Amy Schumer (left) wore Monique Lhuillier’s design when she wed chef Chris Fischer last February.
LOS ANGELES—In her candid, funny way, Amy Schumer paid Monique Lhuillier the highest compliment when the actress explained why she chose and loved the Fil-Am designer’s wedding gown when she wed chef Chris Fischer in February.
“I didn’t have to wear Spanx,” began the “I Feel Pretty” star in our recent interview at The Whitby Hotel in Manhattan. “I didn’t wear a bra. I didn’t have to suck in. I felt like I could be totally free and be myself. And peeing was pretty easy (laughs).”
Nordstrom, which sells the gown at $5,490, describes Lhuillier’s creation on its website: “A beautiful ball gown of a dress … with floral lace appliqués tumbling gracefully down a V-neck bodice suspended from delicate spaghetti straps … A hint of pale color beneath a voluminous skirt of ethereal silk tulle adds a dramatic dimension…”
The gown’s comfortable style ties in with the standup comedian and actress’ fun personality. She shared several photos of her quickly planned, surprise outdoor Malibu wedding before 80 guests, which included pal Jennifer Lawrence, on Instagram.
“I feel prettiest when I don’t think about what I look like,” said the “Trainwreck” actress.
At the interview, she wore an orange top and skirt (with a white cardigan) which she revealed “is going to be from my line. It’s coming very soon. We’re considering two names.”
Amy revealed that Jennifer was not a bridesmaid (the only bridesmaid was her sister, Kim Caramele). “But Jennifer did give a toast. It was really sweet.”
The bride (left) with her best friend, actress Jennifer Lawrence —CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Of her actress-buddy, Amy said, “Jennifer is 10 years younger than me, but she is an old soul. She’s wise and she has been famous for so long. I have a lot to learn from her. We look to each other and give advice, mostly unsolicited (laughs). She was openly talking about how she was hitting on Larry David at my wedding. As her friend, I was like, ‘Hey, let’s steer you in another direction (laughs).’
“And not just because of the age difference, but I know better than for her to want to date another performer. I was like, ‘I don’t think you should be with actors or comedians, and that is because I’ve had experience with them, too.’
“We’re the kind of friends where we met and felt close to each other right away. We feel really connected because growing up, people were telling us to shut up, simmer down and let the boys be funny and say their thoughts first. We both rejected that. We’re confident in ourselves, love our friends fiercely and are also complete a**holes. We have fun and yeah, she feels like family.”
AmySchumer —RUBENV. NEPALES
Amy shared more details—one of the first few times that she did so—about her special day last Feb. 13 in our chat.
“The wedding was so much fun,” she said. “I’m 36, not 22, and want to have my wedding. I flew in all my girlfriends from home, and everyone was able to make it.
“There were no wedding crashers. We planned it in three or four days, which I recommend.”
Nobody got intoxicated, but Amy joked with a laugh, “There was a drunk bride (laughs). Nobody humiliated himself/herself. Everybody had a good time.”
The native New Yorker claimed that she never dreamt of a traditional wedding. “I thought if I ever met someone I wanted to commit to, that we would go to the courthouse. Yeah, I get enough attention. I didn’t need it to be my day. But the two of us were like, f**k it. Let’s have fun and let’s have a wedding.”
So, who is the man who inspired the no-nonsense comedian to do the wedding march, in a lovely gown and all? Aside from being a chef, Chris is an award-winning cookbook author who operates his family’s farm in Martha’s Vineyard, where he and Amy met.
“My assistant Molly is his sister,” Amy dished. “I had been working with Molly for months, and she introduced me to her brother as a chef. I was visiting Martha’s Vineyard, and he was cooking for us. I thought he was so cute.
“After five or six months was when we started looking at each other differently. Then, we asked Molly if it was OK with her. I think she said yes because she was afraid of losing her job (laughs).
“I’m 36 and had been dating forever. I never fantasized about getting married. Then, I met Chris, and he was the kindest, smartest, funniest and most giving person I had ever met. I wanted to partner up with him.”
Teased that it was a very smart move on her part to marry a chef, Amy laughed as she conceded, “Yeah, you bet! I never have to cook and do the dishes. He’s teaching me a lot about vegetables. He loves fennel, celery root—and these are things that I have mostly avoided (laughs).”
The wedding marked the end of Amy’s dating period, which included relationships with a furniture designer, a pro wrestler and a comedian.
She looked back at those days: “It was tough, but funny. A lot of my standup comedy came from there. I have lived with boyfriends before, but I was never with someone I wanted to marry.
“I’ve been heartbroken, but I don’t have anyone that got away. I’m lucky. I am close friends with a lot of my exes. They were at the wedding. I’ve been in abusive relationships. The story in the movie (‘I Feel Pretty’) about finding out that the guy had a girlfriend, that happened to me.”
Written and directed by Abby Kohn and Marc Silverstein, “I Feel Pretty” is an enjoyable romp that taps Amy’s charisma and comedic chutzpah. She plays Renee, a woman who’s coping with insecurity until she wakes from a fall in a SoulCycle class. Suddenly, she believes that she is supermodel-gorgeous and a capable woman. Renee’s newfound confidence turns her life around, but what happens when she realizes that her appearance never really changed?
Michelle Williams (hilarious as a socialite beauty company owner), Rory Scovel, Busy Philipps, Naomi Campbell, Lauren Hutton, Aidy Bryant and Emily Ratajkowski round out the cast.
“The message of this movie is important to me—to realize that what you look like isn’t who you are, you have a voice and potential,” Amy explained. “Love yourself like your own mother does.”
Amy frankly admits that being an outspoken gun control advocate since a tragic 2015 shooting at a “Trainwreck” screening (even before the recent gun violence incidents) will affect the “I Feel Pretty” ticket sales in the United States.
“I know that this movie will sell less tickets because of it,” she said. “I can’t help but stand up for something that I clearly know is right. But I think the real leaders are the children, the younger generation.”
As far as success in her own career is concerned, Amy is buoyed up by the confidence that she gained like her character, Renee, did.
“Being in this business where I started out, like a lot of women do, I apologized before saying any sentence with, ‘I am sorry, but I have an idea.’ But working with filmmakers I respect, like Judd Apatow, was where I got the confidence to just go up and say, ‘I have an idea.’
“Then running my own TV show (‘Inside Amy Schumer’) and being a producer of these projects really made me understand more about my self-worth, that I have a lot to contribute.”
On a personal level, Amy seems to revel in her other new role, being a wife and partner in what promises to be a wonderful union. “It was our two-month anniversary yesterday,” she announced. “We made it, the big one!” she exclaimed with a chuckle. “And it feels nice. I feel settled with him. This is it. I just feel great, loved and so grateful.”
E-mail rvnepales_5585@yahoo.com. Follow him at https://twitter.com/nepalesruben.