Director Catherine Hardwicke's Kinky Thoughts On Red Riding Hood

Catherine Hardwicke didn’t go to film school. She was an architecture student. But a gritty movie called Thirteen earned Hardwicke the directing award at Sundance in 2003, and suddenly, she was the “hot new filmmaker,” at age 47. She cast Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson in a little film called Twilight, and now she’s putting a dark, sexy spin on Red Riding Hood. A piece about Hardwicke in Newsweek is full of insider info and details about her youthful spirit — she surfs, wears sneakers and hangs out with her cast in her house (and bed) — but the best part is when she waxes philosophic about the infamous wolf:

“Maybe you like Red Riding Hood when you’re 5. When you’re 10, you start latching on to it for another reason — why did she get in bed with the wolf? It represents a dark animal nature which is close to sexuality. In the traditional story, the wolf cross-dresses and lures her into bed. That’s pretty kinky right there! The wolf is the original tranny. What a kinky wolf!” Her entire face lights up. “A granny tranny!”