Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen take multiple covers of the April issue of Elle UK, in a photo shoot by Alexei Hay. Why can’t these girls smile? Why are they always so… sad? Grim? Pissy? Bored? Anyway, they’re promoting their multiple fashion lines – The Row, Elizabeth and James and Olsenboye – as well as reveling in their creepy twin stuff. And don’t start yelling at me – I’ve known twins before, and I accept the idea/fact that twins will always have a special, unique bond. But whatever MK and Ashley have is different, and it definitely becomes a bit creepy. Especially when they talk about sharing one mind, one thought process. Here are some highlights from the interview… I don’t even know why I bothered breaking down the quotes per twin since they share a brain.
Ashley on their twin-brain: ‘We’re attracted to different things, but we arrive at the same place. I think we’re probably unaware of how intuitive it might seem from the outside. It’s basically one thought process shared between two people.’
Ashley says they’re kind of OCD: ‘We are perfectionists. We’ve always wanted to be closely involved with everything, totally hands on – that’s why it works. If we step away, it stops working. I know it sounds controlling, but that’s how it has to be.’
Ashley doesn’t want the spotlight: She reveals she ‘doesn’t like to be the centre of attention any more’, saying: ‘I don’t have to be a pretty face. I’ve done that, but now it’s important and liberating to be on the other side of the lens.’
Ashley on quitting acting: “We worked non-stop until we were 18. Then we decided to take a break and go to school — and that was when we decided to question whether we would carry on in entertainment…It was time to step behind the process. I wanted to work on other things. It doesn’t mean I’m not interested in Hollywood, I like the way it operates and the people who are involved and the sense of possibility. But if I ever do get back in, it’s not going to be as an actress. It just felt right to move away.”
MK doesn’t get designers-as-celebrities: ‘Of course we knew about the trend of celebrities as designers, but we’d done that already when we were much younger. I don’t understand the new idea of designers as celebrities either. To me, the Phoebe Philo (British fashion designer) kind of modesty is the way to go. We love beautiful things. That’s the only driving impulse. It’s about being creative, but having a bigger vision for that creativity. For a designer to be successful nowadays, they need to know much more than just design. [Tom Ford], his career is astonishing – the way he’s been able to do everything he has wanted to do and really not compromise at all. From fashion to film, it’s such a singular vision.’
My only real problem with the quotes is the obliviousness with which they’re both acting like they haven’t just participated in a cover shoot for a major magazine. Ashley says, “I don’t have to be a pretty face. I’ve done that, but now it’s important and liberating to be on the other side of the lens.” MK says, “I don’t understand the new idea of designers as celebrities either.” You’re on the cover of a magazine!!! You are celebrity designers. You use your images, your celebrity, your fame, the public’s interest in YOU to help promote your clothes. It doesn’t make them bad designers or uninteresting celebrities – it just makes them disingenuous.
Elle UK photos courtesy of The Fashion Spot and The Mail.
Yeah,lovely pictures but they do look like they’re in pain in some of them!
I had the same problem, but then I got invisalign. LOL, j/k.
They are both sad and pathetic.
I know. this schtick is getting so old! the waify hunched over posing, big eyed sad faced nothingness, blaze, been there, done that, we did that ALL before we were 18, we are SO over it, blah blah. who cares. I wish they would stay off covers of magazines if they are so over it and give us all a break with this act. how old are they? 25? 27? cant they find a new pose and a new look? theyve been doing this for 10 years!
I´d love to have a twin and see how it´s like for a while
Such ugly clothes… Poor girls….
Let’s see their foray into acting as adults failed badly. Stick to being celebrity designers , it’s much more believable
Those two girls are weird! Is the one that is all covered up the anorexic one?
“New Trend” of designers as celebrities?
Like Coco Chanel? Elsa Shiaperelli? Christian Dior? Mary Quant? Betsey Johnson? Halston?
Yeah, designers being famous is totally a new thing. For people so “into” fashion, they are woefully uneducated.
