The Mrs. of A Wrinkle In Time – Oprah, Mindy and Reese

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We met Oprah Winfrey. I had to get that statement out of the way, so there’s no chance of it repeating throughout this article. A group of 25 amazing bloggers had the opportunity to interview the Mrs. of A Wrinkle In Time — Oprah Winfrey, Mindy Kaling, and Reese Witherspoon, and I was a part of that collective. Throughout this interview, we learned so many life lessons from all three of these women, but we knew this would be a different experience when Oprah joyfully proclaimed “I raised you all!” Yes you did, Ms. Winfrey.

A Wrinkle In Time Will Inspire A New Generation Of Girls

When asked how they hope A Wrinkle In Time will inspire this next generation of girls, all 3 of the Mrs. shared their views:

Reese – “When we get together, we create abundance. That’s been a driving part of my career, the more I collaborate with women, the more we create for each other.  So I think that’s a concept that we need to put into our little girls’ brains.”

Mindy – “The cast is so inclusive; I’ve never seen anything like that, and I think as a young woman I would have felt so much joy from watching (this movie). And felt so much happiness from seeing that.  And as a dreamer, I think I wouldn’t have to dream quite so hard to picture myself on screen.”

Oprah – “What I do know for sure is that everybody’s goal, whether they can articulate it as such or not, is to live a life that matters and a life that has meaning.  And I think that my hand prints, my heart prints, all over the Oprah show for all those years is a magnificent purpose to have lived.

But I also knew when we were doing this film that there would be young girls who would come along and they would see the Mrs. and me, and they would say, ‘what do you mean she had a talk show?’ And that the imprint, the heart print that you eventually will leave in this world will come from what is said in this movie…So I could feel that when I was doing it.”

Taking A Favorite Childhood Book To The Big Screen

If Oprah, Mindy and Reese could take one book from their childhood and adapt it for the big screen, which one would they choose?

Reese – “There are so many! I can never remake it, but To Kill a Mockingbird was one of my favorite books. The language was the way people spoke and the ideas, a little girl looking up to her father, father-daughter love.  I think that would be really profound.”

Oprah – “It would be Caged Bird (I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings) for me.”

Mindy – “This is just a fun one: Harriet the Spy. I loved it, and I think they tried to do it a while ago. But it was the first time I’d seen a short haired, not overtly feminine looking girl, like a chubby introvert girl, who had her own adventure who was a latchkey kid. It hit all the boxes for me, so I loved that book and I’d love to see it made into a movie.”

Mindy Kaling’s New Podcast?

One of the most fun parts of our interview was when Reese admitted that she’s been gently pushing Mindy to start a podcast. Mindy’s Minute was the working title she gave her, and with a room full of women in social media, we became big enablers.

Reese – “I honestly I have said to Mindy over and over again I would love Mindy to have a podcast where it’s called Mindy’s Minute. And she just talks, I would listen to her talk about the news through her eyes, any day of the week.”

Mindy, if you’re reading this: please start that podcast!

The Power of Storytelling

Oprah ended our interview by reminding us of the importance of storytelling. She shared that she’s done hundreds of shows on tough topics — AIDS, domestic violence, child abuse — but there is bigger power in sharing a story behind these life events. The stories get through to a person’s soul.

Oprah – “People see themselves in the story, and recognize first and foremost, I’m not alone. When you think about it, major obstacles in our culture have been overcome. 

And the light has been shed by the beauty of storytelling.  I remember going to a little town in Virginia in the eighties where a young boy had been ostracized (because he had AIDS) and they drained the pool.  There was an entire Town Hall where people from the town said get out of town.  

We did show after show about AIDS.  And then when it started to be integrated into the story lines in sitcoms, in movies like Philadelphia, that’s when people’s ideas about it actually started to shift and to change.”

Thank you Oprah, Mindy and Reese for inspiring every single woman in that room that day.

A Wrinkle In Time hits theaters March 9th! Check out this awesome trailer:

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