by the soon-to-be-iconic Beyoncé Knowles. To most people, Queen B stole the show, and it was obvious even back then that she had a very firm handle on her brand. Take her bold reaction to the movie’s poster — it shocked everyone at New Line Cinema, as no actress had ever made such a demand before.

Auditioning with Mike Myers

On the eve of the release of her first motion picture in 2002 Beyoncé was interviewed by Newsweek magazine. She recalled auditioning twice for her role, saying, “I read with Mike and just tried to be the straight guy. When I left, I was convinced I wasn’t going to get it.” “Mike,” of course, was comedy megastar Mike Myers and the movie was Austin Powers in Goldmember.

Beyoncé comes prepared

Fortunately, Beyoncé did get it, but she had to seriously up her game in her second audition. She said, “I went back in wearing a Pam Grier-like catsuit, an Afro wig and had memorized every blaxploitation film ever made.” This impressed Myers, and Beyoncé would only continue in the same vein, with the leading man remarking, “She came to the set prepared in every way, every day. In fact, she was overprepared.”

A Streisand-like quality

Producer John Lyons told Newsweek, “She has this Streisand-like quality, where you just know she can do anything and have this amazing career in both music and film. If she wants it.” Still, this early in her career, Beyoncé wasn’t really sure if she did want it. She said at the time, “It’s overwhelming sometimes. I’m happy, but at the same time, I’m not sure how long I want to do this.”

A constant grind

Something that gave Beyoncé pause was the 1,200-calorie-per-day diet to which she had to adhere for the movie. She said, “I like to eat and that’s a problem in this industry. I’m still probably twice as big any of the other actresses out there, and that’s a constant grind that I really hate to have to worry about.” Trust us — this won’t be the last mention of her realistic attitude toward body image.

Austin Powers

First, though, some context — in the late ’90s, Mike Myers’ swingin’ superspy was huge. He first appeared in 1997’s Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, which became a sleeper hit. Then came 1999’s Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, which was a phenomenon — grossing more in its opening weekend than the first movie did in its entire run!

Foxxy Cleopatra

For the third movie — Austin Powers in Goldmember — producers knew they wanted to homage classic ’70s blaxploitation movies. So, they set about finding a suitable actress to play Foxxy Cleopatra, the super-sexy FBI agent who also performs as a nightclub singer in Studio 69. In an oral history of the film, producer John Lyons told website Vulture, “We knew that we were searching for a young black actress.”

Meeting Myers and director Jay Roach

At the time, Beyoncé’s star was on the rise as part of Destiny’s Child, but she and parents Mathew and Tina knew they wanted to aim for solo stardom. She met director Jay Roach and Myers on a rooftop patio outside Myers’ room at the Chateau Marmont hotel in Los Angeles. Roach told Vulture they initially simply chatted about ideas for Foxxy’s character.

An instant chemistry

Lyons revealed, “It was clear that she was so nervous at that audition, and Tina came with her, both as moral support and, I’m sure, to size us up and see if we were going to be respectful of her daughter and if we deserved her.” Crucially, though, Roach revealed, “Beyoncé and Mike hit it off like crazy. Instantly I could tell there was chemistry with them.”

A turning point

Matthew Rolston, who directed Beyoncé’s music video for tie-in single “Work It Out,” summed up the situation perfectly. He said, “This was an important moment in her career, a real turning point, going from the frontwoman of a successful pop band to a first solo effort. It had been carefully constructed by her mom and dad to be her debut as an actress and a solo pop act at the same time.”

On the brink of solo stardom

As hard as it is to believe now, despite being a famous pop star at the time, Beyoncé wasn’t yet the icon she would go on to become. For example, her first solo album — which included her defining single “Crazy In Love” — didn’t arrive until the year after Goldmember was released. She reportedly didn’t let any of the fame from her day job interfere with “Beyoncé the actress,” though.

No entourage

Producer Suzanne Todd told Vulture, “I don’t remember a level of entourage like Beyoncé would have now. I’ve worked with some people that have literally 27 people in their entourage.” Deena Appel, a costume designer, added, “I think it was partly Beyoncé separating her stage career from her acting career and giving over to the process. She always came alone to her fittings — no entourage, no Tina.”

A new way to grow as an artist

At the time, Beyoncé told the BBC, “I was very nervous. I didn’t really know what I was doing. I was just grateful to get the opportunity. I felt like it was a new chapter of my life, a new way to grow as an artist.” This led to an intense curiosity on her part for movie-making, with Roach remarking, “Her excitement for what she was doing was so contagious.”

Foxxy gets to sing

Any nerves the star felt while traversing the brand-new world of acting faded away when it came time for Foxxy to sing, though. Stunt coordinator Jack Gill revealed, “We did some of her acting bits first, and then we said we’re going to move to her singing number. So, everybody moves the cameras over, and we get ready.”

Beyoncé in her element

Gill continued, “Here’s our first take and she friggin’ nailed it. It was like, ’Oh my God, this is her element. This is what she does. She’s not nervous now. She knows exactly what she’s doing.’ It was totally different.” Hair stylist Candy Walken added, “We all just stood there, and our mouths dropped open. She became this incredible light.”

