Constance Wu Worked ‘Undercover’ as a Stripper to Prep for ‘Hustlers’ Role
Written by SOURCE on February 18, 2020
In the latest example of the lengths actors will go to get into character, Constance Wu says that she actually spent a night as an undercover stripper in an effort to prep for her starring role in Hustlers. She also adds that she made $600 while incognito.
Wu admitted as much during an appearance on Kelly Clarkson’s show called *looks it up* The Kelly Clarkson Show. You can see the clip up top.
“I went undercover. I gave lap dances to strangers,” Wu said to an initially skeptical Clarkson.
After the actress clarified that “I’m not lying,” incredulity segued into shock, which is not uncommon amongst afternoon talk shows.
Wu said that, in order to pull off the deception, she donned fake tattoos and altered her hair. In addition to performing for an audience on a real stage, she also installed a stripper pole in her living room, and did private pole dancing lessons for further prep.
In the 2019 film, Wu played the role of Destiny. The film was based upon a real-life group of strippers who hustled their rich clients. More directly, Destiny is modeled on ex-stripper Roselyn Keo, with Keo eventually being arrested for her part in the real-life scam.
Hustlers also starred Jennifer Lopez, Julia Stiles, Keke Palmer, Lili Reinhart, Lizzo, Cardi B, and others.
Wu recently said that she still hasn’t seen Hustlers (or any of her recent work), telling Kelly & Ryan last week that “I didn’t watch my talk show appearances or Fresh Off the Boat or Hustlers just ’cause I thought, you know, ‘I want to focus on the present’ and not be self-critical and think too much, dwell too much on the past.”
