Genovian Royal Jewelry in “The Princess Diaries” Are Genuine Chopard

If you’re wondering where Genovia is, you probably haven’t seen “The Princess Diaries” and its sequel. I’ve seen both dozens of times because my daughters watched them repeatedly although not as much as “The Parent Trap”, another Disney film.

Genovia is a fictional kingdom in Europe. The Crown Prince died so the Queen (played by Julie Andrews) flew to San Francisco to seek out her only grandchild, Mia (Anne Hathaway), the heir to the throne. The awkward and nerdy-looking Mia, unaware until that point that she had royal blood, was shocked. But she was also willing to get to know her grandmother, to please her and to entertain the idea of becoming Queen one day. In a series of hilarious scenes, Mia was transformed from ugly duckling into a poised and polished princess. By the end of the film, she had decided to accept her royal legacy.

At the start of the sequel, “The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement”, Mia had graduated from Princeton and had relocated to Genovia. Her grandmother, the Queen, gave her a tour of her suite. Using a remote control, she showed Mia where her clothes, shoes, accessories and jewelry were.

There was a drawer for the jewelry meant for daily wear.

There was another drawer for the jewelry for formal occasions.

And there was a separate compartment for her tiaras.

Jaw-dropping fabulous, eh? But are the pieces real or knockoffs made for the film? In an interview with People magazine, Anne Hathaway said, “It was all real. All from Chopard. And I didn’t get to keep a piece of it… during the coronation scene, I wore this ginormous, kind of rocked out necklace, which Sharon Osbourne later wore to the Oscars. And I went up to her and said, ‘You are wearing my necklace …’ And she said, ‘No, dah-ling, it is Chopard’s.’ (Laughs) But then I believe they turned it into a tiara that is worth about $3 million.”

Of course it wasn’t just Mia who paraded eye-popping jewelry in the two films. Clarisse Renaldi, reigning Queen of Genovia, wore equally stunning tiaras, necklaces and earrings. Julie Andrews enjoyed the role because, among others, “I get to wear all these great jewels and these gorgeous dresses…”

Fans of “The Princess Diaries” movies will be happy to know that, after more than a year of rumors and denials, director Garry Marshall has declared, “I was with Anne Hathaway a couple weeks ago, it looks like we want to do Princess Diaries 3 in Manhattan.”