And ftr, I’d never buy anything “designed” by a celebrity.
Cheesy.
I don’t get all the hype about these two… At all.
I’m sorry but people shouldn’t be saying most of the snarky things they say about them. Yes she’s right, it’s not realistic to talk about designers as celebrities when they are on the cover of a magazine hawking their own over priced junk. Those points ARE riduculous. But nowadays child stars are so incredibly troubled, they live under a microscope and are critisized from birth til the end. At least an adult actor got their “unknown” childhood. The child star usually goes down a path of self destruction in the form of drugs, alcohol, depression and more. These girls were the both the biggest child stars and now all they want is some privacy to work Hollywood from behind the scenes. I say “Bravo.”, if the worst that people can criticize them for is scowling, wearing different clothes and wanting to go to real college…..then damn, those are some really weak complaints. Would I dress like them or buy their brands? No. But I damn sure wouldn’t have handled their public childhood as well as they did.
They are not looking for privacy. They just did multiple covers on at least one national magazine. Anyway, I don’t have anything against them, except I do not like their clothing choices, so I assume their line would be similar. And I am guessing that their consistent facial expressions are kind of like Victoria Beckham’s continuous pout. It’s just their thing for photos.
Meh! Yes, they are weird and out of touch with reality to a certain point but they are very talented designers who clearly have a passion for what they are doing. I like their style and their creepiness because they seem genuinely weird instead of modeling manufactured “cool and edgy” behavior. My comment about Elizabeth getting the happy genes still stands.
I wonder if they banned any questions about their sister–the actual, respected actress. No wonder they want to quit, the comparison to her would be brutal!
I think a lot of people rolled their eyes when they heard that the Olsen twins (Michelle Tanner!) were starting fashion lines not being sold at Wal-Mart, so good for them for really proving themselves as designers and becoming accepted by the New York City fashion world. Didn’t they even win at the CFDAs last year?
When Martha Marcy May Marlene came out, I got so sick of hearing people say of Lizzie Olsen, “Finally, an Olsen with some talent!” Mary Kate and Ashley are talented too; it’s just in a different field. It’s nice that they’ve all been able to do what they love.
Thank goodness they had each other all this time. If there were just the one I imagine she would be batshit crazy at this point.
Implying they have one shared brain solidifies my theory that neither one of them is working with a full deck of cards.
I always thought they were fraternal twins, if that’s so they can’t share a mind/brain like they always claim.
They must be fraternal if they are different heights, right? I think fraternal twins still claim twin brain though.
A poster a very long time ago called them the “Gollum twins”. Now that is an enduring image 🙂
Identical twins can be different heights. Having the same DNA does not make you creepy or a clone…and it doesn’t make you identical! Epigentics that control the expression of DNA as well as environment can create differences in identical twins. I am an identical twin. I was born 3 pounds, sister 8 pounds. THATS a big environmental difference and we look different. Do we have a very intuitive working style where we only speak in shorthand or know what the other is thinking? Sure. I feel a bit miffed that posters here think that is “creepy”. Personally I think its weird to NOT have a twin, cannot IMAGINE living my life without one. But I don’t think the untwinned are weird just because I don’t understand their experiences fully. Ashley and Elizabeth are trying to describe what its like to be a twin, its just differnt to the norm, like being a lesbian or an orphan .Not freaky.
They must be pissed that their sister is taken more seriously than these 2 clowns.
I think they both headed toward eating disorders early and haven’t really shaken it. They grew up on camera and they never were skinny, just normal, until their late teens. I remember a documentary on them when they were about 16. Their favorite place to “eat” sold something like low cal tea that was their usual choice. No hint of real food as a favorite anywhere. Odd choice for two very active teenagers. I think they were starting to avoid eating at that age at least. It became painfully obvious by the time they were 17 and were shrinking fast. The one forced into rehab just before her 18th birthday was only a tad more skeletal than her sister, so I assume it wasn’t just for eating disorders but she got caught with drugs (the ones that help keep you skinny). The other one just didn’t get caught. The parentals had to push her into rehab while they still had the power to insist.
