It’s not every day that you get to meet one of your heroes in real life, which is why it is so very, very hard to play it cool when you do.

Thankfully, it’s not just us mere mortals who are struck dumb in the presence of greatness. That’s right: it turns out that Anne Hathaway, Oscar winner and star of Princess Diaries, is no different from the rest of us. In fact, she literally burst into tears when she met RuPaul during a recent episode of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

RuPaul’s appearance was a surprise for Hathaway, who was appearing on the show to promote her new film The Hustle. Indeed, the actor was happily chatting away about what she likes to watch to relax (answer: RuPaul’s Drag Race), with no idea that the host of her favourite reality TV show – which sees drag queens compete to be crowned America’s next drag superstar – was waiting in the wings. 

“Oh my god I love that show so much!” Hathaway told Colbert, who then asked if she’d like him to pass a message on to the show’s host RuPaul, who was due to be a guest the following day. 

Hathaway’s response was entirely relatable.

“I couldn’t talk,” she said. “Just say ‘I love you’.”

It was at this point that RuPaul ran onto the stage. And, as if things couldn’t get even more surreal, Ru was dressed in an outfits that almost exactly matched her own: both were wearing similar metallic suits.

Naturally, all of this was quite overwhelming for Hathaway, who promptly burst into tears. Noting her reaction, RuPaul smiled and told her: “You are the winner of this week’s challenge. Shantay you stay.” 

It’s a phrase that most Drag Race fans can only dream of hearing themselves, isn’t it?

Of course, Hathaway watches far more than Drag Race: she’s also a fan of Killing Eve and Game of Thrones. 

“The thing I’m really into right now, it sounds terrible, but Game of Thrones,” she said, admitting that she watches the bloody HBO show to help her unwind. “You shouldn’t watch people dying to make yourself feel better but I do love it.”

Hmm, it sounds like we have a lot in common with Hathaway. And, while it might be hard play it cool if we met her IRL, we like to think that we’d be the best of friends when we eventually stopped sobbing.

Image: Getty