Teri Hatcher's Mean Struggle

6 months ago 12th May 13:30

Teri Hatcher found it "difficult to be mean" while working on 'Coraline'.

According to director Henry Selick, the 'Desperate Housewives' star could not bring herself to shout at her on-screen daughter Dakota Fanning - even though the pair were only voicing characters for the animated adventure.

Teri's fantastic. She has a lot of range. The main thing with Teri was that it was difficult for her to be mean, because she has a great daughter and could never be that way to her own daughter.

He said: "Teri's fantastic. She has a lot of range. The main thing with Teri was that it was difficult for her to be mean, because she has a great daughter and could never be that way to her own daughter."

In the family adventure animation - which stars Dakota as the title character - Teri voiced the role of Coraline's mother and her evil alter-ego Other Mother.

Despite struggling with the role initially, Henry - who also directed 'James and the Giant Peach' and 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' - says Teri quickly settled into the part.

He explained: "She was ready to take charge of the Other Mother at her most wicked and most evil. I think that was the most fun for her."

Meanwhile, Henry was also impressed with 15-year-old Dakota's professionalism.

He added to DigitalSpy: "I met with her one-on-one and it was fantastic - a young girl pulling at her hair and acting like a kid but talking like a seasoned pro. She brings an incredible range in her performance and believability. She's very likeable without being sickly sweet and also very inspirational to the animators."