Taika Waititi and Rita Ora cover the latest issue of Vogue Australia. This is their first-ever magazine editorial as a couple. They got together during the pandemic, when Rita was working on The Voice Australia and Taika was working on Thor: Love and Thunder. What started out as a pandemic romance of convenience turned into a midlife-crisis marriage for Taika, in my opinion. Maybe he adores her, maybe this is a real love match. But it doesn’t come across that way to me. It comes across as Taika likes her and he enjoys that she’s an uncomplicated person, and he simply likes being in a pretty easy relationship. Anyway, Vogue Aus did a dual interview because they both have projects – Rita has an album out and Taika’s promoting Next Goal Wins. Some highlights:
Taika on their Oz photoshoot: “It’s a romantic way to be on something together for the first time. It’s okay to be a little bit earnest—this is us, and our relationship, and we’re looking good, and it’s such a new thing for me and I just loved it.”
Taika likes being in Australia: “We were here last December when Rita did The Voice for the second time. We’ve both got a lot of friends here and everything sort of falls back into place easily. But then to come back and do this, it felt safe and like it was in good hands, especially being something that was within our control together.”
Ora feels funnier around him: “I actually feel like I’ve become funnier. Because I thought I was already funny, I was the funny girl in my crew. And now we’re together, I have to constantly remind people that I am also a really funny person because now there’s two of us.”
Taika on Rita’s jokes: “We have a thing where we both kind of steal each other’s jokes. You know, I’m from New Zealand. And we’re a little underplayed. So I say my jokes and it’s in a very subtle, underhanded manner. If you miss it, you miss it. And if people miss it, Rita takes the joke and says it again. Seconds later and everyone says, ‘Oh Rita!’ and she just steals my jokes. What’s yours is mine and what’s mine is yours.”
Taika on Rita writing songs about him: “I’m a Leo. Everything in the world revolves around me. I basically go through life thinking I am living in The Truman Show and everything is orchestrated for my entertainment. So it makes perfect sense in some ways, that eventually someone will write a song about me. No, I was really honoured. For me it was not at all confronting in any way that I felt uncomfortable, it was just humbling; it was very touching. I’ve never written about someone I’ve been with. That would be insane to write a movie about someone you’re with, absolutely nuts. An album, sure.”
What Taika admires about Rita: “Really inspiring. I’ve worked for 20 years without a holiday. For me it’s inspiring to see someone who is working and motivated, who reflects a lot of how I feel about work and my place in the industry and is very open and honest about things that she’s been through with being an artist. It’s helped me open up about it, too, because I’m like, oh man, I’ve gotta remain invincible and I can’t break. I’ve got all these expectations from New Zealand and my community in New Zealand and what I’m doing. And suddenly realising that it’s okay to be a little bit more vulnerable around your work, and that your work can actually get better around that. That’s the big thing I’ve taken away from being in Rita’s presence. You are very inspiring to me in terms of your work ethic—I thought I was a hard worker and then I see what you do and I’m like, Jesus, this makes me want to give up.”
“I’m a Leo. Everything in the world revolves around me.” Oh GOD. So I looked it up – Rita is a Sagittarius. Like Taylor Swift. Some things are starting to make sense now. A Leo and a Sag, both in entertainment, feeding off each other’s drama. I get it now. Oh lord.
Cover & IGs courtesy of Vogue Australia.
They are…perfect for each other. In the most onboxious way possible. Yikes. I chuckled at him talking about her work because…wtf does she actually do?! Like I know she was/is a singer but has she actually released anything recently? She seems to spend the majority of her time showing up at random events and now she shows up to his events. Like…what does she DO??
It literally says in the post that she just released an album. She’s huge in Europe – she’s had way more radio hits in my country than Taylor Swift. There’s no way I can go on an hour car trip and not hear one of her songs in the radio, so I’m always surprised when people from the US dismiss her as nobody. She’s not American, not being popular there doesn’t make somebody a pointless drifter.
I’m from the uk – the same country as her and I don’t even know any of her hits. Curious to know where you are from that plays her music lol
The difference between Leos and the rest of you is we admit we’re drama or a little bit drama. The rest of you just carry on and on 😘
So I know they’re going to get a lot of crap about their drama and authenticity and messiness, blah blah blah, but I am just at a point this week where I want to be able to celebrate other people’s’ happiness, wherever they find it and however long it lasts. Regardless of age differences or whether they had rejected marriage before or whatever — let’s just let people enjoy their little victories, yes? Drumpf and the SCOTUS conservative toads are enough of a challenge; I don’t need more this day.
@squid – true! Plus hot, pretty people looking hot and pretty together is fun for the rest of us
I agree! They seem pretty smoky/sexy/raunchy in a way that the GOOPs of the world never can be. I miss that!
God, I couldn’t agree more! I feel this way about Ben and Jlo too. I’m here for this attitude!
My Leo daughter’s senior quote in her yearbook “In case you didn’t know, I’m a Leo”
🤦♀️
It sounds like Taika is having a bit of trouble letting himself “be earnest.” I bet that’s why he’s so extra all the time: too afraid of looking serious, he makes everything camp and overblown. It would be interesting to see what kinds of movies he’d made / acting he’d do if he lets himself relax and do something “earnest.”
I quite like the cover photo but for the jeans, both because they have that little, inexplicable cuff and because the color detracts. Would have liked to see him in fitted black pants or something along that line.
Power couple?? According to whom?
According to NOBODY
Why no ‘candor’ about their threesomes? Very pretentious and annoying people.
Ha, I didn’t know Sags were known to be dramatic. I’m a Sag and I definitely can get fixated and impassioned, but I’m not an attention seeker like Taylor. I would find her life totally exhausting. The whole idea of living in the public eye like that makes me squeamish.
They are beautiful people. I don’t know much else about them. So, mazel tov and best of luck to the couple!
Wow, his luxurious curls really masked the shape of his head. He almost looks like a different person with his hair buzzed off.
I’m a female Sag in a committed relationship with a male Leo. It’s never dull that’s for sure. He’s my third Leo and if this doesn’t work out I am DONE with them. I don’t know how I end up with them. Even my mom is a Leo. I guess Sag’s are good at sharing the spotlight or even stepping out of it because it really is all about the Leo ego.