However, they do have brains, shared or not. That’s refreshing, even though they still are spooky thin. The one who played in the tv show Weed gave an interview where she said she took acting classes to prepare, since what they did as kids wasn’t really acting. I liked that level of self-awareness. Despite all the screen time on Full House and those twin videos they did all through childhood and a couple of shows they did as tweens and teens, neither of them could act their way out of a paper bag. Kids just like watching twins and blondes and aren’t very discriminating when it comes to talent (also explaining the popularity of singleton Hilary Duff), which was why they kept selling DVDs. They are smart to look for other things to do. Fortunately, they do seem to have other options, if they don’t starve to death first.
Reminds me of those creepy Hollywood showbiz twins from the 50s who were in the news yesterday because they were found dead together in their mansion and hadn’t spoken to anyone else in years.
According to IMDB Ashley is 5’3″ and Mary-Kate is 5’2″ — for some reason I always thought they were shorter, like Snookie height (under 5 feet tall).
As for them being closer/kreepier than other twins, they grew up playing the same character on tv. That’s like the-normal-identity-problems-of-kid-stars squared. If they weren’t billionaires, I might feel bad for them.
I wonder if they have boyfriends? I’m guessing they’re not married or it would have been mentioned.
Are they wearing their own designs? I’m getting a Balmain vibe from everything in the photos. Which I don’t mind, but it’s odd. I feel like most celebrity designers just rip off their own favorite designers.
they kinda creep me out. they still look like tiny little girls trying to be adults. also, they should consider smiling occasionally….they really have it easy, nothing to be so sullen about.
Why do I get the feeling that the Olsen twins never smile because they have bad teeth?
They always look like they’re not feeling well. Whichever one is in the last photo looks like she has stomach cramps. It’s amazing what sells because they have a huge net worth.
This is why I like Elizabeth.
i love the bejeweled dress in ashley’s cover.
Who told her she had a pretty face?
Kinda why I prefer MK – she seems to be less *megaphone* LEAAAAAVE MEEE ALOOOOOONE JE SUIS AN AAAARTIST Y’AAAAALL than Ashley.
Also Mary Kate seems more into the acting – Weeds, Beastly, etc. And she is *not* bad. Everybody’s all “OMG ELIZABETH OLSEN CAN ACT!!”, but she has the advantage of being new. Nobody would ever expect anything from Mary Kate or Ashley. They wouldn’t even give them the chance, despite their previous forays being mostly kid-stuff.
bad photoshop alert… their faces look like they were made of silicone… and the eyes were enlarged too much… who approves these bad ps jobs?
has anyone here actually checked out The Row or Elizabeth and James? Their individual style definitely does not speak for their lines which are beautifully made and often classic pieces. Also, while it may appear they are being hypocritical, I believe they differentiate between themselves and celebrity designers because they were celebs first, designers later. They are very talented girls and I think everyone here is just looking for mean things to say.
They always look like they need a shower and their hair always looks overly messy and greasy.
They aren’t even identical twins…
Im not sure they are very creative thinkers and not very good company!
I remember one conversation where mk would not shutup about “andy warhol, and how amazing he was” (in this annoying oh so thick valley girl accent)…I remember thinking seriously? First of all mk calls us over from across the room because “my friend resembled her(he was a guy) and then! she has us sitting there fixated and babbling about Warhol of all people. It was laughable and uncomfortable! a cliche! These two are so uninteresting! It was a bit uneasy to see these two out at a party later in life.. they are like tiny trolls in constumes bragging about their basquiats chain smoking marlboros. I dont know a single person who would actually wear their clothing, I wonder if they are paying people to sit in at their shows… I know some people who find them ironic and went to the opening when they started the row.. but I just dont get it! I don’t get them, and thank god I dont have to.
*shudder* ….why are we still talking about them?
I still think their fine!Atleast the best know them. Their cool imy book.
High I geuss?marykate and Ashley Olsen!
hello?