Why Is Anne Hathaway a Diehard Fan of the Philadelphia Eagles Despite Being Born and Raised in New York?

Anne Hathaway was seen celebrating with Philadelphia Eagles fans in the crowd as her team was on the brink of a Super Bowl victory over the Kansas City Chiefs last Sunday. The FOX broadcast cut to the well-regarded movie star as she wore a green scarf and cheered for the Birds with the Eagles Dance. But you might be wondering why she supports Philly despite being born and raised in New York. She sure has her reasons for donning the green and white.

Hathaway was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. In a 2022 interview with Jimmy Fallon, she revealed that she was a die-hard Giants fan. She even joked about her team’s 0-2 start, comparing it to the 2007 season when the Giants began the same way and went on to win the Super Bowl. But in 2025, she suddenly flipped allegiances.

However, she’s not a bandwagoner. Hathaway’s ties to Philadelphia go back before she was born. Her grandfather, Joe McCauley, was one of Philadelphia’s most popular radio hosts from 1941 to 1968. A WIP-AM legend, he had famous guests like Frank Sinatra call into his show. Additionally, McCauley’s daughter—Hathaway’s mother—was born in Philadelphia.

 

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It just goes to show that team allegiances don’t always come from simply rooting for the local team. Some of us are fans for deeper, more meaningful reasons. And while it’s a little fishy that Hathaway switched from one NFC East team to another, it’s understandable once unpacked. But if she flips back to the Giants if they ever get good again, we might have a problem.

Perhaps we’re being unfair to Hathaway and should give her a chance to explain her sudden flip. Maybe it’s Saquon Barkley-related. After all, many New Yorkers were heated when they saw him move on to the in-division rival.

Not only that, but they had to relive it on Hard Knocks through the eyes of the GM. The clip of Giants owner John Mara saying he would lose sleep at night if Saquon went to Philadelphia has lived on in infamy.

#Giants owner John Mara on Saquon Barkley potentially getting interest from the Eagles and Bears:

“I’ll have a tough time sleeping if Saquon goes to Philadelphia, I’ll tell you that. … He’s the most popular player we have BY FAR.”pic.twitter.com/T0SJDIyHZH

— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) July 17, 2024

And the season went just as perfectly as it could’ve gone for Saquon in his new home. He broke 2000 rushing yards and set the record for most rushing yards in a season, regular and playoffs combined.

Saquon also had three 50+ yard runs in the postseason, the most in this century. To top it off, he finished the year hoisting the Lombardi trophy. You could argue the biggest losers of the Super Bowl were actually the Giants.

So, it’s almost lucky that Hathaway had an out for switching sides. She may not care about the big picture, but she seemed genuinely interested in the sport during her interview in ’22. To be fair, she wasn’t wearing any real Eagles gear on Sunday. Hathaway donned a green scarf and cheered as the Eagles closed in on victory. Maybe she was just a Saquon fan for the night.