Foxxy is well-received

Overall, Beyoncé’s initial foray into movie stardom was well-received — even if the movie as a whole wasn’t. Esteemed critic Roger Ebert said, “One new character I did like was Foxxy Cleopatra. Alas, the movie doesn’t do much with her except assign her to look extremely good while standing next to Austin.” The New York Times newspaper’s critic Stephen Holden added that Beyoncé “knows how to strut that strut.”

Beyoncé forges an acting career

Beyoncé continued to star in movies alongside her music career for much of the next decade — most of which traded on her abilities and status as a pop megastar. In 2003’s The Fighting Temptations she played a lounge singer entering a gospel competition; in The Pink Panther she was a pop star reeling from her boyfriend’s murder; and in Cadillac Records she played legendary blues singer Etta James.

The most acclaimed role and the last

The superstar’s most acclaimed movie was 2006’s Dreamgirls, in which she played fictional singer Deena Jones, who was heavily inspired by Diana Ross. The performance landed her a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress. In 2009 she tried her hand at a movie with no connection to music — psychological thriller Obsessed — but it has turned out to be her last live-action film appearance to date.

Hollywood’s expectations for women

Flashing back to her first big-screen role, even producer Lyons talked to Vulture about Beyoncé’s physical transformation. He revealed, “She put herself on a really tough physical regimen and diet. She and Mathew and Tina were keenly aware of the expectations that both the music business and Hollywood frequently have for how young, beautiful women should look and were smart about making those ideas work to their ends.”

“Oh my God, I’m so hungry”

As dedicated as she was, though, co-star Diane Mizota told Vulture that Beyoncé had a very relatable attitude to her body. She said, “Being next to Beyoncé in the makeup chair was like, ’Oh, yeah, that’s the girl from Destiny’s Child.’ She was pretty quiet. She would kind of whisper little asides to me, like, ‘Oh my God, I’m so hungry.’”

“She’s probably working out like crazy”

She continued, “I just remember she had this big bodyguard who would come in and sneak her donuts on a napkin. I would see her take a bite behind the napkin and kind of smile at me. I remember thinking, ‘Oh my God, she’s so cute. She just wants a donut! It’s a night shoot, and she’s probably working out like crazy.’”

The poster

While Beyoncé worked hard for her body, she did make an unusual request at one point during the shoot. Make-up artist Kate Biscoe told Vulture, “When we were shooting, someone brought her a poster that would be promoting the movie. He showed it to her, like, ‘Do you like it?’ And she was kind of like, ‘Yeah.’” They knew something wasn’t sitting right with the star, though.

“You made me too skinny”

Biscoe revealed, “He goes, ’What’s the matter?’ And she says, ‘You made me too skinny. It’s not me.’ Then she did this hourglass shape. And he said, ‘Okay, we’ll fix that.’” The fact that Beyoncé — so early in her acting career — had the guts to request such a change is one thing. But asking for her body to be represented more realistically was practically unheard of in Hollywood.

The first time any actress requested to look bigger

It certainly shocked Biscoe — just in the best possible way. She revealed that when Beyoncé walked away to shoot, she looked at the person holding the poster and smiled. Then she asked, “Is that the first time that you’ve ever had an actress ask to make her body bigger?” The guy answered, “Yes. It’s going to cost me thousands of dollars, but I am going to do it.”

A down-to-Earth attitude toward body image

Beyoncé celebrated her 20th birthday on the set of Goldmember — which means she was only 19 when asked for the poster change. It showed she had an incredibly mature head on her shoulders, even at a young age, and over the years her attitude to body image has remained down-to-Earth. In 2021 she came clean with Harper’s Bazaar magazine about her struggles and triumphs.

The rigors of touring

The 39-year-old Queen B revealed, “I’ve personally struggled with insomnia from touring for more than half of my life. Years of wear and tear on my muscles from dancing in heels. The stress on my hair and skin, from sprays and dyes to the heat of a curling iron and wearing heavy makeup while sweating on stage.”

Mental health is self-care too

“In the past, I spent too much time on diets, with the misconception that self-care meant exercising and being overly conscious of my body,” continued Beyoncé. These days, though, she takes a very different approach, revealing, “My health, the way I feel when I wake up in the morning, my peace of mind, the number of times I smile, what I’m feeding my mind and my body — those are the things that I’ve been focusing on.”

Listening to your body

Overall, Beyoncé revealed, “I’m learning to break the cycle of poor health and neglect, focusing my energy on my body, and taking note of the subtle signs that it gives me. Your body tells you everything you need to know, but I’ve had to learn to listen. It’s a process to change habits and look past the bag of chips and the chaos everywhere!”

“I am more than enough”

Beyoncé also told Elle magazine, “If someone told me 15 years ago that my body would go through so many changes and fluctuations, and that I would feel more womanly and secure with my curves, I would not have believed them. But children and maturity have taught me to value myself beyond my physical appearance and really understand that I am more than enough no matter what stage I’m at in life.” Preach, sister!

A body-positivity icon

At this point in her life and career, Beyoncé is a poster girl for celebrating body positivity. In fact, in 2021 a survey conducted by yogurt-makers Activia saw her named the single most inspiring female celeb in that regard. All in all, it’s not hard to trace a direct line from the 19-year-old Beyoncé who refused to let a movie studio make her appear thinner on a poster, to the curvy icon she is today.