Michaela Coel Gets Real In Harper’s Bazaar Cover Story
Michael Koel is baring it all in a new cover story for Harper's Bazaar. The Emmy-winning creative doesn't hold back on several things, ranging from her intense on-set chemistry with Anne Hathaway to admit that she felt a little creatively lost during filming Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Coel got candid about the highs, lows and messy middle of her developing career. In the issue of March 2026, the entertainer opens her last role Mother Marywhere she plays obsessive fashion designer Sam Anselm. In true Michaela fashion, her description of tapping into the character was anything but basic.
“I ate her soul. I swallowed it whole. It tasted so powerful and so sad and also crunchy,” she said. Crispy, sister? Say less.
Coel's dynamic with Hathaway was equally intense. She admitted the pair's first reading was “a mess” full of raw energy.
“I like to play and tease my scene partners and just try to keep them on their toes,” she explained. Yet in the end it was all love. Coel said she “really loved dancing with Anne” and now feels “love and empathy” for her co-star.
Their fellow castmate, Hunter Schafer, confirmed that the energy between them came from their deep commitment to the story. Schafer even shared that after long days of shooting, she and Coel would hit techno clubs in Germany to blow off steam. Apparently Coel didn't play on the dance floor either.
“Michaela said, 'I want a higher BPM!'” Schafer recalls.
We love a multifaceted queen.
But it hasn't all been smooth sailing. Michaela Coel admitted that during her filming of 2022's Black Panther: Wakanda Foreverwhere she played the Dora Milaje warrior Aneka, she didn't feel she turned in her best performance.
She told Harper's Bazaar that she struggled with the heavy green screen work and felt out of her element and spending nine months in Atlanta with limited screen time left her feeling unmoored. Instead of writing or creating, she found herself outside.
“I'm outside, I'm in the club,” she said bluntly. They met rappers and their entourages, parties. It was fun, but she felt she wasn't fulfilling her purpose. “It was different from what I was supposed to do, and that made me feel a little empty,” she added.
While she was enjoying herself, she recognized that it was taking her away from what she felt she needed to do, and that was weighing on her.
The I can destroy you creator also reflected on how her relentless pursuit of truth in her work can make relationships complicated. She described her intensity as relentless, admitting that when she pulls back to focus on her craft, partners can feel uncertain about where they stand.
“There's a ruthlessness to this stuff. Like I said, I'm aggressive in my pursuit of the truth, and that can be very difficult,” Coel shared in the interview.
Even if it affects their relationships, Coel was reminded how difficult that can be.
“It's like when you move out of a house for a few weeks, but all your stuff is there. So, you know, the person comes back,” she explains. “But if you're an anxious person, you'll freak out and worry about me leaving.”
The spread was filled with so many gems about the entertainer and the projects she has ahead. We learned that Michaela Coel is committed to art, even when it gets uncomfortable. And if that means crunchy souls and chaotic chemistry, then so be it.
Check out the full spread Harper's Bazaar written by Charlie Brinkhurst-Cuff, photographed by Willy Vanderperre, and styled by Katie Burnettover here.
