I hate doing interviews for one reason and one reason only. If I love the project, my fangirl flag is going to fly. I can’t hold back my enthusiasm, and sometimes the professionalism flies out the window. What remains is the little girl inside of me that can’t hold back their excitement. When it comes to Emily Henry, I knew that I would not be able to hold back excitement.
Authors are my rockstars.
Books can change lives.
Emily’s books have been a big part of my fangirl life. They’ve been there through the good times and the bad. They are a part of what I love so much about fandom – they spark a conversation and remind you that there are people out there who are just like you. There is a belief in romance and having fun, and second chances.
Sitting down to speak to Emily Henry and People We Meet On Vacation director, Bretty Haley, I knew that my inner fangirl was going to come out (and it did).
What I love about Zoom interviews is that I always enter a room and the people you are interviewing are talking amongst themselves, and then they notice you and stop. This time, as soon as I entered the room, I found myself speaking and telling them that I loved the movie sooo much and interrupted them.
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My bad. But these two are so attentive and so gracious, they make you feel special
“I loved the movie. I’m such a fan of Emily’s books, and I loved, loved the movie. I felt like it was an ode to rom-coms of the past, always somehow advancing the genre to something new. It felt like people should study it to see how an adaptation should be made. I really, really loved it. Sorry. I had to say that right off the bat.” I said, knowing that I really should pull myself in, but no shame here.
Brett replied, “No, this is what we want to hear, and it sounds absolutely genuine. We really appreciate that. That means everything.”
I found myself blushing a bit because it was genuine. It still is genuine. I loved the movie, and I found that it was a return to the rom-coms of the past, all while making it seem fresh and new. I asked a question that was probably asked a million times: “What, if any, rom-coms of the past influenced the making of this movie?”
ROMANTIC COMEDIES
It didn’t matter that they’d been asked. Both were gracious, and immediately Brett said, “100%, we would say When Harry Met Sally was our North Star and our gold standard for this. I’m really glad you described it as something that is a throwback but also moves the genre forward. We didn’t want to just do a retreat of it. I think Emily’s book was inspired by When Harry Met Sally, but also did its own thing and has its own journey. I think that one’s at the top of our list.”
Well, I watch and read A LOT of romance. I love the genre, which is kinda funny because I would be the first to say that I don’t believe in love. But that’s a different story. What I will say is that this movie made me believe that love can exist, and we need to open our eyes to what is there.
Emily answered my question, saying, “Yes. I think we wanted both stories. I wanted the book, and we both wanted the movie to feel like homages, not rip-offs. Not like we’re like, “Well, that worked before.” I feel like you can tell that we both love this genre, respect this genre, and believe in the power of it. That was a big one. I remember Brett really early on, he was like, “I really want to have our You Had Me at Hello moment in Jerry Maguire. I think that has one of the best final speeches and then the best response to that final speech.”
NOTTING HILL VIBE
And then continued, “We talked also about Notting Hill, which, for a movie that’s pretty high concept, actually, it feels so grounded. It feels like it’s just about normal people that you would know, including Julia Roberts as a movie star. There were a lot that I think we were pulling from. I think there’s the most homage to When Harry Met Sally.”
Notting Hill is one of my favorite movies of all time, and the thought of a movie like that means so much. I love the hidden stares, the angst in the eyes, and the monologues in both movies.
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Brett added to his answer, saying, “I would say Nora Ephron and Cameron Crowe were our saints.”
PASSION FOR THE MOVIE
The two really have a passion for this movie, and I happen to love that. You can see that they put their heart and soul into this adaptation. I felt like I couldn’t explain to them just how much I loved it and why. But their answer made me think about it. Tom Blyth and Emily Bader are a big reason why, but it is also my opinion that it’s an extension of the book. We get different moments, all while never discounting the story, and always adding to PoppyAlex.
And then there are Alex’s (Blyth) yearning eyes. They are grand.
We talked a bit, and then my inner fangirl started speaking again, “Adapting books is never easy. I’m not going to lie. Emily, your video, though it calmed me, it also made me nervous, as to, “Wait, what’s going to be gone from the book? What’s in Barcelona that wasn’t in Palm Springs?” Watching it, I felt like it didn’t make a difference.”
Emily said, “Right, it didn’t.”
WORRIES
Yes, sometimes I have no filter and just speak. I continued, “It didn’t make a difference at all. It actually, if anything, made the story flow in a different way. I felt like we got a new insight into getting to know the characters and really embracing them in a different way. I’m trying to figure out how to put this. How hard was that to do while honoring the spirit of Emily’s book? Were you worried or are you worried at all that fans of her books, because she has a rabid fan base, are going to be upset?”
In my opinion, when fan bases are obsessed with something, change is hard. I am saying that being a part of several fanbases that I have been afraid of the changes.
Brett answered, “Yes, we are worried, but not in a bad way. We are not like, “Oh, no, they’re not going to like it.” We just want them to like it. We’ve been worried for years about it. Just know that they were at the front of my mind and, of course, Emily‘s mind. They’re always at the front of Emily‘s mind. That’s how our relationship and friendship formed, was me reaching out to Emily and saying, “How do we make sure this hits everything it needs to hit to make the readers happy and satisfied? A movie adaptation, especially when it’s not a limited series or whatever, can’t just be page-to-screen.”
PAGE-TO-SCREEN
Emily continued by saying, “Why would any good director want to do that? The whole point is, you’re a creator. You want to take something that you already love, in this case, or something that’s brand new to you, and you want to bring that to life and put your stamp on it. It wouldn’t be fair to expect a director to pour their heart and soul into something for years when they have no ownership over it at all. The joy of an adaptation for the artist is that it is a collaboration. I write by myself all the time. I have a book. I have control over that.”
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She then continued, “That exists, and it’s not going away. I was really excited to have an artist like Brett and artists like our three writers take what exists, honor it, but also develop it into these little alternate paths that still are so true to the characters.”
The way that these two bounce off of each other is something I loved. That is not always the case, but it really felt like the connection to giving the best adaptation and story was there. They have a great relationship.
For the rest of the interview, watch it below –
People We Meet On Vacation is streaming now on Netflix.
