A Star Is Born: The Easter Eggs Bradley Cooper Hid in His Lady Gaga Remake

On Friday, Bradley Cooper bares his soul to worldwide movie audiences via A Star Is Born, the remake he co-wrote, directed, and stars in opposite Lady Gaga. Cooper was so committed to the project that he logged hundreds of hours learning to play the guitar and sing well enough to perform at Coachella and Glastonbury without being booed offstage. He analyzed his dreams, re-purposing certain images and ideas for art. He used his own pain and addiction—which he has been reluctant to discuss in interviews—to anchor his heart-aching role as an addict who, in spite of his artistic talent, is broken inside. He spent hours interviewing Lady Gaga with his co-writer Eric Roth to ensure that her character, Ally, was authentic to Gaga’s own struggles. He filled his cast with people who meant something special to him—including his own ear doctor! He incorporated subtle, sweet homages to previous versions of Hollywood’s favorite love story. As Taffy Brodesser-Akner wrote for The New York Times, “Every detail of [the film] comes from a true thing—something he’s learned, something he’s seen, something he knows for sure.”