25 years later we are still talking about the infamous moment back in 1999 when Keri Russell, the young ingénue who won the Golden Globe award for The WB’s college-set drama Felicity, chopped off her iconic curls, debuting a pixie cut in the second episode of season two.
The drastic haircut went viral before going viral was a thing. National hysteria ensued. Fans revolted. Ratings rapidly crashed. TV history was made.
These days Russell is known for her Emmy-nominated performance as Kate Wyler, the harried U.S. ambassador to Great Britain on The Diplomat (season 2 premieres on Netflix October 31). She recently sat down with Rolling Stone for a new interview to chat about the hit political drama, playing a brash American in England, being scrutinized for her looks, real-life wardrobe malfunctions, and much more.
Of course, she was briefly asked about the moment where the head of her network began publicly blaming a Felicity ratings dip on her daring to get a haircut.
“I know, it’s wild,” Russell told Rolling Stone. “It’s a really unusual world that we live in. It is what it is. People really care about women’s hair. I mean, are there worse things? I’ll take it. If that’s my cross to bear to get this great life and to be in these parts, then fuck it. I’ll take it.”
Russell’s hair cut had such a pop culture impact that it turned the TV character’s name into a cautionary tale used across all genres: Anytime a TV character has made or contemplated making a major hair change it’s referred to as “pulling a Felicity.” You know Jennifer Aniston’s iconic “The Rachel” hair style from Friends? Consider this the opposite of that.
