Carter Smith

With a sharp sense of humor and serious smarts, Anna Kendrick has turned herself into the savviest social-media star of her generation and makes her ELLE cover debut for the magazine's first-ever Social Issue. Now, with seven projects on the horizon (Happy Christmas is out this month), the acting, singing, joking sensation is about to go supernova. Kendrick garnered an Oscar nomination at 24 with Up in the Air. Her hit song "Cups," recorded for the Pitch Perfect soundtrack, spent 44 weeks on Billboard's Hot 100. Her Saturday Night Live debut this April—a barrage of musical skits—unleashed skill after seemingly limitless skill. But Kendrick also has found a way to meld the famous-person world with the one the rest of us live in, taking every opportunity to remind us—largely via social media—that she's still an occasionally weird and sometimes flawed human, not just a body hosting an increasingly desirable brand. Tweet by tweet, joke by joke, Kendrick, now 28, has carved out a space in which to define herself. And the result is that despite living a life most of us can't relate to, she herself seems entirely relatable.

Carter Smith

Whether Kendrick is talking about her childhood and teen years, or commenting on her so called 'approachable hotness,' she offers an interesting look at the woman who describes herself to her 2.5 million Twitter followers as "Pale, awkward and very very small." Check out the following excerpts for a sneak preview, and read the full interview exclusively in ELLE's July issue, available digitally and at newsstands in select cities starting June 17th, and nationwide on June 24th.

On family and divorce:

Kendrick grew up in Portland, Maine, in a house sandwiched between the pond where she and her older brother, Michael, ice-skated in the winter and the baseball diamond where they watched Little League games in the summer. Their parents—Janice, an accountant, and William, a teacher—divorced when she was 15 but stayed on good terms. "I hate when people think you're broken because your parents are divorced," Kendrick says. "And I really reject the idea of staying together for the kids. If they're growing up in a house that's not healthy, it's better to know that's not the model of what marriage should be."

– Excerpted from ELLE, July 2014

Carter Smith

On her sex appeal:

This lack of ego, coupled with the stealth hourglass shape, the porcelain skin, and the smart mouth, add up to a very specific kind of sex appeal. Kendrick, who hasn't publicly dated since she and Edgar Wright broke up last year, says she hasn't been hit on since Up in the Air, "honest to God." For the 5 million-plus people who have YouTubed her Newcastle Brown Ale Super Bowl ad, this will be hard to buy. In it, the actress is simultaneously sexy and hilarious, twirling her movie-star hair and deadpanning that she's "approachable hot, like the-hottest-girl-in-your-improv-class-hot." [@RyBrockington: "Breaking News: I can indeed confirm that @AnnaKendrick47 was the hottest girl in my improv class."] "I've never felt like I've exactly traded on my looks," the actress says matter-of-factly. "When I was a teenager, I was an ultralate bloomer, and my mom would say it was a blessing, because it means you never have to wonder if guys are only interested in you because you've got boobs. I would have been thrilled if guys were interested in me because of my boobs!" But maybe it's for the best. "Similarly, I think I'm lucky that I've never had a crisis about whether the only reason I'm successful is because I'm crazy hot. It's not something that crosses my mind."

– Excerpted from ELLE, July 2014

Carter Smith

Look out for Anna's Twitter and Instagram takeover of ELLE's handles today, and watch and share our exclusive behind-the-scenes cover shoot video starring Anna and her social media obsession here.

Follow @ELLEmagazine on Twitter and @elleusa on Instagram for Social Issue surprises throughout the month, and join the conversation via #ellesocialissue.

Carter Smith

Related: Anna Kendrick on Pitch Perfect 2, Oscar Swag, and Her Inner Regina George

Related: Behind-the-Scenes with Anna Kendrick Before the Oscars

Molly Langmuir Molly Langmuir is a freelance writer and former staff writer for ELLE.

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