How The Grinch Who Stole Christmas became a Christmas classic in 2000 (Image: The Grinch )
It’s arguably one of the most beloved films of all time – largely down to legend Jim Carrey’s hilarious portrayal in the infamous green suit.
The 2000 hit movie How The Grinch Stole Christmas is based on the book by the same name by American children’s author Dr. Seuss. Who was also responsible for all the illustrations in the timeless festive novel.
When the time came to bring the tale to life on the big screen, the director honoured both the plot of the book and the writer’s vision for how the residents of Whoville looked.
The Whoville residents, known as the Who, famously have small upturned noses and a long, rounded philtrum – the space between the base of the nose and the upper lip.
The entire cast wore facial prosthetics as part of their costumes – except for Taylor Momsen, who played young Cindy Lou in the Christmas classic.
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Taylor Momsen was too young to wear prosthetics in the film (Image: The Grinch )
Now Taylor, 31, has opened up about the real reason why she was exempt from the cast rule. Speaking to The Today Show, she revealed: “I do remember having a lot of fun on that set.
“I mean the prosthetics for example, all the Whos wore prosthetics but I was too young to actually wear the prosthetics. So they wrote a line into the film of, ‘She hasn’t even grown into her nose yet’. So, they just put a little blush on my nose.”
But while she escapes the fake nose, there were other bits of the famous costume that she couldn’t avoid – and as a seven-year-old it was a brand-new experience.
She went on: “I remember it was the first time I’d ever worn a wig in my life. Putting all my hair into the bobby pins and into the wig cap and the big wig every day.
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She was often picked on for portraying Cindy Lou Who (Image: The Grinch)
“It was the first time I ever wore fake eyelashes, and I had the fake teeth and I remember with the fake teeth, I hated the taste of the glue that went in… and so I wouldn’t take them out once I put them in and I would eat with them and everything.”
There was more prep to be done before the cameras started rolling on set. Taylor and the other Whoville actors had to learn how to do stunts so they could move like the inhabitants of Whoville did in the book.
She called these sessions “Who School… because there’s so many acrobats and contortionists and Who’s have all these walking on top of balls and all these things.” Taylor was training for a month “learning how to do the stunts.”
She recalled: “I had to learn all the safety protocols and how to fall down a trap door without getting hurt. I remember that as like ‘Who Bootcamp’. It was a ball. All the stunts I loved. It was such an amazing thing I got to be a part of.”
As a teen, the blonde beauty went on to portray Jenny Humphrey in the hit show Gossip Girl before she put her acting days behind her to pursue a career in music.
But she also revealed that the role didn’t just bring sweetness and festive merriment to her life. The actress-turned-musician confessed that she was “relentlessly” bullied after taking on the infamous role.
Speaking on SiriusXM’s Podcrushed podcast with her on-screen brother from Gossip Girl, Taylor confessed that playing Cindy Lou in The Grinch changed her life in a “multitude of ways” before brazenly admitting: “One of them being I was made fun of relentlessly.”
She explained: “Every time I would start a new school or go somewhere else, I don’t even think the kids knew my name. I was just ‘Grinch Girl’. Not even the character name, just ‘Grinch Girl’. I got used to it, but it was alienating.”