- What would you say is the best and worst part about
being caught in a love triangle between Romeo and Juliet?
- Well, we all know how that's gonna end.
[Laughs]
So, I'm not gonna win there.
So, I guess that's the worst part.
The best part is that I think that I can then learn a lot
about myself through - I don't know
if I'm speaking as Rosaline or speaking as Kaitlyn in this.
- Life is a little too scarily similar to art.
- You know, I think you can learn a lot about yourself
and about what you really want and your desires
if you are going through heartbreak and that kind
of breakup is intense.
But I think that yeah, you can definitely come
out the other end having gone through something
and having a fresh new perspective.
So, I guess that's the good part of it.
- Yeah, becoming a better artist, for sure.
There's a plus to that.
I have friends who, like, purposely go out
of their way to get their hearts broken
just to make some good, some good quality content.
- [Isabela Merced] So. - [Kaitlyn Dever] OK.
- [Isabela Merced] We know Romeo, we know Juliet.
- [Kaitlyn Dever] Yes.
- Like, their story has been told so many times
in film and you know, plays.
- Right, right.
- Even in Taylor Swift's song, "Love Story."
- Yes, we love that song.
- Beautiful song.
[Laughs]
So, how does this version, kind of, modernize the story
and, kind of, differ from the rest?
- This story is obviously a twist for several reasons.
We are shifting the perspective
onto Romeo's recent ex, Rosaline.
When I just read this script,
I felt like it was such a interesting idea
and why hasn't anyone thought of it before?
I was just really excited to play up the comedy aspect
of it and play up the modernized dialogue of it all as well.
'Cause I think that that's what sort of separates it
from a "Shakespearean" story.
- A+, good answer. [Laughs]
And you know, to kind of add onto that, Kyle who we know
as Kyle, but he is also Kyle Allen.
He plays Romeo. - We know him just as Kyle.
- He's just a Kyle to us, uh, love him.
He said that this is kind of like 'Lion King
1 1/2,' where it's told from - Oh yeah.
- Timon and Pumbaa's perspective.
But Rosaline is Timon and Pumbaa.
- Oh my god, that's genius!
- It is, I have to agree, I have to agree.
I loved 'Lion King 1 1/2.'
[Laughs]
- [Kaitlyn] What was your favorite part
about Kyle Allen's portrayal of Romeo?
- Well, what a guy.
And he's so fun.
Like, he never took himself too seriously.
He also knows Shakespeare really well.
- [Kaitlyn] Yeah, yeah.
- But is able to do such -
- He's humble about it, but he -
Yeah, he does.
- Yeah, 'cause he does a foolish version of it here
but he's actually very educated
in the theatrical aspect of Shakespeare.
So, the casting was perfect.
- [Kaitlyn] Yeah.
I don't know if you experienced this.
I couldn't stop laughing at him.
- He told me about this too. [Laughs]
- And he - Did he tell you about when we were,
when we kissed?
- And you started laughing.
- I just like couldn't hold it.
I couldn't hold in my burst of laughter that just -
- That's funny.
- [Kaitlyn] And it was really bad
because we kept losing time and I was like -
Then that's never good 'cause everyone's like,
"All right Kaitlyn, you really gotta like pull it together."
But I just couldn't because Kyle was just
making me laugh so much.
There's something about - He was being so serious,
and yet there was something so funny about it.
- Well you guys have, like, the sibling energy too.
Like your relationship kind of reminds me of like a sibling.
So the fact that you guys had to kiss, I just, I feel bad.
I too would be laughing.
[Laughs]
He told me about that too.
- He did?
- It's funny to hear both of your stories, yeah.
- Oh man.
- Quite similar.
[Laughs]
- [Isabela] Which one of your previous roles
do you think kind of set you up best in order
to play this role of Rosaline?
- I feel like I've taken small things on, on each job.
Playing Rosaline though was a very new experience
for me 'cause she has a lot of intensity.
She's like very driven.
She's very dedicated and really fights
for what she wants, and that takes a lot of energy.
And I think as each day went on
I sort of started to discover more and more that maybe
she is like a slightly heightened version of myself.
- I've been saying that you are the version
of Rosaline that has gone to therapy.
[Laughs]
That's what I've been saying.
- [Kaitlyn] What was the most fun element
of this movie to play around with?
- Ooh, I liked to frolic in the gardens.
- [Kaitlyn] Your little twirl.
- My little twirl that I did.
I did the Disney Princess twirl.
No truly, like playing dress up, getting to wear inches
of hair that wasn't mine.
Makeup and hair done by Italian women
who have been doing it for ages.
- [Kaitlyn] Oh, it is a dream.
- [Isabela] It was truly expensive dress up.
[Laughs]
- And I loved that it wasn't on my budget.
It was fantastic.
And I'm just so glad that I got to do it with you,
and the amazing cast full of,
there's at least 10 different flavors of humor amongst us.
- God, everyone brought such, like, nuance and specificity
to each of their roles.
It's kind of crazy.
- Yeah.
I will say though, I'm a little biased
but I do love Steve the Courier.
Like he's my, he might be my favorite.
- He's, he really is.
- I want him to be the star of the sequel.
- I know.
- [Isabela] And you're the producer.
