Joe Wright’s 2005 adaptation of Jane Austen’s ‘Pride & Prejudice’ has gone down as one of the most beloved retellings of Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy’s romance. With its lush period atmosphere, sweeping romance, and memorable performances from Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen, the film quickly became a fan favorite.
Although some Austen fans felt Macfadyen’s Darcy wasn’t entirely true to the original, his quiet intensity gave the character undeniable charm. However, during production an unexpected problem arose that forced Keira Knightley to wear a wig.
At just 19, Knightley was already a rising Hollywood star thanks to roles in Pirates of the Caribbean, Love Actually, and King Arthur. Alongside Pride & Prejudice, she was also preparing for a completely different project — Tony Scott’s action film Domino, in which she played a bounty hunter. The contrast couldn’t have been sharper: the refined and intelligent Lizzy Bennet one day, nunchaku-wielding rebel the next.
The problem? Knightley had only four days between finishing one film and starting the other. With no time to spare, she was literally training in martial arts between takes on Pride & Prejudice. In an interview, she admitted that the quick shift between characters started to mess with her head — and led to one very impulsive decision.
“Tony Scott started calling me, to talk to me about Domino but I couldn’t talk to him, because I was still totally in the world of Pride and Prejudice, and I was starting to panic about not being able to switch in time. I was in the street, I passed in front of a hair salon, I went inside, and I said to the hairdresser: “Cut all this for me”. And I got my hair cut very short. All I needed was to look in the mirror and not see Elizabeth Benneth anymore,” Knightley recalled.
For the Pride & Prejudice crew, however, that haircut was a nightmare. Elizabeth Bennet was supposed to have long, flowing hair befitting the period. The only solution was to fit Knightley with a wig — and if you watch closely, you might even spot her short strands peeking out in some of the final scenes.
