Halle Bailey on feeling ‘protected’ as a working mother – EXCLUSIVE

It’s not always easy being a working mother, but Halle Bailey said she felt “so protected” on the set of her new rom-com, You, Me & Tuscany.

In an exclusive interview with HELLO!, the 26-year-old actress revealed that her two-year-old son, Halo, was on set with her throughout the 34-day shoot in Italy. “I felt so protected and loved by our director Kat [Coiro]. She’s amazing and makes you feel welcomed and like you can have your baby around,” said Halle.

“It’s a community. Kat and producer Johanna [Byer] championed for me to be able to,” said the Little Mermaid actress, who stars alongside Bridgerton’s Regé-Jean Page in the new romance film. 

Halle, who shares her son with 28-year-old rapper and streamer DDG, said it was “really special” having Halo with her during filming, which took place between Rome and the Val d’Orcia in Tuscany. 

“I have so many pictures that I’ve actually started framing them. We had a great time,” said the star, who’s perhaps best known as half of the R&B duo Chloe x Halle, with her older sister, Chlöe.

© Getty

“It’s really special in this industry when you can meet people and you don’t feel like you have to hide or that this is not something I can have on set because it’s such a big part of who I am.”

© Monica Schipper/Getty Images

“I felt so protected and loved by our director Kat. She’s amazing and makes you feel welcomed and like you can have your baby around.”

For director Kat, it was important to “acknowledge motherhood” on set. “I have grown kids now, and when I came up [in the industry], I felt like I had to keep it under wraps and hide it,” she said. “I remember lying about being pregnant because I was worried I would get fired. 

“It’s so fun to now be in this place where I’m like, ‘Bring your baby’. We understand,” she continued. “I think it’s really important for women to be leaders and to keep making progress in breaking the glass ceiling; we have to acknowledge our motherhood.”

Halle on why her character is so relatable

Halle plays free-spirited young woman Anna, who abandons her dream of becoming a chef and spontaneously crashes at an empty Tuscan villa belonging to a handsome Italian, Matteo. 

But when his family unexpectedly shows up, Anna pretends to be his fiancée as a cover story – a little lie that becomes a big problem when she meets Matteo’s charming cousin Michael.

© Giulia Parmigiani/Universal Pictures

On what drew her to the role, Halle revealed that, like Anna, she doesn’t “have it together all of the time”. 

© Giulia Parmigiani/Universal Pictures

“That was really cool to see,” continued the star. “Especially like, right now in my life as a 26-year-old, I feel like I don’t have it all together all the time. I’m still learning every single day. So it felt really good to read that and be like, ‘OK, I feel like this too,’ and I want other people to feel that way when they watch it as well.”

You, Me & Tuscany will be released in UK cinemas on 10 April.