On Thursday night, Ugg threw a lavish dinner at Little Beach House Malibu with Rachel Zoe, Sara Foster, Kate Bosworth and Lydia Hearst to celebrate Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s new gig as its global women’s ambassador. As waves crashed against the shore, the British model sat down with WWD to talk about about the “real” Rosie, her acting career, comfort food and possible footwear at her upcoming wedding to actor Jason Statham.
WWD: What can you tell us about your latest job?
Rosie Huntington-Whiteley: I’ve owned a pair of Ugg boots since I was 16 years old. It’s a brand that really represents my free time, personal time, the true me. So to be here in Malibu, one of my favorite places, with my team and friends coming down to celebrate, it’s lovely. I always get nervous and overwhelmed at these things. It’s a big honor.
WWD: You mentioned there’s a “real” you. Can you elaborate?
R.H.W.: The girl who’s off-duty. Me when I’m at home in my personal life, kind of on the beach with my dog, taking a trip on the beach up the coast or going home to the countryside in England. Things that people don’t really know that I do. It’s the real me. I think people are used to seeing me on the red carpet or on a glamorous modeling shoot for a magazine. But there’s a real heart to my personality as well.
WWD: Where do you want your acting career to go next?
R.H.W.: It’s so funny, I never really planned to be an actress. It kind of happened. So I’ve been really fortunate and lucky that films came my way and I saw it as an opportunity to learn and try my hand at something. But my attitude is kind of the same as beforehand, if something comes up, then fantastic. If not, then I’ll keep doing what I’m doing. I consider myself a model and I have many different brand associations at the moment that are keeping me busy — my lingerie line in the U.K. that takes up a lot of time traveling back and forth to London once a month to stay on top of that business. I don’t know when I’d manage to fit in a film at the moment.
WWD: Is there a diet or exercise regimen that you swear by?
R.H.W.: I’m a big foodie. I grew up on a farm and I love my food. As I’m getting older now, I’m still learning and exploring. It constantly changes. I’m learning what works for my body and what doesn’t work for my body. Clean and lean, that’s sort of my rule. But I do love to indulge. It’s all about a balance really. I’m really obsessed with exercise, though. It’s really been instilled in me since I was younger. My mom was a fitness instructor. Like I said, I grew up on a farm in the countryside, so it was quite an active outdoor childhood. Living in the city now, you have to go to the gym. I’ve been a really loyal fan of Body by Simone for a couple of years now, and I’ve seen amazing results. It’s dance- and cardio-based. It’s a really fun environment and empowering. I try to do that three or four times a week and yoga on the other days to keep everything long and lean, stretched out and spiritual.
WWD: You mentioned being a foodie. What are some meals you like to make?
R.H.W.: My favorite dish to make, my favorite comfort food and that’s always a request from friends is a roast chicken or a classic English roast. I’ll do a roast chicken, with roasted potatoes, roasted vegetables. I kind of learned that recipe with my mom, growing up and watching her on a Sunday. In England, Sunday roast is something you do every Sunday. So I try to do those in the winter. It’sa comfort to bring your loved ones around the table.
WWD: Who’s your go-to when you’re looking for fashion advice?
R.H.W.: I love fashion, so I do a lot of my own research and I follow a lot of my favorite style icons on Instagram. I’m a big fan of Emmanuelle Alt, Barbara Martelo and then I’m best friends with my stylist who I’ve worked with on various projects for the last six years, Cher Coulter. We pretty much travel together all the time now because we’re always working. She’s always introducing me to little things I didn’t know and vice versa. Some of my favorite designers are Christopher Bailey, Riccardo Tisci, Isabel Marant and Chloé. Olivier [Rousteing] at Balmain. It’s always fun of course to walk in a Balmain show. He’s sort of my homie.
WWD: What’s it like to have such a close relationship with so many designers?
R.H.W.: Everybody has a different approach to fashion. Some people are quite serious, some people are quite quiet; some people are flamboyant and outgoing. I’m a close friend with Anthony Vaccarello who’s a very sweet and gentle, gentle soul; who’s got these punchy architectural designs. I’m really excited to see what he’s going to do. And then you’ve got someone like Olivier who’s the life of the party and it’s nice to be around different people from different backgrounds. One of my favorite parts about what I do is you really get to go behind the scenes when you’re doing fittings and you see these people at work on their hands and knees doing and sketching and everything. I love being exposed to that part.
WWD: Are you going to any spring 2017 shows or walking in them?
R.H.W.: I am. I’m going to be in New York next week. I’m not going to tell you what for because I know that they’ll probably want me to keep it a surprise. I’m very excited. It’s the first time I’ve seen this fashion show. It’s one of the American greats.
WWD: Are you going to wears Uggs to the wedding?
R.H.W.: [Laughs] Maybe, I kind of haven’t thought about it. We’ll see.