Laura Dern received “a suitcase full of” condoms as a travelling gift from her mom.
Laura Dern was shocked by a gift she received from her mom
The ‘Big Little Lies’ star was preparing to go away to shoot a movie when she was 16 and thought Diane Ladd had bought her a “sweet” gift of toiletries – but was stunned when she opened it up and discovered the contents.
Speaking to Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson on their ‘Where Everybody Knows Your Name’ podcast, she said: “So I’m going off to do a movie, and I’m 16, I think.
“And the actor [I was going to work with] also, you know, basically my age, but with a reputation already as a young, gorgeous, young movie star kid, was on that movie. So I’m packing up to get ready, and my mom brings me like a Samsonite make-up case.”
Laura, now 57, recalled finding the gesture “so sweet” because she assumed the bag was for “toiletries or something”.
But she added: “And I open it up and it’s full of contraception. Like, rubbers, every rubber, every you know, anything you can imagine for protection. I was like, mom, I’m not having sex yet. Like, what are you talking about?”
Her mother replied: “Well, you never know. You gotta be protected. You must be protected.”
But it seemed Diane didn’t actually intend for her gift to be used, as Laura – who didn’t identify the movie or her co-star – called her up during the shoot to reveal she and the mystery actor liked one another a lot.
She recalled: “And she goes, ‘You’re not gonna do it.’ And I said, ‘Well, I’m not saying we’ve done anything yet. I’m just telling you I like him. But what are you talking about? You sent me with a suitcase full of birth control!
“She goes, ‘Exactly, but not so you would use it!'”
