[ad_1]
Expats, a series about the intertwined lives of foreigners in Hong Kong arrived this weekend. The six-part series helmed by The Farewell fame Lulu Wang features Nicole Kidman, Sarayu Blue, Ji-young Yoo, Brian Tee and Jack Huston, among others. Based on Janice Y.K. Lee’s novel The Expatriates, the show is an exploration of grief as it chronicles the fallout from a child’s mysterious disappearance.
In an exclusive interview, Brian Tee and Jack Huston opened up about Lulu Wang, playing flawed characters and more.
What were some of your initial conversations with Lulu Wang like?
Brian: Some of my first conversations with Lulu were really about being a father. She had this wonderful script laid out and she really just wanted to get into the nuances of being a dad – a loving, caring father who does everything to keep it all together while going through his own trauma. That is something we usually don’t have but we have that on the show. She did an incredible job with the team to bring that perspective to life, especially with a tragedy like this. For me, that was the best. Lulu is the best. She is so talented, giving and warm. She brings all these elements to life that you don’t even notice.
Jack: Yeah, she’s such a wonderful filmmaker and such a great person. I was lucky enough to work with Lulu on her first movie and we’ve kept up our friendship and always wanted to work on something again. It was such an interesting take on those who do something wrong. Usually, films are about the victims of these things but it’s great to experience it through the eyes of the perpetrators as well. We have explored that scenario where someone is living an awful thing that they’ve done as much as people who are living with awful things that have happened to them. Lulu is just funny and brilliant and sees things in such an amazing way. It was a treat to support her vision and so many amazing women.
Brian, what was it like working with Nicole Kidman?
Brian: What can I say that people don’t already know? She is brilliantly talented. What we created was something really magical. We have an interconnection, personally, we connected on family and kids. Our very first scene together on the show was the one where we found out about the tragedy. Me and Nic just jumped into the pool together. We did so many takes of crying and fighting. We called each other after and went “That was the best thing for us.” We created 20 years of backstory because we literally just let go. There was no hesitation. We gave our souls to one another. From then on you can see and feel the massive connection.
Jack, what went into understanding your broken, complicated character?
Jack: It’s wonderful to read a character who reveals himself slowly. What you initially take is that he’s doing all these wrong things. But humans are flawed, we all make mistakes. It was interesting to play something that is so human and so real. Lulu writes in such a way that you know every day on set you’ll be asking these difficult questions which mimic life in a lot of ways. It is tragic and heartbreaking. I feel like David is a very layered person. Slowly throughout the series, you understand that he’s a very troubled man. He’s been through a lot and he’s held a lot in. I don’t think he’s bad. In his relationship with Hilary, even in the last scene, you can tell they love each other. But life can be hard.
Expats in currently streaming on OTT.
#Exclusive #Brian #Tee #Jack #Huston #open #Expats #broken #characters