- Let's shift the perspective on Nico [Hiraga].
- Yes.
- Let's do it.
- You've got the power!
- We have to do that!
Oh my god, that'd be amazing.
No, but we had so much fun.
I mean even in the, like, the ending death scene.
Like, all of these actors in one space was just kind of
a lot with all of our costumes.
It was just really funny to me.
I mean, and also in your performance you were
so grounded with what you did.
But you brought so many new elements to Juliet
which I think is really special
and it really translates, like, so well on screen.
OK, so speaking of Juliet,
did you ever feel any pressure to take
on such a widely-loved iconic role?
- I was honored, and frankly a little bit surprised,
that I was the one they reached out to.
- You're the perfect Juliet.
- Thank you.
- You really are.
- Thank you.
And I also felt a little bit of relief, though,
when, you know, I read the script
and it wasn't to be taken so seriously.
- [Kaitlyn] Right.
- We weren't speaking in prose
and we were just simply hanging out.
- Yeah.
I always felt really, like, settled in this movie.
It felt really comfortable in a way just because I feel
like the dialogue is just really funny and brilliant
and it feels very natural and grounded and organic.
But then, also, Karen [Maine] created this, sort of,
really nice environment where no one felt really
any pressure to take this super, super, super seriously.
And that's what's so great about our movie
is that everyone's just having a good time
and it really translates on screen.
We really bonded so much on set.
I mean we had such a beautiful time.
I feel like every weekend we were always going
on adventures throughout Rome and outside of Rome.
- Well, poor you, you were exhausted.
- I was exhausted!
- Like she would make, you'd make so much of an effort
to, like, go out.
Even though I can't even imagine how exhausting.
- Yeah.
- I can't imagine cause I wasn't working as much as you.
But you were just, I mean, you would always make an effort
to go out with us, and that's, number ones
don't be doing that!
- But I wanted to.
But I, yes, I was, it was most I've worked. [Laughs]
- And I appreciated it, and I definitely noticed,
and I really appreciated it.
I don't think I've ever said that to you,
but like you really made everyone,
including my girlfriend, Kianah,
feel really really welcome.
- Aww.
- It was really cute.
- I just love you a lot.
- I love you too.
And I feel like I learned a lot from you, like,
in general, kind of how Juliet learns from Rosaline.
Like, I just learned a lot about life
and certain problems that you have to overcome
and I'm very grateful that, you know,
it's - I don't know, Hollywood, you think
you're gonna work with another actor who is around
the same age, who you probably auditioned
for things at the same time against.
- [Kaitlyn] Yeah.
- And you kind of have this idea
that you are automatically, there's gonna be
some awkward tension or something.
But I don't think we ever, we never felt that.
- Our chemistry was, like, instant.
- It was instant, yeah.
[Laughs]
- [Kaitlyn] OK. So, are you Team Romeo and Juliet?
Team Rosaline and Dario?
Juliet and Rosaline?
Or are you Team Rosaline and Romeo?
- I honestly, I would say Rosaline and Juliet.
I, OK,
very strange thing to admit, but I thought
they were gonna end up together, and then they were like,
"And they were cousins."
So, no.
Not an option.
But I think they make a really good team
and they kind of balance each other out like Yin and yang.
So.
- Yeah.
At the end of this movie,
Romeo and Juliet sail away together.
- Oh really?
- Yes, they do.
- Oh.
- And then, they maybe realize
that they might not be the best fit for each other.
So how was that, to bring that to life,
and what is the message you think that sends?
- Well, as the great Lana Del Ray once said,
"Got a lust for love," and that's what they had.
They were lusting after something that wasn't actually,
you know, fathomable or tangible
in their young, not really fully developed, frontal lobe.
You know, they're very young.
They're very young, and they don't know.
And I think that this is a great take on it
because it is ridiculous.
It's a little bit of a ridiculous story.
I mean this all happens within the span of three days
or something, like, come on.
I understand Rosaline's perspective.
But I think there's so much to be learned from this movie.
Gen Z, we have this saying, "Main character energy."
And I feel like Rosaline kind of has that mindset
at the beginning where it's like,
"Everyone's ruining my story."
- [Kaitlyn] Yeah.
- "And this is my story.
"So, everybody get in line.
"I'm the main character."
Whereas, like she kind of has to realize
throughout the movie that she's,
and we all are, just side characters
in everyone else's story.
So, I think it's a good lesson to learn.
- Well said.
- So, at the end of this, Rosaline does,
you know, get an ending.
Now do you like the ending?
- Yes.
- Was it a happy ending for you?
Was Dario, like, a snack?
How much, how did you like how things turned out for her?
- OK, so I'm happy for Rosaline.
I think it's really nice that she has maybe
found something fun and new and interesting.
We don't know where their story as a couple leads.
We don't know.
But I think that he is definitely someone that sees her
for who she is and really understands her
in a way that I think that maybe Romeo didn't.
What I really admire most about her
is that she is a very independent woman.
She definitely doesn't need a man to be happy
and to be like comfortable in her own skin.
I think that she is just very ahead of her time
in this period that we are portraying in the movie.
So, that's what I really admire most about her.
But I also think that it is really nice that she is
with someone that really does truly love her for who she is.