In this funny and endearing story on (female) friendship, Minaj’s role channels a very vocal and fashion-forward assistant named Lydia who works for the stunning and tough New York lawyer Carly, played by Diaz whose boyfriend Mark (Waldau) turns out to be a married guy cheating on his wife, Kate (Mann).
The two women don’t appear to have much in common, other than the philandering womanizer who has been tricking both of them. They become great pals, much to Lydia’s initial dismay, and decide to teach the lying Mark a few lessons to prove that cheating will not work. Everything becomes more complicated when Carly and Kate find out that the charming cheat has been engaging in yet another affair, with the beautiful Amber (Kate Upton) who is half his age. The three of them join forces and conjure up ingenious strategies to give Mark what he deserves, at the same time the bond between them grows stronger.
As Nicki Minaj’s unexpected casting coup added something to the movie that producer Julie Yorn hadn’t counted on: “We all have a sense of Nicki’s persona and larger than life personality, but she came in with the most humble approach and attitude. She was dying to sit at the feet of these other women and learn.” We always wanted for the character of Lydia to be sassy,” Yorn continues. “But what was disarming about Nicki was her likability, which actually changed the scripted character. Lydia became a really important ally to Carly. That’s the chemistry part of it that you don’t expect. Cameron and Nicki bonded from day one and so you just get a whole different dynamic than anticipated.”
Minaj was a welcome surprise for director Nick Cassavetes, as well: “Lydia says things to Carly that are couched as truths, and that are really preposterous, but they have this unexpected truth that suggests sometimes the correct thing is to do the incorrect thing.”
Minaj said Lydia is very opinionated. “She has her own outlook on life and relationships, and you can’t change her mind about anything. She develops a real friendship with Carly. And Lydia really wants Carly to settle down and meet the right man. So she gets involved a little bit in bringing Mark down and getting Carly to fall in love with someone who’s a good person.”
Lydia is an important person in Carly’s life, because, says Minaj, “Lydia’s the friend that is going to give you tough love. I happen to be that kind of friend. I don’t like when my best friends are sad about a guy. I think all women need a friend who’s going to let us cry and mope, but we also need the friend that’s going to say, ‘Okay, pick it back up. Let’s go. You know, we’re not going to be walking around the office moping.’”
Patricia Field helms the movie’s costume design department and styling Nicki Minaj was another highlight for the designers. “It was really fun to get the chance to dress Nicki for this role,” says Field’s longtime collaborator and protégé Paolo Nieddu. “She’s the secretary, and the sexy secretary is an image everybody can imagine, so we went with almost a cartoon sexy secretary, with exaggerated colors and prints and lots of different accessories. Every day is a new Lydia. So you never know what you’re going to get with her.”
Lydia’s looks include high fashion, sexy, and body-conscious pieces that would fill the closet of a girl with a sugar daddy footing the bill. Some of her designer looks are by Gucci, Roland Mouret, Versace, Herve Leger, Proenza Schoeler, and McQueen – all paired with the most extreme, expensive designer shoes that only a diva could stand wearing to the office. Nicki Minaj, a noted fashion icon in her own right, was also thrilled to learn Field would be joining the team: “When I heard that Patricia Field was a part of this movie, I was very excited because I knew everybody would be eating their hearts out when they saw all the clothes we wear in this movie, and I knew it was going to be fresh and fun.”
“The Other Woman” opens May 7 in theaters nationwide from 20th Century Fox to be distributed by Warner Bros.
