What drew you to Much Ado About Nothing in particular?
Well, I was a theater major in college, so I was very much immersed in Shakespeare and was taking a lot of classes in Shakespeare, specifically because I kind of thought I’d go into academia and live in a library and study Shakespeare for my whole life. I wanted to work at the Globe, which I kind of still do. [Laughs.] I love that the play is this classic enemies-to-lovers thing that feels like a big ensemble piece; to me, it always felt like there were these two characters at the center, Beatrice and Benedick, and everyone just orbited around them and puppeteered them and it seemed so right for a rom-com. I had really wonderful producers who were like, “This is good, keep going,” and, you know, I love banter. I love how much character development there is in the play, where they go from denying one another and telling the world they would basically take anyone but each other to actually being together. There’s some quote I’m forgetting the exact wording of where Beatrice basically says, “I would rather do some impossible thing than hear a man say that he loves me,” and then she just comes so far. She loves this person, and to see them overcome their immense hatred and sparring felt so fun to watch and read.
Has there been anything that’s surprised you about the process of watching the film go to the big screen?
I mean, I’ve worked in TV for a while, but obviously making movies is nothing like TV. As a writer, you’re just not as much a part of the process as you are with TV, which makes sense because you’re not crafting a story that’s going on and on. And it’s not like I expected anything to change, really, but it’s so weird that yesterday I was sitting in my house, reading Fourth Wing, and people were texting me that they had gone and seen the movie and liked it. They’re like, “Don’t you feel amazing?” and I’m like, “Yeah, but I’m still sitting in my house reading Fourth Wing, which is what I would be doing anyway.” I guess it’s like turning 30; you think, Okay, my life’s going to change, I’m entering a new decade, and then it’s like, Okay, everything’s the same. The premiere was so cool and surreal, though; my girlfriend was able to be there, which was so nice, and my whole family came, which was amazing. I’ve never been on a red carpet before like that; we were missing a few people who couldn’t be there, but most of the cast was there, and everyone kind of got to celebrate together. It felt really nice to look over and, like, see my dad talking to Glen’s dad, and they’re hysterically laughing together. The premiere was so special and cool, and I just had a great time sharing it with family.